As we get closer to Vegas and have more Classic events, it has become evident that there are some serious contenders to be the Champion.  Crosswired, who won last year as a 3-year-old, has been raking up the victories. Black Pearl, the reserve champ, is also on fire and seems to have gotten better as the season has gone on.

But Vegas is one event, one round. If either of these bulls has an off day it could be More Bucks, HeeBeeGeeBee, Ground Zero or any number of the Classic bulls that have placed in the top 10 at an event.

Or we could have a situation like last year where a bull gets in from the Wild Card (which will be in las Vegas this year) slot and then goes on to “wow” the judges. Last season that bull was Black Pearl who finished second in the Finals. Just like last year, there may be a bull that few have seen that could go all (or almost all) the way.

I’m excited to see who winds up on top in Tulsa in a few weeks! Besides it being a PBR Built Ford Tough Series event, there will be a Junior Futurity as well. Check out the July Bull Pen for more on the first Junior event in Ardmore- it was a great success.

Ardmore was a great event- the level and quality of Futurity and Derby bulls was fantastic! ABBI paid out over half a million dollars which makes me think maybe I should be in the breeding business rather than the writing business!

The Derby bulls whooped the cowboys, very few made it to the whistle on this strong pen. Congrats to Cross E for having the best of 78 Derby bulls with Ricochet, who earned a 91.

Rex Samford won the first Junior event of the season with Party All The Time.  Later, dad Monty confided to me that his son didn’t heed his advice on which bull to enter OR on how to train him! Looks like maybe son knows best in this case! Monty and Janet couldn’t have been prouder and itis obvious Rex is on his way to being a great bull man just like his dad.

D&H/Flinn won over $100,000 for having the American Heritage Champ Jug Head.  Speaking of D&H, they had yet another top-notch sale with great genetics. Yearling bulls bought at their sale are eligible for the D&H Futurity the following year. Rafter HB bought a bull at last year’s sale and were the big winners this  year with Shot of Bo. Dusoin Hull proudly showed off his beautiful trophy buckle at the pre-sale social Saturday night and was still a little shell-shocked that they won!

I was glad to hear that Hannah Gant (a great Junior Breeder and a wonderful young lady ) is going to be ok. While helping to call scores for the judges during Saturday’s Heritage event she took a nasty bump to the head when a bull decided to run into the fence right where she and the judge were standing.

JW Hart (now OFFICIALLY retired) and wife LeAnn were at the event with new son Wacey. I never imagined in a million years I’d see JW making up silly songs while he bounced a little one on his knee! The Harts are amazing parents and Wacey is a luckly little buckaroo.

Last but not least, the ABBI staff needs to be congratulated for putting on an event that ran incredibly smoothly and quickly given that there were over 250 bulls to buck!  No event of this size can be perfect but Andee, Curt and their crew gave 110 % to make it great.

This is a big week for the PBR and ABBI- Wild, Wild West Fest is going on in Pueblo, Colo. There will be a PBR BFTS event, as well as an ABBI event. But the really big news (although not really “new” news!) is that Adriano, Justin and J.W. will be awarded the PBR’s Ring of Honor. Well deserved in my opinion-all have done immeasurable things for the sport! I wish I was going to be there but I am headed out of town for my annual “cowgirls” trip.   The cowgirls include breeders Rebecca Walker and Julie Ravenscroft. Poor Julie will miss seeing her bull buck in Pueblo- and Black Pearl has been runner-up to Crosswired a few times now at ABBI Classics…I think Pearl may be ready to go all the way!

I hope to see a lot of ABBI folks in Ardmore, Okla. at the end of the month for the American Heritage (the field this year is phenomenal!), Derby and D&H Sale. Thsi is the first year of the Derby (for 3-year-old bulls only) and I think it’ll be a big sucess.

On one last note… Ty finally got voted off “DWTS,” but he made us all proud!

I hope enough people voted for Ty and Chelsie that they don’t get eliminated tonight! I’m headed up to the studio in a few hours (since it is live for the East Coast) to attend the live results show. Just 20 miles from my house and Cindy Gotoski (who writes for Bull Pen) will be going with me.. we are keeping our fingers crossed!

Crosswired continues to dominate ABBI Classics, he got another win in Omaha. The Pages’ bull is on fire this year! Steve and Julie Ravenscroft’s Black Pearl was second (again) but I expect them to get first somewhere soon!

It is good to hear that Brendon Clark is doing better. After seeing his wreck and  hearing what his injuries were, I had some bad flashbacks to the wreck and injuries that killed Glen Keeley in 1999. Lacerated livers are never good.

It was great to see everyone in Stephenville-and so many great Futurity bulls!  Ultimately it was Boyd/Floyd and D&H that tied for top honors with Getin Busy and Page 65T. The Futurity started a little after 8am (waaaay too early in my opinion, but by my third cup of coffee I was awake!), because there were 135 bulls to buck. Everything needed to wrap up in time to get those bulls out and the Classic bulls in for the evening performance. After two days of Classic competition, it was Ground Zero from Ace of Spades/Moody-Rice/ Lonestar who came out on top.

The steak dinner Thursday night was a nice opportunity to catch up with everyone.  The Calcutta bids were taken on paper during the dinner and everyone had a chance to bid.The ABBI staff and looksWEST staff did a great job. Rebecca Walker helped with animal check-in at the arena and I was amazed how smoothly she got all of the Futurity bulls checked in (the Classic bulls were over at the 4Cs arena).

I’d imagine it’ll be the American Heritage the next time we see a crowd of so many breeders from all corners of the country, so if you missed Stephenville mark your calendar for the end of May. These big events are a great opportunity to network, learn more about the industry and just have an all-around great time with otehr bull folks!

There’s a lot of bull news to cover, but what really matters is people. I am so glad my buddy Flint is recovering  and doing well after his heart attack.

I am so sad JW and Cody lost their mom.  At the same time, I’m so happy that JW and LeAnn’s son Wacey has arrived and I hope he brings the entire Hart family some comfort.

That’s it for now… bull news can wait.

Well a lot has been going on… the first ABBI Classic was held in OKC and it was Las Vegas deja vu: Crosswired won first and Black Pearl got second.  I’m excited to see what happens this weekend in Kansas City!

Marchi couldn’t do it, but Mauney rode Bones and claimed some big $ from Tom Teague. The Tom Teague vs. Chad Berger smackdown has been postponed, if/when that happens it’ll be interesting to see  what the dollar figure is and what bulls are involved.

So the rumors ARE true…. Cowboy extraordinaire Ty Murray and his wife, songstress Jewel, will star on next season’s show!

No offense to Guilherme, but I’m not surprised. Can JB beat Bones?  I’d have to vote for Bones, but JB may last longer than Marchi. I just hope these match-ups continue… good for the sport and helps to build up our animal athletes.

What an exciting weekend! In Fresno, Matt Bohon rode Charlie Bullware (ending the bull’s buck-off streak), Zack Brown looked like he got in a battle with Edward Scissorhands after All In bucked him off and then hooked his vest and shirt and Kody Lostroh rode Troubadour to win the event. Not many cowboys have ridden Troubadour, and this was Lostroh’s second successful trip on the highest winning money bull of all time.

Moving on to Sacramento…. surprisingly  absent from the short go were Marchi, Mauney and Lostroh. But Zack Brown was in the short go again and the bull he chose was… All In! Brown, who retired from bull riding after a nasty wreck a few years ago, has been back with a venegance but it was still somewhat of a surprise that he’d want a bull he didn’t make the whistle on and who shredded his clothing. He came prepared, he duct taped the sides of his vest (where the velcro fastens) to prevent All In from tearing it off a second time.

Brown made it to the whistle to win the event. “I learned in Fresno what I needed to do to ride All In,” Brown explained, “and I taped my vest on just to be safe!”

Apparently one of my New Year’s resolutions needs to be to post more frequently.  I wanted to blog about Jimmy Anderson’s passing but it was all I could do to get it up on the Bull Pen Magazine website, it was just too heart breaking to write about when it happened.

When I ran into Rob Smets at the South Point after the NFR, and he told me Jimmy was gone, I couldn’t believe it. He was only 55! I remember watching him fight bulls when I first started working for PBR. He was one of the greats and he’ll be greatly missed.

When I think of the friends and wonderful people the bucking bull and rodeo industry has lost, I really am left with an overwhelming sense of sadness. I remember when Glen Keeley died, it was one of the first events I ever worked when I was doing pr for the PBR. The first press conference I ever held was to announce his death and it is still the one I remember every detail of.

I remember meeting Greg Crabtree at the first BFTS (then Bud Light Cup) PBR event he ever worked, it was my last doing pr for the PBR. He couldn’t find a ride to the airport for his evening flight, so he and I went out to lunch and killed a few hours before we left town.

Every time I write a story about Flying U or Moreno bloodlines, I remember Mikel Moreno.  I was talking to Cindy (Mikel’s mother) just the other day and I was reminded of how well he spent his brief time here on earth and how he was a bullman wise beyond his years.

But none of these people are forgotten. It was wonderful to see how Glen’s spirit is kept alive. At the PBR Canadian Finals in November he seemed to be in the arena with us, watching his friends ride.The bullfighters in the arena today all carry traits of Greg and Jimmy.  Every Canadian bull rider carries a piece of Glen, whether they had the privilege of meeting him or not. So many great bulls will continue to come out of the breeding program that Mikel influenced, and the crosses he decided to try. Mikel’s spirit is reflected in the ABBI junior breeders and everyone passionate not just about bulls, but about life.

A new season has started. Not much has happened with the ABBI events yet, that will kick into gear soon. The PBR has a few events under its belt and I’ll be heading to Fresno this weekend for the BFTS.  It will be exciting to see if J.B. Mauney can continue his streak from Madison Square Garden.

I hope 2009 holds many wonderful things for the industry. What I hope it doesn’t hold (but inevitably will) is the lose of another wonderful member of the bucking bull community. I am glad 2008 is over. I nearly lost my stepmom on Thanksgiving and my cousin shortly after. Both are out of the ICU now and I am truly blessed to still have them in my life.

Please remember to love and appreciate friends and family while you have them.

This picture is of Jimmy Anderson, my friend Rhonda Truetts’ kids Corey and Taylor and me from  2000 at a Bud Light Cup. Notice that Jimmy is wearing a sticker in memory of Glen Keeley.

It is great to see so many familiar-and new-faces in Las Vegas at the WNFR. The bulls are looking great-it was a pleasure to get to see such talented athletes as Troubadour, Grey Dog and White Magic buck again so soon after the PBR World Finals…. I am getting spoiled watching such amazing animals compete! But it does seem strange to only get to watch 15 bull rides a night, versus 45 plus at a PBR event. I have been to well over 200 PBR events in the past decade but this is my very first time at the NFR so I am doing my best to learn as much as possible about the other rodeo sports… but at heart I am pretty sure I’ll always be a bull girl

It was an exciting last two rounds of the Canadian Finals up here in Calgary. Aaron Roy, who finished 13th at the PBR World Finals, went into the event with about twice the dollars of any other Canadian. He didn’t win the event, but was able to hang onto his $ lead to be crowned the PBR Canadian National Champion. “Its something I’ve been chasing for a couple of years and it feels so good to finally win,” stated the Champ.

The event winner was an Aussie who was visiting Canada for the very first time, Jock Connolly. Another Aussie, BFTS star Greg Potter, came back from a long injury to put on an impressive performance and make it back to the short go of 10 contenders. Other non-Canadian notables in the short go were Mike Lee (who had the lead before getting bucked off his fourth bull)and Beau Hill.

Eno/Kubinchak’s Unabomber won Bull of the Finals honors. Unabomber has had several trips to the BFTS including the World Finals. In Las Vegas, he bucked off Matt Bohon, Shane Proctor and Aaron Roy and was scored as high as a 46-making his high score and subsequent win at the Saddledome no surprise.

Greetings from Canada!

Braithwaite & Dansey’s Boogie Man had something to kick up his heels about last night- even though he didn’t buck in round two of the PBR Rocky Cup Canadian National Finals.

The great bull, who bucked in rounds 1 and 5 of the PBR World Finals, was announced as the 2008 Canadian Bull of the Year during last night’s event. In Las Vegas he bucked off Rocky McDonald (who is also competing here in Canada) but he didn’t get by Dustin Elliott who posted an 88.75 on him.

Boogie Man will buck tonight during the Final Round of the Canadian National Finals.  I’ll bring you the new Canadian National Champ news first thing tomorrow, as well as which man won the event (there are a handful of cowboys with two rides, so tonight’s two rounds will make it or break it for somebody).

Tom Teague was thrilled to have Bones, a bull to come out of his own breeding program, win the PBR World Champion Bull title. Bones was the last bull of the night, bucking off Guilherme Marchi. Marchi was also bucked off by Bones in Tulsa earlier this year. Bones cost Marchi a perfect 8 for 8 record and the finals event champion title- fellow countryman Robson Palermo rode the retiring Camo to take the event and edge out Marchi by about 3 points. But Marchi was thrilled to finally be the World Champion, and happy for Palermo!

On Wednesday Jerry Copp’s Copp Hou was definitely the best 2-year-old and was rewarded appropriately- $100,000 for being the Futurity Finals Champ!

D&H/Wiggins Crosswired won the Classic last night and a quarter-million! The reserve champ was Steve and Julie Ravenscroft’s Black Pearl, earning $100,000.

JB Mauney won his THIRD round and seems to be out to prove his critics wrong…

Adriano’s retirement party was a very moving tribute to his career. Literally thousands of fans, friends and fellow athletes came out to honor him.  It is hard to imagine not seeing him in the arena next season.

Justin’s retirement party last week was more of a “party” and laid-back and festive. It makes me feel old, I remember when I started working for the PBR and I couldn’t take Justin to bar promos because he wasn’t 21 yet!!!

There is so much going on in Vegas…. every day is an exciting new event. Yesterday the bull team competition finished up and it was D&H/Enlow/Gilbert who were $250,000 richer-edging out Lone Star and Yankton by just a quarter point!

Today the Futurity got underway and some bulls that everyone expected to do great had bad trips, like Super Freak (who fell over) and Hippy Music (who kicked the chute on the way out). Right now it is Lightning C’s Copp Hou who is leading it with a 91.5.

The Classic gets underway tomorrow, and the Futurity short go will be on Wed.

As for the riders, J.B. Mauney won the first two rounds and Ross Coleman and Brendon Clark split the third. Guilherme Marchi is riding great and it looks like he’ll b e able to hang onto a big enough lead to FINALLY win it all.

11 nice bull showed up for the third-stop on the ABBI Wild Card Series at the LA County Fiargrounds. The event, held in conjunction with the Guilherme Marchi Classic (part of the PBR’s Enterprise Tour) was great. H&H’s Myspace and Kish’s Beer Googles tied for first with an 88.25 apiece.

 The ABBI judges had to catch a plane as soon as the Wild Card was over, they judge the Wild Card in Georgia tomorrow. It will be exciting to see what bulls emerge from the last Wild Card and which have the top 5 scores and can make it to Vegas!

On the human side, Cody Ford won the event, just edging out Luke Snyder. Confidence in solid performances should give both men an edge this weekend in Oakland. Ford was thrilled, the $4,400 he won was much needed since he was sitting right on the bubble for qualifying for the PBR World Finals. My old friend Rob Smets was one of the announcers and it was great to see him, although I have a strong suspicion he would have preferred to have been on the other side of the fence alongside  Mad Dog and Quirt.

I am headed to LAX to catch a plane to Oakland, I’m excited to see another Bull Team event and to continue a long weekend of great bucking bulls!

This has been an action-filled week..with even more to come in Mesquite this weekend! A big congratulations to Steve and Julie Ravnescroft who won the big ABBI Breeder’s Cup Futurity in Stephenville. Way to rock out Hippy Music! Yet another success story to come out of the Ravenscroft’s great Whitewater cows!

After a decade of dating, Ty and Jewel tied the knot in the Bahamas over the weekend. Jewel has been a long-time supporter of not just Ty, but also the PBR. It will be nice to see the new Mr. and Mrs. Murray at an event soon!

I spent last week in Belize filming a TV show, I played myself (lol, it was reality)- an editor looking for a vacation propety in Belize. Will let you know when it airs in 2009. If you ever get a chance, go to Belize! Besides swimming with sharks and sting rays (yep, I did think of Steve Irwin briefly), I also got to hold and pet them! Granted it was only a nurse shark and only about 3 feet long, but still an amazing experience to hold a shark.

The weekend before last, I was at the BFTS in Glendale, Arizona. It may have been the heat or the distance some were hauled, but the bulls-especially the first night-looked sluggish. But by the short-go, the elite bulls looked to be at least 80% and put on a great show for fans and the riders.

Everyone is excited about Las Vegas. We are gearing up to do our Classic and Las Vegas preview issue of the Bull Pen, as well as the PBR World Finals program and the ABBI Classic Finals program. These are the editions to be in, so if you have thought of marketing your brand, program or bulls- call the FanCorp office asap (714-434-2579).

Just got back from Tulsa, where I saw the strongest pen of BFTS bulls I’ve seen all year! You couldn’t ask for a better event-great bulls and some jaw-dropping rides! Justin McBride is obviously back in fighting form-a 94.5 on Voodoo Child to win the event! But the high-marked ride went to Mike White who rode Troubadour for 95.75…. the highets score we’ve seen a cowboy earn in a LONG time.

Eight cowboys made it to the whistle in the short go, an impressive feat since Cody Lambert put together a championship round of super star buckers.

Tulsa was also the last ABBI Junior Futurity of the season and Trevor Terrell won his second $10,000 of the season for his amazing little bull 110 Spider Monkey (who definitely has an attitide…tried to hook pick-up man James Debord and his horse twice!) Trevor’s cousin Cory was the reserve champ with 119, keeping it a family affair.

Another two-time winner was Lone Star Bull Team. David Simpson, Scott Pickens and their partners claimed their second PBR Bull Team Challenge win. They have their eyes on the big dollar prize in Vegas, and with the performances their bulls have shown, they will be one of the top contenders!

On the ABBI end of things, Skat Jacket emerged victorious from a pen of 38 Classic bulls, winning over $12,700 for his 91.25. Way to go L&G Cattle Co.! The WBBC is going to be insanely good this year, based on the talent we’ve seen at these Classics.

From the 2-year-olds to the veterans, the bulls in Tulsa were truly terrific!

Congrats to Trevor Terrell (son of T-N-T’s Mitch Terrell) for winning $10,000 in Dallas!  Trevor is a great guy and I know his dad and uncle are proud of what he’s accomplishing in the bull business! His 659 Spotted Monkey earned an 86.75 and gave Trevor a performance to be proud of. 

 Page 55S (the winning bull in Ardmore) took second with an 81.75 for Cash Roberts/D&H. In third was Bailey Buck, whose Page S35 earned an 80.5. Dallas was another event where the future of our sport turned out in full force, filling up the 30 entries quickly.  It was a neat opportunity for the juniors to buck their bulls in such a large venue (the PBR’s Built Ford Tough Series event took place later that day). With the experience and confidence the kids (and their bulls) are gettting, I’d imagine Tulsa will be absolutely amazing.

Besides the Junior Futurity, Tulsa will also play host to the PBR’s BFTS event, a Bull Team event and an ABBI Classic. That is a lot of action over three days; they’ll be something for everyone so plan on attending if you can.

The third, and final, ABBI 2008 Junior Futurity is set for Tulsa on July 19.

If not, you missed a great event. There were so many good bulls and the really fantastic ones took home over $370,000 (it paid through 20th place). Not surprisingly, Page, Circle T and Boyd/Floyd had quite a few in the money. Lightning C also had some impressive performances and had 3 of the top 6 finishers! Steve and Julie Ravenscroft’s SJR 298 Hippy Music split 7/8 and another bull out of one of their cows finished in 13th (the Davis’ Off The Hook). It was refreshing to see some names that are relatively new to the Futurity game- like the Torres Bros. and D.J. Stull- finish in the money.

Another highlight of the event was undoubtedly the Junior Futurity. Boyd-Floyd Bull Co. has generously donated some SERIOUS cash to the series. First place winner Cash Roberts won $10,000 for his champion bull Page 55S. Second-place winner Karl Allen with JF666 also took home some big dollars and some Teague genetics!

Following the event, the D&H Futuritty incentive was held for those bulls purchased at the Page sale in 2007 as yearlings, getting the crowd excited about the Page prospects that would be sold the next afternoon!

Just returned from Ardmore….a GREAT American Heritage Futurity! Jerome and Tiffany Davis’ 691 Super Freak won big– 210 points and just under $100,000. This is a fantastic bull and everyone I talked to (which would be a heck of a lot of people), were unanimous in the opinion that he deserved to win it. The only thing that would have made it better would have been if Jerome and Tiffany had been there in person to see their great 2-year-old take the title! Four points behind him in second was 65 Achey Hu from Lightning C Cattle Co. There were a lot of really good bulls and with 130 entered, it paid up to 20th place. Andee, Curt and the entire ABBI staff worked tirelessly and put on a top-notch event!

I am beyond exhausted and need to unpack, unwind and get some rest…but check back tomorrow for ALL the Heritage highlights and a recap of today’s legendary Bred To Buck Sale put on by the Pages!

Seems like everyone is already in Oklahoma… except me! I am doing my usual last-minute frantic packing and trying to get everything into a carry-on bag (including past issues of the Bull Pen I promised I’d remember to bring to Amber Schmutz, two digital cameras and two tape recorders… I believe in being a prepared journalist).

I got a call from Gene Baker earlier today. He has his bulls (Homestead Genetics) bucking at the PBR Elk City event Friday and Saturday night so he’ll be busy going between that and the Ardmore event. I imagine they’ll be a few ambitious contractors making the trek, which I hear is about 4 hours. But maybe that is hauling bulls… I’m an L.A. driver (when you finally get an open road, you make the most of it!) so I could maybe do it in 2 hours flat. I’d like to make it out to Elk City Saturday night, but we’ll have to see how it goes.

I hear the Pages are having a great “welcome” dinner tomorrow. It will be around the time I am landing at DFW, probably after enjoying a fantastic meal of peanuts and airplane water, and I’m bummed I’m missing it.

We’ll have a lot of Bull Pen Staff at the American Heritage Futurity this year. Besides myself, Cindy Gotoski (the magazine’s marketing manager) and Allen Glanville (bull photog extraordinaire) will also be on hand. Speaking of Bull Pen Staff, I am really excited to have Sugar Kuhn writing for us again. Check her out in the July/August issue when she takes over my “Who’s Your Daddy?” column. The girl knows more about bloodlines than I could ever dream of remembering so I am proud to turn the column over to her, where it will get bigger and better.

Check back next week for the highlights of Ardmore, the big Page sale, (maybe) Elk City and a lot of pics. In the meantime, here are a few more pics from my “girl’s trip” to Cancun with Julie Ravenscroft, Rebecca Walker, Cindy Reid (from Ft. Worth Stockyards) and Janel Miller (equine gal from Arizona).

We talked a lot of bull (literally, not the other kind) and had a heck of a lot of fun. We visited Xcaret, a zoo/aquarium/water park/archaeological site/cultural extravaganza where we watched an equine show. I don’t know enough about horses to know if I should have been impressed or not. Julie and Janel seemed to enjoy the performance. I do know there was one sad “bull” that James DeBord or Julio Moreno could have roped in their sleep, but the vaqueros made a big deal of lassoing the beast that was plodding around at about negative 5 miles an hour. All in all, a wonderfully relaxing trip that I definitely needed to take before the surge of late summer publications and deadlines (Vegas, Vegas, Vegas).

I am, and I am so excited to be headed out to Oklahoma this weekend to watch the American Heritage Futurity and then the big Page Sale the following day. The American Heritage will attract the best 2-year-olds vying for a serious purse. It has been an exciting year for the ABBI and we’ve experienced some major changes but everything seems headed in the right direction. Curt Blake is doing an amazing job on the road (and not just because he emails the results to me religiously) and Andee Lamoreaux is making big things happen at ABBI headquarters.

As excited as I am about going to Oklahoma to watch the young buckers, I am even more thrilled to see and catch up with friends (old and new).

I can’t wait to see Julie Ravenscroft and Rebecca Walker. The last time I saw them was on a white sand beach in Cancun where we’d gone for some serious r&r. I had to get back to work, so I flew out early while they enjoyed little umbrella drinks and perfected their tans. It was great to spend time with some women who really know bull (and are incredibly fun and intelligent to boot).

The last time I was in Ardmore I was actually at the Rockin P Ranch working on a story about the Pages. A tornado came through and brought some seriously nasty weather. Took out the power, blew down some trees and had me awake all night. Earthquakes I’m used to, tornadoes I’m not. Hopefully I’ll have better luck this visit!

If we haven’t met yet, introduce yourself to me in Ardmore. I’ll be the city girl who knows a surprising amount about bucking bulls-despite not owning a pair of “real” cowboy boots, being allergic to hay and having no desire to ride a horse.