PBR World Finals 2009 – Where Dreams and History are Made

.

The original dream began in 1992, in Arizona.  A band brothers in a sport where every ride, every time they nodded their head, and every bull they faced could be their last, came together with an idea and a dream.  That dream was to create something that was about bull riders, for the bull riders, and to make bull riding a ‘standalone sport.’  Each rider paid Sam Applebaum one thousand dollars to establish the Professional Bull Riders.  In 1992 one thousand dollars was a lot of money, but their belief was so strong that they took a gamble.  The original founding members of the PBR were Sam Applebaum, David Bailey, Jr, Clint Branger, Mark Cain, Adam Carrillo, Gilbert Carrillo, Cody Custer, Jerome Davis, Bobby Delvecchio, Mike Erikson, David Fournier, Michael Gaffney, Tuff Hedeman, Cody Lambert, Scott Mendes, Daryl Mills, Ty Murray, Ted Nuce, Aaron Semas, Jim Sharp, and Brent Thurman.

These men and their dream was the beginning of the PBR or Professional Bull Riders.  These men didn’t ride for the money; they rode for the love of riding bulls… the danger, the excitement, the fact that death could happen every time the gate cracked.  These men loved the camaraderie and respect that every bull rider gave to each other.  After their ride was over, they would help fellow bull riders pull ropes, grit through the pain, share stories, and maybe even have a beer or two. 

In 2009 the PBR and the bull riders watched the tightest race for a World Championship, ever witnessed in the sixteen year history of the PBR.  Three men rode through the pain, the fear, and the joy of event wins over ten months, to stay on top of the PBR standings.

Those three men were Kody Lostroh, J.B. Mauney, Guilherme Marchi travelled many miles, attended thirty one Built Ford Tough Series events, winning eleven of those events between them.  What else made these bull riders stand out from the rest, was the fact that they had rode over sixty percent their bulls. Kody Lostroh came to the PBR World Finals in Las Vegas in the number one spot in the standings, a place Kody had been for the twenty events leading up to the PBR World Finals.  Only seven hundred and eighty five points separated Kody, J.B., Guilherme coming into the PBR World Finals in Las Vegas.

Perhaps PBR President and founder, Ty Murray, said it best “Kody Lostroh is doing everything in the world to dominate far and away the competition, but there’s just one little thing stopping that from happening and that’s J.B. Mauney.  There’s going to be a heck of a lot more people believing in Kody Lostroh post-World Finals then there was pre-World Finals.  The battle between Lostroh and Mauney was what being a cowboy is all about.”

PBR livestock director Cody Lambert had this to say “Kody doesn’t have a weakness.  The only weakness anyone ever questioned him on was the injury to his riding arm, and he’s shown us over and over and over again that that’s not going to be an issue.”

To quote another founding member, Michael Gaffney, “None of us have seen a race like this.  We’ve wanted to see a race like this, and that’s why we made a change in the point system, back a few years ago.  This is exactly what we envisioned.”

Two-time PBR World Champion Justin McBride shared these thoughts “That’s what sports are about to me. When you see somebody good at what they do take the chance to be great at it. They don’t just try and win. They try to be great at it.”

By the time the dust had settled, and the last bull had bucked Kody was crowned the 2009 PBR World Champion, by a very small margin of 594 points.  The PBR has grown a lot since 1992, and it continues to grow. 

I can’t wait for the next PBR event; every World Finals I have been to has been better and bigger than the last.  I love the bull riders, the fans, and the bulls… the heart, the try, the humbleness and respect that is always apparent at a PBR event.  Thank you to the PBR, my fans, and to the men who love what they do and that is ride bulls with the desire to be the best of the best.

Camera Wench
“Have Camera… Will Travel”