tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48669475039736684472024-03-05T23:05:12.661-08:00"Turn Him Out!": a PBR FansiteMontana Barn Cathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04593180097797555574noreply@blogger.comBlogger229125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-49004572414521330602016-01-10T13:57:00.003-08:002016-01-10T23:07:49.033-08:00The Church of MauneyologyThe new season is upon us, and as you may have guessed, excitement is in short supply here at THO. A sport that once brought us joy now brings us, well, a sadly unsurprising yet positively unhinged stream of Mauney propaganda.<br />
<br />
We begin with an early Christmas present (of coal, perhaps), as a sports marketing and PR roundup site discussed the <a href="http://joefavorito.com/2015/12/23/no-bull-pbr-looks-to-get-brand-back-on-track/" target="_blank">PBR's "new" strategy</a>. There is some interesting information buried in there, including that the PBR "has lost its place among the conversation of emerging properties." However, the PBR's plan to get back in the conversation? A focus on "gritty and intriguing personalities," headlined by the "quintessential swaggering cowboy J.B. Mauney, who rode through pain to win his second PBR World Championship." Hm, the PBR's "new" strategy sounds an awful lot like their old strategy to me, just now more relentless than ever before.<br />
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And more just before Christmas, as <a href="http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/per-danger-on-the-dirt-cbs-professional-bull-riding-documentary-1201665937/" target="_blank">Variety covered</a> the PBR's upcoming "Danger on the Dirt" special, which according to them would "highlight the league’s top contenders, who are marquee names on the bull riding circuit: J.B. Mauney, Jared Allen, Jesse Byrne, Tanner Byrne and first-time world finalist Bonner Bolton." Maybe Variety just doesn't know what they're talking about, but two of those names aren't contenders in any fashion, and their definition of "marquee" seems suspect in general. Also, apparently no Brazilians are marquee names or contenders? <br />
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Then there was the <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2015/12/danger-on-the-dirt-brings-fans-inside-a-bull-riders-head.aspx" target="_blank">PBR's own press release</a> about the TV special, which they humbly called "extraordinary." Interestingly, they actually came out and said it was about "key storylines," which is not a surprise, but it is quite special of them to pump up storylines they themselves created. Speaking of pumping up, J.B. Mauney is "featured prominently in the documentary" (surprise!), is the "biggest star," and has a "gun-slinging persona." And that's just them getting warmed up!<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">“Danger on the Dirt” goes even deeper inside the head of a quintessential American cowboy who picks the rankest bulls, does not want your sympathy for his latest broken bone and sets sky-high personal expectations starkly contrasting a softening “everyone-gets-a-trophy” culture.</span></blockquote>
There's so much to unpack there, I don't know where to start. And that's not the worst of it.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Mauney is elite. He’s on another level. There’s no settling back and kicking up one’s feet to admire those trophies. Win big today, plan to win bigger tomorrow. Following a championship, Mauney’s personal standards merely increase. He wants a few more PBR championships, preferably back to back.</span></blockquote>
J.B. Mauney's personal goals dovetail so splendidly with the PBR's, I must observe. Having already changed the entire point system to nearly guarantee the conclusion they want, who could be surprised by further engineering from the PBR? Oh, but wait, we have to make a parting shot at Silvano Alves and his not as great storyline and lack of gun-slinging swagger:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">“Having guts and toughness, wanting to slay the dragons, that attitude is imperative to this sport,” Murray said. “You gotta be that fearless gunslinger to be a great bull rider. This isn’t a businessman’s game.”</span></blockquote>
Glad we had time to squeeze that underhanded moment in, guys.<br />
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Apparently that wasn't the full quote, because it gets even better in <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2015/12/danger-in-the-dirt-set-to-air.aspx" target="_blank">another press release</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">The essence of what J.B. [Mauney] is, is the essence of this sport--having guts, having toughness, wanting to slay the dragons. That attitude is imperative to this sport. You gotta be that fearless gunslinger to be a great bull rider. This isn’t a businessman’s game.--Ty Murray, PBR co-founder and seven-time World Champion Cowboy</span></blockquote>
Got it, J.B. Mauney <i>is</i> the sport, and "businessmanlike" riders are the worst.<br />
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Then the PBR had to again remind us that the "captivating" J.B. is expected to win again this year (and with the new points system tailored just to him, what a surprise that is), in a feature about his <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2015/12/mauney-ready-for-2016-title-defense.aspx" target="_blank">2016 title defense.</a> Also, apparently his "remarkable and historic come-from-behind rally" to overtake Silvano Alves was "emotionally draining for not only Mauney, but fans and fellow riders." I guess they believe that we are all as invested in J.B. Mauney as they are. And apparently <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2015/12/mauney-defies-the-odds-with-injury.aspx" target="_blank">J.B. Mauney's injuries </a>are way more fascinating than everybody else's, too!<br />
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Mauney is also, it would seem, incredibly oblivious (that's the kind interpretation), because here he is <a href="https://www.monsterenergy.com/us/en/sports/bull-riding/#!/news%3Amauney-makes-new-pbr-point-system-count" target="_blank">singing the praises of the new points system</a> that was designed to propel him to victory.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">The way they have the point system set up now, as long as you make it count at an event you can gather a lot of points for winning rounds,” said Mauney, who explained that it is no longer about who rides the most....It’s about who wins the most.</span></blockquote>
And who determines who wins the most, my friends? Let us not forget, Lambert, Murray and Mauney <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/11/riders-discuss-professional-bull-riders-scoring-changes.aspx" target="_blank">all had a part </a>in designing the new point system in the first place! And now, <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2016/1/pbr-appoints-members-to-executive-competition-committee.aspx" target="_blank">lookee here</a>! The PBR, effective immediately, has given Cody Lambert, Ty Murray, Justin McBride, Luke Snyder and PBR CEO Sean Gleason the power to change (and enforce) the rules at will, starting now (and, in fact, they "will begin procedures effective immediately").<br />
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I...somehow think this will not mean increased fairness and transparency (does anyone even know who was on this thing before?). We can question the wisdom of having the guy who chooses the stock and does the draw also getting final say over rules and enforcement, not to mention the CEO being in there, but the gigantic and obvious issue here is that Gleason, Murray, and Lambert have all made it more than clear that they love J.B. Mauney and heavily favor his style of riding; I'm pretty sure that Snyder and McBride, even if they have alternate opinions, could make little headway (and according to another recent article, McBride and Lambert have a close friendship). [<i>Late-breaking news:</i> <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2016/1/pbr-announces-revised-points-system-and-rule-changes-for-the-2016-built-ford-tough-series.aspx" target="_blank">new rules have been unveiled</a>, and seem fairly decent modifications, even if the underlying system remains flawed and biased. Not to mention having the same group create, execute and enforce laws is questionable at best.]<br />
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So, having pummeled us with a nonstop stream of Mauney media, it's now fairly obvious that if Mauney falters, even with the especially-designed-for-him point system, the ECC could, at a moment's notice, change rules to prop him up or impede others. Will this happen? We shall see. I am not by nature a conspiracy theorist, but the shady way the new point system was designed, the broad powers the ECC apparently wields, and the history of flip-flopping rules do not exactly reassure.<br />
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To be clear, I'm not blaming J.B. Mauney here. He didn't make the point system, and he can't help that the PBR won't shut up about him or angling to keep him on top (especially now that he is apparently their entire marketing strategy). As I've said repeatedly, he is a talented rider, and I understand why the PBR likes him. But at this point, assuming I dare attend an event, I am fully expecting Cody Lambert or perhaps Ty Murray to leap out and offer me a free personality profile. Next thing I know, I'll be paying thousands to clear any Brazilian thetans from my aura at the Mauneyology center, and then will deliriously chant, "Dragonslayer! Dragonslayer!" while I jump off couches.<br />
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But until such time as I succumb to the brainwashing, there is a whole field of other guys that are getting ignored at best and completely screwed over at worst with this myopic Mauney-mania and endless tinkering with rules to assure an outcome. In a sport where guys get hurt and disappear for months at a time, is this focus on one rider wise? What happens when new viewers picked up from "Danger on the Dirt" tune in to see Mauney buck off, or not appear at all? What are they supposed to care about then, since the PBR is only interested in J.B., and in a limited fashion, a few other riders? Or what happens when people who want to see a real sport and not an engineered outcome get sick of it all? I guess we'll see this season, assuming we bother to watch. Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-73364014229636791682015-11-15T13:18:00.003-08:002015-11-15T13:18:55.218-08:00Deconstructing the Bullshit Narrative<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
We're mad as hell, and we've through keeping our mouths shut about it. All of us here at THO! got discouraged by the blatantly unfair changes to the scoring system last year, so discouraged that we barely had the energy to follow our favorite bulls and boys at all, let alone muster up the energy to write about any of it.</div>
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And maybe, just maybe, we suffered from a little of that obnoxious idea that, as Hillary Clinton aptly observed last week, "It's just that when women talk, some people think we're shouting."<br />
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Maybe we were naive enough to think that having made our points, we could anticipate that the Powers That Be at the PBR might actually think about the situation and back off their cold-blooded plan to elevate J.B. Mauney to world champ no matter who or what got in the way.<br />
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We were wrong--on both counts.<br />
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And we are through not talking about it. If you want to think we're shouting, be our guest.<br />
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Just don't bother to admonish us to be ladylike. We are through with that shit.<br />
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So the season dragged on to its dreary, predictable end. J.B. won (or, "won")--the day before the event was over. He didn't even bother to ride on the last day. How, exactly, does that square with the narrative about him being game and having a big heart and riding hurt and always picking the rankest bull every time?<br />
<br />
Oh, that's right--that narrative is bullshit, pure and simple. The PBR can try to say that whatever J.B. does is correct and the best decision ever, whereas if another rider makes the exact same decision, he is wrong, wrong, wrong, but that doesn't mean that we have to believe it.<br />
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And while we're on the subject of bullshit narratives, let's just go ahead and talk about the fact that J.B.'s apparent fairy-tale marriage, the one that tamed him and turned him into a "mature" husband and father, is either on the rocks or is already over. If you've been around here at all, you know that I'm reluctant to discuss this kind of crap because I think it has no place in professional sports, but let's face it--the PBR keeps shoving this stuff in our faces, so now we are going to go right ahead and rub theirs in it. If the PBR previously couldn't get enough of spending time on the airwaves and on their website on their favorite Prodigal Son and his magical marriage, they can't expect no one to notice their sudden awkward silence.<br />
<br />
We don't know the details and we could not care less about them, but we can tell you one thing--we are offended to the core that J. B. Mauney accepted his trophy and check with a blond woman on his arm who very clearly is not Lexie Mauney. Very, very tacky, J.B. Talk about rubbing somebody's nose in it--we really thought you had more class than that. And your consort should be thoroughly ashamed of herself for stepping into that spotlight with you. We're sure there was no shortage of women willing to stoop to that level, but the one who won the prize also has the chance to withstand the scrutiny of those of us women who are, let's face it, much, much too wise to make a stupid mistake like that one. And that the PBR allowed this sorry spectacle to play out on the big stage of the world finals and the "triumphant" crowning of their predetermined winner is really quite amazing. <br />
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Maybe they thought we all wouldn't notice (which seems to be business as usual: assume the viewers/readers believe everything they are told rather than what they are actually seeing), but they were sure as hell wrong. They've already ret-conned the last few years to put J.B. up among the greats and put Silvano Alves in the rear-view mirror--get your J.B. Mauney championship shirt now! You want a Silvano shirt from any of the years he won? Yeah, right.<br />
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Depressingly, it's fairly certain that the new point system, having achieved its goal (an amazing feat considering the usual incompetence of the PBR), we can assume there will be no changes to it. The PBR will not rest until they can crown J.B. the first something, be it four time champ or first time back-to-back-to-back champ. All the other riders in the organization be damned. Honesty and even having the veneer of a legitimate organization be damned. And that's a damned shame.<br />
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Do we have the heart to watch the charade next year? We shall see. If so, it will only be because nobody has gotten through to the bulls that they're supposed to produce both figurative and literal bullshit.<br />
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Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-36354456822191022542015-11-01T08:57:00.001-08:002015-11-01T08:57:32.104-08:00King Super Saint J.B. Mauney the DragonslayerWe here at Turn Him Out have been too disheartened by the unfolding of the PBR's master plan to engineer the world championship to even muster the energy to rant about it. Surprisingly, as inept as the PBR generally is, they successfully managed to gerrymander the point system to secure the "coronation" (in Craig Hummer's words) they so desperately desired, so congratulations to them for that, I guess.<br />
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While we are struggling to craft a post that contains more than, "ARGH!" and "SHUT UP, TY!", please enjoy this image sent to us by an anonymous reader, which probably sums the season and ridiculous finals much more elegantly than we ever will.<br />
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<br />Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-53404322489465111492015-04-25T14:23:00.000-07:002015-04-25T20:47:55.765-07:00Burning out on the PBR?Well, dear readers, if indeed any of you are left, it is perhaps obvious from the lack of posts that enthusiasm for the PBR is waning here at Turn Him Out. An ominous feeling started with all the announcements about the new point system at the end of last year, and has continued to grow with the feeble attempts by TPTB to defend their new system as "simpler" and "easier for PBR fans to follow," besides somehow promising to reward "bull riders who perform at the highest level both within individual events and throughout the season."<br /><br />First of all, it is completely ludicrous to say that the new system is easier to understand. In fact, it was the old system that was simple to understand-- the points a guy got for a ride were his points. Yes, there were bonus points awarded for placing highly in rounds and for winning, but a guy who rode something at least got some points, and whoever had the most points at the end of an event/season won. Straightforward. The new point system, with its "appropriate" number of points for placing highly in a round is anything but straightforward, and it's insulting for the PBR to assume that everyone is buying it.<br /><br />In fact, the new system means that guys who place under 5th in a round, and/or 15th in the aggregate, can leave the weekend with basically nothing (or actually nothing), and this could keep piling on for the season. Let me show you an example.<br /><br />
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" dir="ltr" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid #ccc; font-family: arial,sans,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; table-layout: fixed;"><colgroup><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col></colgroup><tbody>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td colspan="4" data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Rider 1"]" rowspan="1" style="background-color: #6d9eeb; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; border-top: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Rider 1</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Ride Points"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Ride Points</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Round Place"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Round Place</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Old System"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Old System</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"New System"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">New System</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Long Round 1"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Long Round 1</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,81.75]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">81.75</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"8th"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">8th</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,81.75]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">81.75</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Long Round 2"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Long Round 2</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,83.25]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">83.25</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"6th"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">6th</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,83.25]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">83.25</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Champ. Round"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Champ. Round</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"13th"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">13th</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"N/A"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,10]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">10</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Rider 1 Totals"]" style="border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Rider 1 Totals</td><td data-sheets-formula="=Sum(R[-3]C[0]+R[-2]C[0])" data-sheets-numberformat="[null,0]" data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,165]" style="background-color: #c9daf8; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">165</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,10]" style="background-color: #c9daf8; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">10</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Old System"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Old System</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"New System"]" style="background-color: #a4c2f4; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">New System</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td colspan="4" data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Rider 2"]" rowspan="1" style="background-color: #a64d79; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Rider 2</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Ride Points"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Ride Points</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Round Place"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Round Place</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Old System"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Old System</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"New System"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">New System</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Long Round 1"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Long Round 1</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,88.5]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">88.5</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,1]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">1</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,88.5]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">88.5</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,100]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">100</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Long Round 2"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Long Round 2</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"N/A"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">N/A</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Champ. Round"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-left: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Champ. Round</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"DNQ"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">DNQ</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"N/A"]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">N/A</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,0]" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">0</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Rider 2 Totals"]" style="border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Rider 2 Totals</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,88.5]" style="background-color: #ead1dc; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">88.5</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,100]" style="background-color: #ead1dc; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">100</td></tr>
<tr style="height: 21px;"><td style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td></td><td style="border-right: 1px solid #000000; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;"></td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"Old System"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">Old System</td><td data-sheets-value="[null,2,"New System"]" style="background-color: #d5a6bd; border-bottom: 1px solid #000000; border-right: 1px solid #000000; font-weight: bold; padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; text-align: center; vertical-align: bottom;">New System</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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In my example, under the new system, Rider 1 scored below the 5th place cut-off for points in both long rounds, so got zero "world points" for two long round rides. He bucked off in the championship round. The total of his two previous rides placed him 13th in the average for the event, which ended up with him leaving the weekend with a whopping 10 points. Meanwhile, Rider 2 got the highest score in the first round, which gave him 100 points. He bucked off in the second long round and did not qualify for the championship round, but of course, still had his 100 points from his one ride. <br /><br />So, as you can see, under the new system, a guy could ride two bulls and end the weekend with 10 points, while another guy could ride one bull and earn 100 points. (And this is after the PBR changed it-- the initial announcement had only the top 10 in the aggregate getting any points, with #10 getting 5 points, so conceivably, a guy could make the championship round and leave with no points, which was completely absurd; now at least they get a pitiable 10 points for effort, I guess.) <br /><br />I honestly don't remember the exact bonus points per round by placement in the old system, and I can't find any documentation on the old system, but they did say in one of the articles about the <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/11/riders-discuss-professional-bull-riders-scoring-changes.aspx" target="_blank">scoring changes</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">In the old system, there was only a 10-point discrepancy between finishing first or second in a BFTS round. Now, that difference improves to 40 points. In terms of winning the aggregate in 2015, there will be a 160-point difference between first and second compared to the 30-point (two-day event) and 40-point (three-day event) difference there was for placing the highest in the event average in 2014.</span></blockquote>
Of course, this doesn't really clarify that the old bonus points were in addition to ride points, rather than the ONLY points. Even assuming Rider 2 got some amount of bonus points for his long round one placement under the old system, he's making out beautifully under the new system. Meanwhile, Rider 1 had 155 points of effort disappear under the new system, and he's 90 points behind a guy that he surely would have been ahead of under the old system! <br />
<br />
The only way this point system would make any sense is if every bull in every long round had the potential to give a rider the highest score in the round. This is, obviously, impossible. A cowboy can only ride the bulls he is given in the long rounds-- no matter how he flashes it up, some bulls will have borderline re-ride outs, and under this system, that is a severe disadvantage. This system might make sense with the draft, in that it would encourage guys to choose the rankest bull they think they can ride, but when they just get a bull in the draw, well, we're seeing how that goes. The old system allowed fairly easy recovery from a weekend where a guy performed badly or his bulls performed badly; not so much under this one. The new system as it has played out firstly rewards consistent, high-scoring riders, followed by inconsistent, high-scoring riders, with consistent, lower scoring riders trailing ridiculously far behind (with inconsistent, low-scoring riders where they would be under any system).<br /><br />Now, who would benefit from (and who would be disadvantaged by) a point system that rewards streaky guys who pull off big rides on occasion over guys who consistently ride in a less flashy way? Hmmmm.... <br /><br />I'm not a huge conspiracy theorist, but the fact that the PBR decided that the way some riders were winning was inappropriate and so therefore they were going to redo the entire point system was not as clever and sneaky as they thought. I mean, they pretty much spelled out what they were doing. (from <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2014/11/professional-bull-riders-announces-new-point-system.aspx" target="_blank">here</a>):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">PBR worked with statisticians to analyze the performance of bull riders over the past 10 years and the relationship between event wins, Top 3 event finishes, Top 3 15/15 Bucking Battle finishes, Top 5 event finishes and Top 10 event finishes, among numerous other factors, to ensure that the riders who perform the best are awarded the appropriate level of points. It was determined that under PBR’s old system, first adopted in 2004, riders who placed first, second and third in rounds and events were not being awarded an appropriate number of points in relation to those who finished fourth and below. </span></blockquote>
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So, from this I infer that the PBR looked at what had happened, and what they wished had happened, and changed the system to hopefully get the results they want in the future, which also has the added bonus of forcing the guys to ride the way the PBR wants. <span style="color: #141823;"><span style="line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"> To</span></span><a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/11/riders-discuss-professional-bull-riders-scoring-changes.aspx" style="color: #141823; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;" target="_blank"> wit</a><span style="color: #141823;"><span style="line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">:</span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">“It’s always been about scoring as high as you can on every bull,” Lambert said. “That is the essence of the sport. To get the highest score you can on every bull. The whole foundation of the sport is the guy getting on the toughest bulls and trying to ride him and that was always the best strategy until now. We want it to go back to the best strategy being guys trying to win every time they try to get on a bull. Not just play it safe and get a score.”</span></blockquote>
Lambert continued:<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">“Silvano is good enough to win more World Championships, but he is not going to be able to do it by lying back anymore,” Lambert said. “He is going to have to attempt to ride the better bulls, which he is very capable of doing.”</span></blockquote>
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So, there you have it, the goal of the new point system, surprisingly laid right out for all to see. The PBR runs the show and can do what they want, but that's not leaving me feeling so great about it, that's for sure.<br />
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Since rolling out the new system, the PBR has continued to attempt to explain just why this system is so great without explicitly calling out Silvano Alves (although there didn't seem to be a lot of outright fan backlash about the points, probably because no one really understood them, until Kaique Pacheco, a Brazilian, won an event over Stetson Lawrence, an American, based on "world points" from round placement-- make of that what you will). Unfortunately, their attempts to justify the system have been feeble, probably because there is no real way to justify it. Justin McBride posited entirely ridiculous scenarios on the PBR Facebook (this is the second one, on February 20th):<div class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Rider A rides Asteroid and wins Round 1 with 90. He gets bucked off Mick E Mouse in Round 2. He picks Bushwacker in the championship round, rides him for 94 points and wins the round but finishes 2nd in the average with 184 points.<br />Rider B rides a bull in Round 1 for 80, rides a bull in Round 2 for 58 but declines the option for a re-ride. He is #1 in the championship round draft and picks one of the easier bulls and rides him for 86, does not place in the round but finishes 1st in the aggregate with 224.<br />Who is the better bull rider under that scenario?<br />For example: Should Rider B automatically win or should there be an opportunity for another rider who went 2-for-3, selected the rankest bull in the championship round and rode him for 90+ points to have some way to beat him?<br />-Justin McBride</span></blockquote>
I mean, really. It would be too exhausting to pick apart everything wrong with this supposed discussion point/justification, but get back to me when a guy draws Asteroid and Mick E Mouse in the long rounds at a regular event. All this unrealistic hypothetical really proves is that getting high-performing bulls in the long round is the key to success, although I think the PBR thought we'd all be cheering, "J.B. Mauney the Dragonslayer rules! Silvano Alves, who never takes re-rides, drools!"<br /><br />Unfortunately, besides the obvious attempt to get the results they want, in their quest to change outcomes, there have been, unsurprisingly, unintended consequences. One of the guys severely hampered by this new system has been Tanner Byrne, who rode a whole lot of bulls to earn very few points under the new system for a whole run of events. I don't like to name names when it goes the other way, since the cowboys don't make the rules, however, there are some who rode well and then dismally, and are hanging around in the top of the standings because of the disproportionate amount of points round wins awarded and the difficulty this poses for other riders to catch up. (As in, one guy who qualifies for the championship round getting 500 points in a weekend and another guy who does the same getting 10 can really throw things off-- it's a lot harder to come from 490 points back rather than 70-100 points back; have a few weekends like this and it's not looking good.)<br /><br /> I am well aware that with any system, guys who are smart and who consistently ride well will rise to the top... eventually, if there's enough time. I don't think the PBR can change that, no matter how hard they try. But it is disheartening to see the constant undercutting of some riders and the constant attempts to prop up others. I keep saying it and I'm getting tired of saying it: this isn't the WWF. There's no need to create or curate storylines. The sport is dynamic and interesting without interference, and all this ridiculous meddling and sad attempts to spin it are just making me burn out on caring about any of it. I don't like being frustrated and angry when I watch what used to be a sport I very much enjoyed, but sadly, that is the state of affairs, and part of the reason why there has been so little activity here. The new point system is only the most obvious symptom of the underlying problem.<br /></div>
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Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-15978372793665809602014-11-10T13:30:00.001-08:002014-11-10T13:30:20.805-08:00The Agony and the Ecstasy<br />
As it came down to the finals, my enthusiasm was flagging, and I was conflicted. Who to root for to keep me interested? For Fabiano Vieira, somehow triumphing over his drastically injured shoulder? Joao Ricardo Vieira, the “wild child” who has given us so many spectacular rides and yet so many befuddling buck offs? Guilherme Marchi, the old guard making a comeback? Matt Triplett, the enthusiastic young gun? Or Silvano Alves, our slow and steady back-to-back champ?<br />
<br />
Luckily (?) for me, the increasingly obnoxious commentators decided that for me. On Saturday, during the escalating insufferable dude-bro attempt to be like a real sport with a sports talk program, all of the commentators proceeded to do their worst to downplay Silvano Alves and his chances. As the program went on, they became more and more unprofessional, from the usual “not understanding” his strategy and concern-trolling (i.e., backhanded compliments like, “We know he’s better than that”), to one outright saying that he is rooting against Alves. At this point, I was yelling at my television. What kind of professional sports organization does this?<br />
<br />
And then, these lovely individuals couldn’t understand why, when Silvano had just been scored 69 for a ride that was worth at least 79 (did the judges consider that Silvano Alves wasn’t the only one being screwed over by that score? I’m sure the stock contractor was thrilled), that he wouldn’t want to take a re-ride and be judged by the same people? As he said <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/10/alves-eyes-history.aspx" target="_blank">here</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Sometimes the judging affects the re-ride situation . . . . The re-ride [bull] may be a bad one, or it might be a good one. I know sometimes they are an 84-point ride, but I also know that sometimes with the re-ride situation and me, the judges may give me a 79 instead of an 80-something. I don’t want the judges to help me. I just want them to be fair."</blockquote>
As far as I can recall, this is the first time Silvano Alves has said something even vaguely critical of the judging, which speaks wonders for his restraint. I, however, am not constrained by being a contractor to the PBR, so let’s continue.<br />
<br />
Justin McBride took us to new and interesting territory by musing that perhaps the judges were punishing Alves for not taking re-rides by underscoring him (something that is hardly a new thought to some of us, but not one that we’d expect to be said out loud by an ambassador of the PBR). Cody Lambert blanched and tried to backtrack on that one, and I can only imagine there was some yelling in McBride’s earpiece. You'd like to think it'd be obvious that the job of the judges is to judge the ride they see before them. The judges’ job is not to judge someone’s season-long strategy, their nationality, their personality, or anything other than the ride that just occurred. If they can’t do that, it’s time for new judges and new ways of training them.<br />
<br />
On the same note, while it appears to be standard to subtract 10 points for Silvano Alves, the judges were apparently so delighted that J.B. Mauney was coming back to life that they decided each of his rides was worth 10 more points than they would be for anyone else. This is not a slam on J.B. Mauney—he was riding very well and I was impressed with his grit to cheerfully give interviews and to perform at this level with his jaw wired shut. He’s not a judge, and it’s not his fault if the scoring is insane. <br />
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The judging issues were further highlighted by Silvano Alves only being scored 87.25 for being the fourth guy to ride Asteroid. Was it Asteroid’s best out? No. But numerous guys and bulls teamed up to score above 87.25 at the finals, and for Alves to ride a former bull of the year for a comparatively piddly score just seemed sad and spiteful—he’d already won even before the ride, so attempting to send a message with that score was just bad sportsmanship, if that’s what was happening. And just to make it worse, the other Brazilians were the only ones seen out congratulating Alves when he won (although their celebration was pretty great). Pettiness is not a nice look, boys.<br />
<br />
Realizing they were stuck with Alves as the champ, the delicious commentator <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/10/alves-makes-his-case-to-be-among-the-greats.aspx" target="_blank">mea culpas</a> started coming in, first from McBride (who, it must be said, seemed to think Silvano Alves would win throughout, even if he can’t say the guy’s last name right).<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“You’ve got to put him in the conversation and a lot of people are not going to want to,” McBride said. “People are going to want to put asterisks by his world championships. [They are going to say] ‘he picked his bulls. He did this. He did that.'</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Silvano has won world titles within the rules of the sport of bull riding that were set up for him to compete in. How can you not put him up there with three world championships?"</blockquote>
Of course, he just had to put that asterisk thing in there. Ah, how I remember the days when it was said that Guilherme Marchi wouldn’t have won without the draft, yet somehow it was okay when Kody Lostroh smartly picked bulls that fit him to win his championship. And how it continues with Ty Murray droning on about how Joao Ricardo Vieira isn’t a “whole” cowboy, and people whining that Silvano Alves isn’t doing it how they think it should be done. Guess what, fellas, your opinion didn't mean diddly in the end.<br />
<br />
And here’s Cody Lambert, who begrudgingly got on the “Silvano bandwagon” when he saw the writing on the wall.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Silvano stuck to his plan—stay on all of them—and there is one guy here that stayed on all of them,” PBR Director of Livestock Cody Lambert said. “You can’t argue with that and he is a World Champion for a third time. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“You don’t get given World Championships, you have to earn them,” Lambert said. “It was a great feat to ride several of the bulls he rode this week.”</blockquote>
Ty Murray couldn't resist pointing out one more time that this strategy can fail if there is someone consistent and high-scoring who comes along; he seems to forget that it has worked three times out of four, and that other time was pretty darn close.<br />
<br />
You can almost hear the glass being chewed by all the commentators in their quotes. And there’s enough glass to go around, with “fans” on Facebook exclaiming that Silvano Alves isn’t a “real” cowboy and he’d never have won without the draft. We’ve been through this two other times before—nobody is stopping any of the other cowboys from using the draft strategically, and it’s hardly Alves’ fault if they don’t, or if they don’t succeed at the level he does. And oh my, what on earth with the fans online saying J.B. Mauney should have been world champ? That wasn’t even mathematically possible! He could have won the finals event, except he fell off one bull while Alves rode them all on his way to winning the event and the title. I guess somehow in their minds, it would be more “fair” to make J.B. Mauney the champ just because he rides the way they like best?<br />
<br />
There was also whining that the rules about re-rides should be changed, that they should be mandatory unless there is a doctor’s excuse. Which I’m sure Doc Tandy would just adore—when don’t these guys have some kind of injury? Who would want to be in charge of determining when a guy is actually “hurt enough” to be “allowed” to beg off taking a re-ride? People seem to forget that Silvano Alves went much of his season with a separated shoulder—would that be enough, or are these proposed re-ride rules just somehow going to apply to him always? And I’m sure the people advocating for this rule would really love it until it forced one of their favorites into attempting to ride and getting a big fat zero (or a big fat injury) on the second try.<br />
<br />
Regardless, now I doubt Alves is crying into his cash. He’s the second to win the championship three times, and the richest athlete in Western sports history in very short order. Recall, he is a mere 26 years old, and he’s only been here for about five years. Who’s for championships four, five, six… seven? The PBR better figure out how to embrace Silvano Alves, which would be easy to do (he’s basically the American Dream) if they tried, because he's not going anywhere. But if they insist on fanning the flames of those who resent him, it’s only going to get uglier. I can handle it from the “fans,” but if it keeps seeming to come out of the judging pool and the commentators, this is not going to work for me.<br />
<br />
But for a moment, let me bask in the joy of Silvano Alves winning, despite all the commentator bashing, despite the horrid judging, and despite the noisy, nasty fans. And to top it all off, Bushwacker came from behind, after they had more or less written him off, to win his third bull of the year title! Rapture! Although you kind of have to laugh at the PBR declaring Gage Gay the Rookie of the Year on the broadcast, only to find that J.W Harris kept marching through the finals and cashed in on enough bonus points to be the actual Rookie of the Year. Oops.<br />
<br />
So, to wrap up, boo to unprofessional dogpiling commentary; inconsistent and suspicious judging; and fans who don’t understand math or how rules work. And yay to Silvano Alves for ignoring the naysayers and coming through; Chad Berger for getting back into the stock contractor groove and being named Stock Contractor of the Year; Bushwacker for triumphing for his finale year; and J.W. Harris, showing us all that guys from other organizations sure can hack it! <br />
<br />
It's funny how this finals was a microcosm of all the things we've been railing against for years, and yet, the end result was so wonderfully satisfying.<br />
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Now can’t we wait to do it all again?<br />
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Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-90634578629071248982014-10-07T11:08:00.001-07:002014-10-07T11:08:21.791-07:00S. Goes to Oakland Once Again - Part II<div class="MsoNormal">
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<i>S. has returned to wrap up the tale of her adventure in Oakland!</i></div>
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Usually, a person can feel confident that the championship round night will be a great evening of bullriding, and not having to rush to the
arena straight from work, and instead being able to enjoy some Vietnamese food
and make our leisurely way, definitely helps. Upon settling into our seats, we noted that the crowd was not giant, but it definitely was better than Friday night's. <br />
<br />
I had two newbies in tow, which always makes things more interesting, since I had to be ready to explain the idiosyncrasies of the sport, including some
that perhaps I have given up on trying to understand myself. Like why Renato Nunes' hail Mary moves
sometimes gain him points and sometimes lose him points, or why the PBR plays
so little country music at live events, or why the announcers are so scornful
about guys not taking re-rides (I had to limit myself on that on, or there
would have been a full-blown rant), or whether everybody is actually named <i>that</i>,
or how the hell they come up with the bonus points per round anyway.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkhyphenhyphenIRWQqz1X9Os7Jy1hWu-iwy-kn8qaj-TqkYiXWteDjC7gbIRXR1LGyBf48IN1q_0b6OaxHRgNMbv0rcPMi0ydxX4cAO8dicfzxuz1E23teojC3M0j9Y406N4sDq9-OjuU7sGh0Q8d7/s1600/Bushwacker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkhyphenhyphenIRWQqz1X9Os7Jy1hWu-iwy-kn8qaj-TqkYiXWteDjC7gbIRXR1LGyBf48IN1q_0b6OaxHRgNMbv0rcPMi0ydxX4cAO8dicfzxuz1E23teojC3M0j9Y406N4sDq9-OjuU7sGh0Q8d7/s1600/Bushwacker.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My newbies weren't familiar, but we did discover via telephoto lens that Ty Murray was the color commentator (we could see the glint
off his glasses across the arena). But
mostly I was excited to see that they had some dividers bisecting the arena as
the cowboys started marching out for their introductions, and I kind of rudely couldn't wait for
them to be done, because I knew what that meant! And yes, out trotted Bushwacker in a spotlight,
accompanied by much hyperbole. The bull, just like in Fresno, circled
restlessly by the exit gate, probably wondering what on earth this was all about -- he knows his job, and wandering around in the arena isn't it. He certainly is a huge, striking figure.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We also quickly discovered that we were sitting near the
family of a guy who had played football with Stormy Wing. They were very, very excited. Not sure how much having a dedicated cheering section
may have played into Stormy Wing's mindset, but I guess it could't have hurt. Kody Lostroh managed to put up a very pretty
ride despite his hand injury, and Guilherme Marchi got it together to sneak
past one, although he wasn't looking as solid and secure as he usually does, unfortunately. And I have to claim a
little bit of prescience, because I said to my friends at the event that
Valdiron de Oliveira was looking focused and riding like his old self, and Biloxi just
totally validated my insight.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLn2UKxHrDr4DnDwHGMAodzw8llCqC4FgbySA9Da8AegzTyCoEuGkHOB1NIM6-RydlusuTgFp_DZyN4CGo-vje5C7PLAFxZ4PYtnd6LggaM0-JjiuLSyw1wrIii6im75tAn9zp5loqYjbI/s1600/Alves,+Silvano+-+Flint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLn2UKxHrDr4DnDwHGMAodzw8llCqC4FgbySA9Da8AegzTyCoEuGkHOB1NIM6-RydlusuTgFp_DZyN4CGo-vje5C7PLAFxZ4PYtnd6LggaM0-JjiuLSyw1wrIii6im75tAn9zp5loqYjbI/s1600/Alves,+Silvano+-+Flint.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Thankfully, there were more rides this evening (and at least
one per flight), and that helps keep the energy up. Flint was back to his sing-a-long, although
it just was for "Don't Stop Believin'" rather than for an extended set. The Stanley Stud of the night, was, I'm pretty
sure, the firefighter who was the Fan of the Night last year, oddly
enough. And the Fan of the Night this
evening was the most adorable boy. He had longish white-blonde hair, and a hipster ensemble that included a
fedora. When Flint gave him the buckle,
he excitedly said, "Thank you so much!" There also was a pretty great scene where Silvano Alves bailed off his bull and directly on the shark cage, where Flint said he would "protect" him. I couldn't see what exactly was happening, but Silvano seemed to be doing some good-natured swatting.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIpesP5nYv6GW2xrWf8TuWLJko9bNsK8HBFt0kLPsV_rckcwUMgUJo1dRZ8mp7kTjaEmwtqlwLvLeNX25RTi8fVbKbRyv3GsD5wSaVFCS6H2bPpS3DI7SYuVmZYpGiFJ_VcXcEV6YF9QV/s1600/Pick+Up+Man.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIpesP5nYv6GW2xrWf8TuWLJko9bNsK8HBFt0kLPsV_rckcwUMgUJo1dRZ8mp7kTjaEmwtqlwLvLeNX25RTi8fVbKbRyv3GsD5wSaVFCS6H2bPpS3DI7SYuVmZYpGiFJ_VcXcEV6YF9QV/s1600/Pick+Up+Man.jpg" height="108" width="200" /></a>But of course there have to be some things for me to grouse
about, right? Firstly, I found it
agonizing that they keep hyping up J.B. Mauney, complete with all sorts of
shouting ("Who's ready to see the reigning world champ, J.B. MAUNEY?!"), and of
course "Bad to the Bone" and increasingly desperate speculation about how he could somehow still be in the mix for the title this year. He's obviously
banged up and going through a slump right now, so to have all this hoopla every
time he's in the chute, followed by him promptly hitting the dirt like ellipses trailing off (sorry, had to play off of Hummer's obsession with exclamation points), can't be
helping his psyche at all. It just seems kind of sad and grasping, with the commentators pretending he has a shot this year, I guess because they wish he did. <br />
<br />
There also was an overly-long and un-funny gag about kids going home and trying to emulate Flint throwing his hat at bulls by throwing their hats at their dogs. But then Flint went on and on about how they should throw them at cats instead. Even the commentators started to back off, mumbling something about how maybe it was going too far.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Outside of that, there were also a couple of nasty scenes, including Neil
Holmes trying to stick it to 8 and getting pulled under the bull. It looked like he got his thigh stomped on
pretty hard, but when the injury report came back, it was all about a partially
severed little finger and ear and a head gash?
Yikes. He got up and was shaking
and looking at his hand, but I had no idea. So impressed with this guy's effort and try, but maybe a helmet is in
order.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGLCYD4BfBRNbxD1F9iW5DFPuNe9PRVPDCHgvbCGxV-I9Xo3yCOrob0bFTBe18ALkfkjyq_PtgLe6Icizv5C3ZmVUSVqBF1oG4NjcnKelrwKxsTiEKFhaF5hIk34nJbdYsM3WXtgK3ldsd/s1600/Nunes,+Renato+-+Resende,+Emilio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGLCYD4BfBRNbxD1F9iW5DFPuNe9PRVPDCHgvbCGxV-I9Xo3yCOrob0bFTBe18ALkfkjyq_PtgLe6Icizv5C3ZmVUSVqBF1oG4NjcnKelrwKxsTiEKFhaF5hIk34nJbdYsM3WXtgK3ldsd/s1600/Nunes,+Renato+-+Resende,+Emilio.jpg" height="109" width="200" /></a>We finished off the long go with a couple of re-rides. Renato Nunes was scored 79.75 on his (sure, he was pretty out of shape at the end, but not sure that low a score was warranted), but did his back-flip. I have to wonder if Western Hauler, who jolted out of the
chute and promptly fell on his side to try to squash Billy Robinson, will be
seen too much more in the future. It's
not the first time this bull has done that, and it's terrifying every
time. Thankfully, Billy Robinson seemed
relatively unscathed, and even though he didn't ride his re-ride bull, he still
made it into the championship round. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Unfortunately, the championship draft looked a lot differently than it
was first presented, because numerous cowboys doctored out (Neil Holmes,
Fabiano Vieira, Douglas Duncan, Reese Cates, Ryan Dirteater and Renato Nunes). This meant a couple guys with one relatively
low score squeaked in, showing again that you just never know with this sport.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZKKUAFo-intnIwpDwx8LNt_HdipLHDedvRB3_hrw5pDX3XImM_kLLayivPxK42xSoX6XRk9i_Gi2jdYcO3WPedG1f1IQ5yRvdGk_f3zCdSNI9AOhM8jb3YIcjCGm1ox8DjCw2muT1naIC/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+Bushwacker+BO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZKKUAFo-intnIwpDwx8LNt_HdipLHDedvRB3_hrw5pDX3XImM_kLLayivPxK42xSoX6XRk9i_Gi2jdYcO3WPedG1f1IQ5yRvdGk_f3zCdSNI9AOhM8jb3YIcjCGm1ox8DjCw2muT1naIC/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+Bushwacker+BO.jpg" height="200" width="144" /></a>Roy (brother to Bushwacker) was really impressive in the championship round pen. Unfortunately, the real drama of his out was when Josh Faircloth's head connected with Roy's horn, and the
cowboy hit the ground with a dull thud. He was out. Roy, we had heard, unlike his brother, was mean. He didn't want to leave the
arena, that's for sure. Flint and Jesse Byrne stayed near Josh Faircloth, trying to keep him still (he started coming around
and trying to crawl, obviously disoriented), while the other bullfighters got
sucked into dealing with Roy. The
pick-up man had managed to rope Roy, but couldn't get him out easily without
risking Faircloth. So he had the bull off
in a far corner of the arena. Unfortunately, Roy somehow got one leg hooked in under the rope, and
started hopping around, eventually laying down and rolling around. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Meanwhile, Frank Newsom and Shorty Gorham were trying take off
the flank strap, and were working to get the bull's leg untangled, without becoming injury statistics themselves. When they succeeded with that, Roy took off,
still roped, but clearly a bull weighs more than a horse and Roy wasn't making any effort to be cooperative. The pick-up man, with a mighty struggle,
managed to steer the bull around the still-prone Faircloth and the Sports Medicine team, and out the exit
gate. Miraculously, Faircloth then got up,
looking pretty bewildered, and was escorted out shortly after. It appears neither bull nor cowboy were too
much worse for wear, thankfully, but as you can imagine, the television
broadcast cut away from some of that pretty quickly.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlOtxv0aL5Gr13kInXlRFdTf479Ag_Hk8HdICPyL-U5lrXVzts5xbcg8waBamNJzUNO__Qe_Lzt-ZKawEuNMfrpYAEA53gzUQJ669kJCZohZilYp-1Vflm8ThBSZdfEoel-1kl8TFAcJ3n/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+champ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlOtxv0aL5Gr13kInXlRFdTf479Ag_Hk8HdICPyL-U5lrXVzts5xbcg8waBamNJzUNO__Qe_Lzt-ZKawEuNMfrpYAEA53gzUQJ669kJCZohZilYp-1Vflm8ThBSZdfEoel-1kl8TFAcJ3n/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+champ.jpg" height="200" width="148" /></a>The championship round was mostly the bulls' day, with Oklahoma Bell, a Pacific Bell son, putting on a nice show; so did Stanley FatMax (and Valdiron de Oliveira was this close to making the 8, too). Billy Robinson got right to the edge of making the confetti to fly with
his ride on Cooper Tires Semper Fi, as did Joao Ricardo Vieira with his ride on
Cowtown Slinger. The confetti did get
some action with the feel-good story continuing for on-the-bubble Jason Malone,
who was briefly in the lead. But then
Stormy Wing hit a home run for real and won the round and the event with a
90.75 on Mr. Bull. His friends sitting
near me went totally nuts, especially when he pointed at them (I think that was
evident on the TV broadcast, but I'll send along a photo anyway). While I was excited for what was coming right up, it was
kind of sad that the guy barely had a moment to savor his first BFTS win before
they were escorting him out to prepare for his match-up with the bonus bull,
Bushwacker.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The last time I saw Bushwacker was in Fresno, and I
barely saw him buck there, since L.J. Jenkins was off in 1.45 seconds. This time, although the official buckoff was
just over 3 seconds with a slap, Stormy Wing was on for a few more seconds than
that, and Bushwacker was still bucking like the champ he is. And during those seconds, I had a moment of revelation that for all the BS
that sometimes enrages me about this sport, this is why I watch. This is what makes it worth it--it's as simple as a rank bull really bucking and a cowboy really putting out the effort. Now if only the PBR and I can remember that!<o:p></o:p><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQC0-TYwjeIimYdBvJdmoF7qSvrl73M8z2nD10WD-woak4pztRgEGX4mAY1mbOg-suoaNQ-_3t7_nTHdvvAdhYOzn1lWjkhL2-cdXD0nBAFYtf0LjNd4jYcfc2JPNn3OJlXCFxClBBQCs8/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+w+Jim+Haworth,+Julio+Moreno.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQC0-TYwjeIimYdBvJdmoF7qSvrl73M8z2nD10WD-woak4pztRgEGX4mAY1mbOg-suoaNQ-_3t7_nTHdvvAdhYOzn1lWjkhL2-cdXD0nBAFYtf0LjNd4jYcfc2JPNn3OJlXCFxClBBQCs8/s1600/Wing,+Stormy+-+w+Jim+Haworth,+Julio+Moreno.jpg" height="128" width="200" /></a><br />
<br />
So after my moment of clarity, we were off to the final moments of the event, with Stormy Wing getting a real chance to enjoy the spotlight, and Julio Moreno accepting the high-marked bull award for Roy (who, interestingly, would have won it even if Bushwacker's score had counted--the bonus bull score was apparently not part of the event ranking--as he outscored his brother). Looks like Moreno may have another contender.<br />
<br />
So, there it is! And, since one of my friends won 4 VIP seats for next season through PBR Passport, I guess you haven't heard the last of me yet. I do have to say that live events really do help bring me back to the essentials of why I love this sport, so I'm definitely glad that NorCal is somehow a schedule hotspot.<br />
<br />
<i>Thanks again to S. for sending in her adventures!</i></div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-3200353092165042012014-10-01T12:15:00.002-07:002014-10-01T12:15:42.773-07:00S. Goes to Oakland Once Again - Part I<i>S. is here once again to save us from the blank space that would be filled with the rantings and ravings of SQ and PdV, if they had not stalled on posting for an embarrassingly long time. Welcome to the first part of her adventures at the Kawasaki Strong Battle By the Bay in Oakland!</i><br />
<div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
When the schedule came out for the 2014 season, I have to
say that I was pleasantly surprised to see Oakland on it. I can only imagine the PBR is getting a great
deal on the venue, because attendance last year was beyond pathetic, especially
<a href="http://turnhimout.blogspot.com/2013/09/s-goes-to-oakland-part-i-friday.html" target="_blank">on Friday.</a> But who am I to question the schedule of the
PBR, particularly when it rewards Northern California?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGqf2YORu4kVOQV28oDr1wQNIg4rAMLLNsOvb8E_qb84UcqJptlTpobATrVUOTjBf77HwMDK5sYcsuZiqtnctkrZde7zjrWY8sKHgzh26Q5OPWO_freeaULvtXJrY4wh-DbPDBlJ1dD1K/s1600/S_MikeLee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGqf2YORu4kVOQV28oDr1wQNIg4rAMLLNsOvb8E_qb84UcqJptlTpobATrVUOTjBf77HwMDK5sYcsuZiqtnctkrZde7zjrWY8sKHgzh26Q5OPWO_freeaULvtXJrY4wh-DbPDBlJ1dD1K/s1600/S_MikeLee.jpg" height="139" width="200" /></a>I wish I could say that the attendance was any better on
Friday this year, but it would be a flat-out lie if I did. I'm guessing the PBR's expectations were low, since
even the sponsors didn't bother to do much prior to the event, if they
bothered to do anything at all. Rider Relief
was there, of course, with a rider doing a signing (Mike Lee) and their contest for a donation (you get a frisbee that you can try to throw into the bed of the Ford truck at a designated time, and maybe win a signed rider vest). Cooper Tire was doing some kind of prize
contest, and of course the Fan Club/Passport booth was there, along with some
people trying to sell sports tickets and Caterpillar/Bass Pro trying to get
people to enter a contest to win a fishing trip with Luke Snyder (I think I
totally confused the lady when I blurted out that I don't eat fish). That was pretty much it, besides one
merchandise booth, and the ubiquitous PBR Visa people.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj66QIyn5_9MTxeHBpWCxqqRyhBlki76DVsqQXwxk8tiRd8tzCJl82oJFsf97sdAFwEtPaofSLiv1TnhY8D4Vun2SCCDMFjffDO4mrirzJwbSc3CrbUaRyAvd6eQDNv46CPgrd9pAcCwqno/s1600/Announcers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj66QIyn5_9MTxeHBpWCxqqRyhBlki76DVsqQXwxk8tiRd8tzCJl82oJFsf97sdAFwEtPaofSLiv1TnhY8D4Vun2SCCDMFjffDO4mrirzJwbSc3CrbUaRyAvd6eQDNv46CPgrd9pAcCwqno/s1600/Announcers.jpg" height="132" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After "enjoying" my $9 cheeseburger with no burger from one
of the few open places in one of the clubhouses, and meeting up with some friends, it was off to my seat, ready
for the festivities. I'm pretty immune
to the flaming introduction at this point, but it was apparent that the pick-up
man's horse was not, poor thing. At least
there wasn't a PBR Party Barn this year, so I didn't have drunken stumbling
people threatening to dump beer on me all night long.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, even though the bull pen was not especially
impressive, there were not a lot of rides. Of the rides, many were high 70s/low 80s, some with re-ride options and
some without (some bafflingly without). Silvano Alves ended up with a 58.25 and turned down the re-ride – I could hear the PBRLive commentary in my
head. Of course, re-rides didn't always help, anyway. Jordan Hupp took his re-ride and scored 2
points less on the second go-round (80.25 to a 78.25 with another re-ride option; he called it a day).<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZc34dE-_xhvjIpNE73MtcXZRp7pqfIZrR6R0Nx0bEW6tJ8yvWkIol6bpwp9KoT04zj6uFJukPYiSrmOTBpBwuLh9Ejtoyy2rIjDuee0vQeyaHgmo3PcQOL893wNa6pNFn5dXHPuKcNghj/s1600/Bullfighters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZc34dE-_xhvjIpNE73MtcXZRp7pqfIZrR6R0Nx0bEW6tJ8yvWkIol6bpwp9KoT04zj6uFJukPYiSrmOTBpBwuLh9Ejtoyy2rIjDuee0vQeyaHgmo3PcQOL893wNa6pNFn5dXHPuKcNghj/s1600/Bullfighters.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thankfully there were some decent rides scattered in there. The newest beneficiary of a 3-event exemption
based on stellar performance at a recent BFTS event, Neil Holmes, put up another nice one. Fabiano Vieira continues to amaze
with his ability to ride with his nearly immovable free arm. Stormy Wing, the commentators' favorite "home-run hitter," managed to hit one this time around, and veteran Billy
Robinson hit a triple, then, if we're using that jargon. The
feel-good story of the weekend was Jason Malone, who desperately needed to ride, and did. Still, eleven rides out of 35+ attempts in a
long go was somewhat less than impressive. It was obvious that the wear and
tear of the season is really playing a role in the ability of the guys to ride and their decisions regarding re-rides. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCPzwwVl9cDU1ivgK4TV-fDiWqD-_g7-bK8_KmTXq0HfFfO1LHymLVifhiFE4HevqKw5SDBSoHlGo3naIe-kPjMl4qN6xaCiyBL-AQzd8exSmefHY2-QoJ9w6u8JMls9zF9CWQ3YD2lTwo/s1600/Buck+off.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCPzwwVl9cDU1ivgK4TV-fDiWqD-_g7-bK8_KmTXq0HfFfO1LHymLVifhiFE4HevqKw5SDBSoHlGo3naIe-kPjMl4qN6xaCiyBL-AQzd8exSmefHY2-QoJ9w6u8JMls9zF9CWQ3YD2lTwo/s1600/Buck+off.jpg" height="160" width="200" /></a>There were a few bulls worth watching (Papa Smurf,
Comfortably Numb and Wild For the Night were of note), and definitely some
squirrelly bulls that didn't want to leave the arena or otherwise provided some
entertainment. At one point, the pick-up
man’s horse got nearly clotheslined and spooked pretty badly, but the guy kept
his seat. Flint unfortunately then made some comment about how that was a better ride than Silvano Alves' low-scored ride.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Everything else was pretty much the way it always is,
although they seem to have gotten rid of the Kiss Kam, thankfully, and the
Stanley Stud-finder blessedly now only goes through beeping for one doofus in
the crowd, so we don't have to sit through three rounds of it. Flint had some new material, which was good,
although he couldn't resist some kind of "handout/welfare in California" joke,
which went over like a lead balloon. The
crowd just went totally silent, and then there was some quiet, ominous rumbling. Not sure
Flint really wants to explore the GDP, federal tax dollars paid, and dependency
of California in comparison to other states, because I’m pretty sure that
wouldn't go anywhere he wants to go. Thankfully he quickly moved on and did some goofy dancing, which is all
for the best. Outside of that, I saw Jim
Haworth a couple times. The fan of the night was a girl who had been the Little Miss Buckaroo of her town, and wanted to grow up to be a barrel racer (Flint told her to marry someone rich).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbouYnR3wRS8p2xkV5RBHvGXOUsI5z8dreLTHqLzPJXYroLZ7lyjbIOr2MeNNrNdFc2N8VdSJGF05c3zFND8poHlKsU73AAteL8OrpYcXhm8dzJCXAwUqbcPIxzOBBwk6H-0c29sTQaCa4/s1600/Gay,+Gage_Wild+For+The+Night+BO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbouYnR3wRS8p2xkV5RBHvGXOUsI5z8dreLTHqLzPJXYroLZ7lyjbIOr2MeNNrNdFc2N8VdSJGF05c3zFND8poHlKsU73AAteL8OrpYcXhm8dzJCXAwUqbcPIxzOBBwk6H-0c29sTQaCa4/s1600/Gay,+Gage_Wild+For+The+Night+BO.jpg" height="163" width="200" /></a>Of course, one of the reasons to go to an event on the first
day is that’s when Fan Club member exclusives usually happen. In this case, it was an on-the-dirt
signing. Unfortunately, this turned out sort of
weird as there’s a ring almost like a cattle chute around the outside of the
arena at this venue, so the riders went around that first to sign for the general
crowd. The cowboys were then supposed to jump
the fence near the chutes and come on the dirt, but not all of them did. Which is fine. I don't feel the guys are obligated to do anything, and I know the PBR works hard to give fans access to the cowboys at events, and I certainly appreciate it. But it seems like if you are
going to have an on-the-dirt exclusive signing, having the fans in the stands
getting to see more of the cowboys than the people who have paid to be in the
fan club is not how that should work.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thankfully, the cowboys who did clamber over the fence were
gracious. Tanner Byrne complimented my
drawing (a general one for everyone to sign) and asked if I really wanted him
to sign it, because he didn't want to "ruin it," which was kind of
adorable. I had a drawing specifically for
Guilherme Marchi to sign, but besides that, I was eager to have the chance to
talk to Neil Holmes, the new invitee who is taking the PBR by storm. Having read some features on him, I was intrigued. He has been well-spoken in PBR interviews,
and it’s pretty clear to me that the PBR could use a college-educated cowboy
who can give more than the usual sound-bite ("just having fun," "riding jump
for jump," "one bull at a time," etc.). Not to mention that he's everything that could bring new fans to the
sport – definitely not the same old, same old. And now I can confirm that he's also very sweet to fans, even if he told
me he didn't think he was cool enough to have fans.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9BefynITe3YEmhUZgTnktw9j1mxxbpWPwNt62nTbwqhJhXarTxz_YUL_VQo4pbGLEA83nhVrdQw90JoeDX5ZtjBUQ59WR7M2g7RfCBSmbWtmok4P3MJp0QwsxlKKUwHDICpLjTcHOLNh5/s1600/S_NeilHolmes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9BefynITe3YEmhUZgTnktw9j1mxxbpWPwNt62nTbwqhJhXarTxz_YUL_VQo4pbGLEA83nhVrdQw90JoeDX5ZtjBUQ59WR7M2g7RfCBSmbWtmok4P3MJp0QwsxlKKUwHDICpLjTcHOLNh5/s1600/S_NeilHolmes.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have struggled with what I want to say about this next
part, and I am hoping I’ll figure it out as I write it. I just don’t even know what to say, and as
annoyed as I was on behalf of the riders involved, I think it's best to leave
it anonymous. I guess I’ll just say that
there was some sort of weird incident that led to one of the PBR arena folks
pulling aside a few riders and lecturing them in front of all the fan club
members who were paying attention. Fans
kept coming over who didn't realize what was going on, wanting to talk to those
riders, and then the arena security would make them stand back, drawing even
more attention to the scene. The riders
involved looked so humiliated and angry, and I can't say I blame them. I'm not entirely clear about the incident
that started the scene, but regardless, the "discipline" could have been
handled in another way, and certainly in another place!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPTIHNIAwomNrczs8JefLXwJnolw03MF4jPVI56aI9Mdr0woEJNLBufJL1tafFiYwUIe4AG4CPRjBNtJFkJKY95fQmcsNdFJnVAmnC3dRbV8dtQ67DWKBcQViu5QiCVwkRDxBix0jfVptI/s1600/GM-signed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPTIHNIAwomNrczs8JefLXwJnolw03MF4jPVI56aI9Mdr0woEJNLBufJL1tafFiYwUIe4AG4CPRjBNtJFkJKY95fQmcsNdFJnVAmnC3dRbV8dtQ67DWKBcQViu5QiCVwkRDxBix0jfVptI/s1600/GM-signed.JPG" height="200" width="166" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyway, this kind of put a pall on the evening for me. However, I did have my drawing for Guilherme
to sign, and he smiled when he saw it, and said, "Yes, I will sign this for
you!" Then someone else grabbed him, but
I was finally able to give him the extra copy. He then gave me a side hug and a "Bless you!" That definitely took a little of the sting off the
weird scene for me.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
I actually got dragged briefly to the host hotel by a friend, where various cowboys and PBR crew were hanging out in the lobby, but I had to catch a train out, so I didn't stay long. So, that was the first day. More to come.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Stay tuned for Part II! </i></div>
</div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-35806146560936910262014-08-08T08:31:00.001-07:002014-08-08T08:31:34.859-07:00Too Much Bull?<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The
divine Pearl and I hesitate to interrupt your summer break from bull riding,
which we are sure you are spending wisely by lolling
around the pool, drink in hand. But we feel compelled to direct your attention
to this outstanding article, “<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/7/8/5877463/too-much-bull-an-industry-obsessed-with-breeding-bigger-nastier-bulls" target="_blank">Too Much Bull</a>,” by Andrea Appleton, which
appeared in SB Nation about a month ago. We encourage you to read the whole
thing at your convenience, but the premise of the story is that many bull
breeders are sending their not-quite-ready-for-the-PBR level bulls to high
school rodeos and other events for kids. The bottom line is that these bulls
may not be up to the PBR standard, but they are too hot for kids. Obviously, many parents are justifiably very concerned because a lot of kids are getting hurt,
some of them very badly, but almost as importantly, many kids are getting
discouraged and dropping out of the sport entirely. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">Cody Custer, who is one of the
founders of the PBR, is taking this issue on in a startlingly forthright manner.
Check out his Facebook page, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Answers-for-Bull-Riders-by-Cody-Custer/185368274830438" target="_blank">Answers for Bull Riders by Cody Custer</a>, for his analysis
of this situation and his recommendations for fixing it. In a post on July 11,
he notes that at the International Finals Youth Rodeo this year, there were
about 140 outs on bulls and only 10 qualified rides. With odds like that, it’s
no wonder kids are abandoning the sport of bull riding</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">these statistics sound
like the ones at the big leagues that are being lamented by commentators and
fans, and there’s no way that is a good thing for kids learning the ropes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">As Cody Custer and others note, with
all the trumpeting about J.B. Mauney and how much money he’s made, young
American kids should be pumped up and flocking to the sport. However, this is not what’s happening. If the
current trend continues, we can foresee a time when there will be even fewer
American bull riders on the PBR circuit, which is interesting to consider,
given the unmistakable antagonism against foreign riders even at this early
point. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">We thoroughly agree with Custer that
the practice of over-matching bulls with young riders should be changed. The
people who can change it are those who run the organizations that stage youth
rodeos—they need to be getting bulls (and possibly even steers for the youngest
riders) for the events that are appropriately rank for each age level, but are not
eliminators.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">We would also like to point out that
one way to deepen the ranks of young talent is to quit banning half of it from
participating, namely, young women. Yes, we’ve ridden this horse before, but
it’s not dead yet, and thus we plan to continue beating it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">We have seen some mumblings about how
much even PBR stock contractors get paid per out (hint: it’s not a lot), and we
can’t imagine that outs at high-school and lower-level kids’ events pay in some
spectacular fashion. (There’s probably
not a lot of money in breeding fees and advertising for high school rodeo
stock, either.) We get that making a
living as a stock contractor, especially a stock contractor not in the leagues
of, say, a Jeff Robinson, is not an easy proposition—with droughts, high feed costs,
and all the rest that goes with it, nobody (well, hardly anybody) is making a
fortune. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">But regardless of the struggles of stock
contractors, the short-sightedness of taking over-rank bulls to events for
kids, and thereby discouraging or even seriously injuring youngsters for a measly pay-out,
is obvious. Besides the youth
organizations themselves being more stringent about what stock they accept at
their rodeos, the only other solution we can see would lie with the successful
PBR stock contractors and the PBR itself. If they invest in the future riders of America and the future of the
sport by forming some kind of non-profit organization to supply appropriate
stock to high school and other events for children, maybe there’s a way out of
this mess.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">If, on the other hand, those who could help choose to look away, then we anticipate a day when there will be even fewer bull riders from the United States, and we anticipate that day arriving sooner rather than later. If young riders get paired with too-rank bulls too often at the beginning of their careers, they may decide they're not having enough fun to justify the pain and the discouragement. That would be a shame not only for the individual rider, but for the future of professional bull riding as well.</span>Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-12155097541456272592014-05-05T11:28:00.000-07:002014-05-05T11:28:03.410-07:00A Man, A Plan, A Canal, Panama<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I
would like to invite you all to head over to <a href="http://bullridingmarketing.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Bullridingmarketing blog</a> to savor
Kris DiLorenzo’s most excellent post about one of the PBR’s more recent blunders,
a marketing survey conducted over a period of 30 days with a group of invited
participants. The Divine Miz D has a field day with this subject, and I would
not want any of you to miss a single salient, laser-guided observation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">There’s
no need for me to recount here the details of her observations, but her
principal point bears repeating: Despite the PBR’s continuous efforts to force
its fans into little boxes (cowboys? cowgirls? SAHMs? heavy-metal fans? extreme
fighting fans?), the bottom line is that there is NO typical PBR fan. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">You’d
think that finding this out would actually make marketing the sport a lot
simpler, because those developing the campaigns could focus on the obvious: It’s
the sport that’s the draw, not the so-called culture of the sport, the
existence of which is suspect to begin with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">That’s
it, folks—the boys versus the bulls. Straight-up competition, one on one, no
guts, no glory, no pain, no gain, no balls, no babies. That’s what makes my
heart beat faster, that’s why I’m still here despite all the crap that the PBR
keeps dishing out, and it baffles me to now end why somebody in Pueblo can’t
just grab hold of this one fact and follow it where it leads. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">This could
be the idea with the potential to finally take the sport into the mainstream:
People love to watch the boys and the bulls square off on the dirt. It’s time
to just acknowledge it, embrace it, and run with it. All the rest is bullshit that unfortunately is not being produced by bulls. It’s time, as Grandma Lee famously said in her
too-brief run on America’s Got Talent several years ago, to cut the crap. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-4352152784470804212014-04-13T17:08:00.001-07:002014-04-13T17:08:39.845-07:00Fresno (Once Again)<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>S. returned to Fresno, and has kindly agreed to tell us about her adventures this time around.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEa83rpfSUUnbbVedha0M6_GXaxssboHK-T9cFttF5LYAt0Aae8kzyFLs-OKSZ4FYyMd4MZ6Fpo-6NQjDCIh6qCp7R9WeLYBOo2fpm0EX0vKcHNA_vlI7yDJYUKiV-DPxPsq_DREEFlh7I/s1600/Flint-BradySims.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEa83rpfSUUnbbVedha0M6_GXaxssboHK-T9cFttF5LYAt0Aae8kzyFLs-OKSZ4FYyMd4MZ6Fpo-6NQjDCIh6qCp7R9WeLYBOo2fpm0EX0vKcHNA_vlI7yDJYUKiV-DPxPsq_DREEFlh7I/s1600/Flint-BradySims.jpg" height="245" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Flint "protects" Brady Simms on the shark cage</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
To be honest, I waited a little too long before writing this, so it may be more brief than the usual as details are escaping me by the moment. I'll be sure to pad with a lot of photos. Friday is also kind of a blur as I worked a half day before driving the nearly four hours to Fresno through not great traffic, checking into the hotel, and hustling over to the event.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
There's nothing very new or exciting about the pre-event festivities, except the fan club now has something called PBR Passport. You get a card that hooks up to your information, and you get it scanned at the events you attend for the chance to win prizes. Most of the prizes seemed pretty good too, like VIP tickets to the same event next year, or $500. Unfortunately, I didn't win any of them, but at least they seemed worthwhile. Also, they've gotten rid of the Bass Pro Shops shooting arrows at the deer practice target or the fishing thing, and now you have to guess the monetary total of the items Luke Synder is putting in his cart at Bass Pro Shops. Amazingly, someone won this on Friday.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0Lryt8_tZXxNp4rTEohC_vwbP6Lq5pwW25w1iqkJUsXiac0YpwfIoJaDfXaG5ktoCA6oj3ksElJGOEpAqqHOGSSHs-dNPx8A94SkHv38Ds49RTg531YuiL1Pe3i9jR-T8kjpwuDj30_s/s1600/Silvano+15-15+champ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp0Lryt8_tZXxNp4rTEohC_vwbP6Lq5pwW25w1iqkJUsXiac0YpwfIoJaDfXaG5ktoCA6oj3ksElJGOEpAqqHOGSSHs-dNPx8A94SkHv38Ds49RTg531YuiL1Pe3i9jR-T8kjpwuDj30_s/s1600/Silvano+15-15+champ.jpg" height="320" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Silvano Alves stands alone...</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway, I was keen to go to the Friday event for multiple reasons. Firstly, the PBR kept going on about testing a new chute clock, and I was very curious to see what that meant. Secondly, it was to be the first event after ABQ where the invitees J.W. Harris and Guytin Tsosie would be competing with a 5 event invitation. And finally, and most importantly, it would be my chance to see Bushwacker buck in person in the 15/15. So let's run it down:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Chute clock: </i>I was curious but filled with trepidation about the PBR's latest foray into screwing around with the rules. On the positive side, I think it does really help the guys to have a clear visual cue about where they are with the timing, rather than it totally being the whim of the chute judge, who might be yelling something incoherent. However, one minute is really not a lot of time, and since the judges have "discretion" to add several more 20 second intervals, it's all just as arbitrary as before. And while it's hard to make a direct attribution, I feel like there were a lot more nasty wrecks and hangups than I am used to seeing, and one has to wonder how much of that might be due to guys hustling to get out before the minute runs out. So far, not a fan. Bulls are unpredictable and both rider and bull safety need to be considered-- at the least, the initial clock time should be increased.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4fiewTd6LKNZePSlh2MoGOzmD6caEuj8FzwShIFU3muenLOXDo6MwFlskolrcJfPw79ESpDMCbNeR9F2fPmKIVGOowsx8Mu8E0KVFzo78RbJRVArfRtWvacD-vtc3Z6AbdrxeSAkgZvrq/s1600/Matt+West+responds+to+Flint+twerking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4fiewTd6LKNZePSlh2MoGOzmD6caEuj8FzwShIFU3muenLOXDo6MwFlskolrcJfPw79ESpDMCbNeR9F2fPmKIVGOowsx8Mu8E0KVFzo78RbJRVArfRtWvacD-vtc3Z6AbdrxeSAkgZvrq/s1600/Matt+West+responds+to+Flint+twerking.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Horrified amusement or amused horror?</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>J.W. Harris and Guytin Tsosie</i>: J.W. Harris showed he is the real deal to the PBR audience with a pretty little ride on Hot Blooded. Guytin Tsosie unfortunately did not do as well. I suspect he got overwhelmed and was trying too hard-- he was overriding the bulls. Thankfully he seems to have figured things out since.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Bushwacker</i>: They actually trotted him out in the introductions, although I don't think he really appreciated it, as he spent the whole time circling around near the chutes, apparently wondering why he was there and just wanting to leave. I think he knows his job and he knew this wasn't it. Bushwacker is huge, by the way! And, although we only got a few seconds of action from him as he dumped L.J. Jenkins, I was very happy to have seen him buck in person.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFIuE3bLz3rqTERR20sqAPAuCnay2b7gyqXDl1aRoXfzvB6Wanj7-bwmxqHpZvV6GRyMy4JBreq5eTIQeIawE-Pvx9q3vdFOAwwg92LGKyTElfEZhfADQX1D0AIApJl7hFYyFhU69BvcDP/s1600/Kody-Shelley-Validron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFIuE3bLz3rqTERR20sqAPAuCnay2b7gyqXDl1aRoXfzvB6Wanj7-bwmxqHpZvV6GRyMy4JBreq5eTIQeIawE-Pvx9q3vdFOAwwg92LGKyTElfEZhfADQX1D0AIApJl7hFYyFhU69BvcDP/s1600/Kody-Shelley-Validron.jpg" height="231" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Kody Lostroh and Valdiron de Oliveira</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At the end of the 15/15, there actually were a number of rides, but Silvano Alves was triumphant with a Silvano-of-old style ride on Rango. He was pumped up after the ride, but it was extremely bizarre the way the PBR had a handler or two trot him up on the shark cage, where he just stood by himself, doffing his hat, until they told him to come down. I hope that looked better on camera because it was super awkward in person.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The other notable thing about Friday's event was that Brandon Bates wasn't there, so the in-arena announcers were Clint Adkins and Matt West. I enjoyed West's calm take on things, and his response to Flint's twerking speaks for us all.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ2Xn6Kwkg2hIN6tz9tN9tlEhe5EBGxYFi03u2uRKE5vnzfIsW6n3kThqJXy2zk66iPol3IiOXfF_Qo3FufcOFXzlN2fTu9XKTdMpdDi86EXvtko5mHqRbGDOg2AXOErOQdLVR3Qa4ZOYT/s1600/Gage-Shelley-Matt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ2Xn6Kwkg2hIN6tz9tN9tlEhe5EBGxYFi03u2uRKE5vnzfIsW6n3kThqJXy2zk66iPol3IiOXfF_Qo3FufcOFXzlN2fTu9XKTdMpdDi86EXvtko5mHqRbGDOg2AXOErOQdLVR3Qa4ZOYT/s1600/Gage-Shelley-Matt.jpg" height="194" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Young guns Gage Gay and Matt Triplett</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Oh, and since the entrance for the on-the-dirt fan club signing was all the way around the arena from us and we were in row B, we were unable to get on the dirt (well, maybe we could have, but it would have been after most of the cowboys went around). I guess if we'd left before Bushwacker bucked, we could have made it, but I wasn't going to do that. It's too bad there isn't an easier way for this to play out, but I suppose there's always next time.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
On Saturday, we had made plans to meet up with a fun PBR friend and enjoy the day (for some reason, this was an evening event). After ending up in a gun store because it looked like the hipster coffee place (Clovis, what can you do?) and breakfast, we ambled to Boot Barn, because we had coupons and because there were cowboys there. I didn't end up buying anything at Boot Barn, but I did get some photos that kind of made up for the inability to capitalize on the on-the-dirt signing the night before. We got a nice tour of various parts of Fresno with our pal, and ended up chatting with some of the Brazilian riders at the hotel, who were kind enough to pose for a photo -- Emilio Resende seemed especially pleased by this.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh5vUwzSlFOFgndSG4IEuxRpoQ9fhygAzwJAIpumpX2dClHFAFXmOmgRRnMAOJLIrnnLd5R3XzNYlpUCRTMBgGMv2mBs6aP0JzreZexNYPhV529YXClTFxGK8V3-18P02LvPF7wi_5RlFO/s1600/Eduardo-Emilio-Silvano-Shelley-sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh5vUwzSlFOFgndSG4IEuxRpoQ9fhygAzwJAIpumpX2dClHFAFXmOmgRRnMAOJLIrnnLd5R3XzNYlpUCRTMBgGMv2mBs6aP0JzreZexNYPhV529YXClTFxGK8V3-18P02LvPF7wi_5RlFO/s1600/Eduardo-Emilio-Silvano-Shelley-sm.jpg" height="185" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Brazilian brigade</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The bulls by and large were fairly decent at this event, although many were pretty squirrelly; probably bulls act up at all events but we just don't see it on TV, for obvious time saving reasons. In another not-seen-on-TV-moment, we got to experience the event itself being delayed in order to fit into airing live on CBS Sports Network. The in-arena announcers kept us up to date with overtime shenanigans of whatever we were waiting for, while Flint did his thing.<span style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Flint discovered that pickup man Julio Moreno's horse really didn't like him, so he spent some time taunting the poor thing. He's lucky the horse didn't give him a swift kick. Speaking of Flint, since I no longer pay to see the LEC stream, even though his act has not really changed, it was more bearable. Also, Matt West gave him some new material by having attended a Miley Cyrus concert by himself. Good for him.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8s2dlISXwR5BxzDENajUOyjVHKTqISre84GnhokcGcTGHbrsIwOhL0vZt73OK9tWmkuplKzDHJaXNxMFKrMfzVFYse5LNlL7TmzlbHiGUUnixHdqbognRCFUDbijvmGa_90mS6h9V_1yu/s1600/Flint+taunts+the+horse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8s2dlISXwR5BxzDENajUOyjVHKTqISre84GnhokcGcTGHbrsIwOhL0vZt73OK9tWmkuplKzDHJaXNxMFKrMfzVFYse5LNlL7TmzlbHiGUUnixHdqbognRCFUDbijvmGa_90mS6h9V_1yu/s1600/Flint+taunts+the+horse.jpg" height="203" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Flint tempts fate</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Not much terribly notable happened at the event overall , although there were a fair amount of rides. also, Cody Lambert must have yanked Stone Sober from the Championship Round after his performance at the 15/15, since he wasn't there and Hair Trigger was.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I do hope, however, that someone told Tanner Byrne, who was so elated after his ride, the last one in the round, and who clearly thought he won, that the crowd was booing his score and that he hadn't won, not him. He looked really confused, poor guy. I'm sure his time will come, even if it ended up being Cody Nance's victory this time.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0CSXYT57QGRdBebe16U0zrPlxBkWeQtG0rjJUdbmxplU_dpGRQvEuPMSuVRKqThvF8uA5_mIS9YL83kql0wiHGyHd6xm-oIl4wPAlv5W9eKdZ3Thd1KIlj_vh5AoCJ9uA7HETGRCCfUI/s1600/Renato-drawing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0CSXYT57QGRdBebe16U0zrPlxBkWeQtG0rjJUdbmxplU_dpGRQvEuPMSuVRKqThvF8uA5_mIS9YL83kql0wiHGyHd6xm-oIl4wPAlv5W9eKdZ3Thd1KIlj_vh5AoCJ9uA7HETGRCCfUI/s1600/Renato-drawing.jpg" height="320" width="223" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Unique artwork transportation provided by...</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
There was one amusing little story I can tell about Saturday. I had done a drawing for Robson Palermo, but he didn't come out either night, I assume because he was pretty battered. I decided to ask Renato Nunes, who I had previously done a drawing for, if he could maybe take it to Robson. He seemed pretty confused by this request, and more confused by what to do with it as he did his rounds, but he agreed to take it. His ultimate decision was to put the drawing down the back of his jeans, which was quite an entertaining image. It may be the only artwork transported by cowboy jeans. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So, in conclusion, chute clock reception is mixed, Bushwacker is a plus, PBR friends are definitely a positive, and amusing cowboy moments keep us all entertained. The recipe for another successful trip to Fresno. Too bad I had to drive back home for four hours right after leaving the event... </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Thanks to S. for sharing her tales of Fresno! Hopefully I managed to insert her photos in a somewhat organized fashion.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-37843038342515821982014-04-02T07:55:00.000-07:002014-04-02T15:15:35.057-07:00Oversharing, the Beta Version<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">This
is what happens when you get really, really bored: A week or two ago, like a
fool, I made the mistake yet again of sauntering over to PBR.com to see if
anything there might amuse me for a few minutes. And naturally the first thing
I stumbled over was one of the ongoing series of pablum titled “The Women of
the PBR,” this time featuring Dana Lee. Something about the title struck me as
odd, so, like a fool, I clicked on the link, and then, as F. Scott
Fitzgerald observed, the holocaust was complete.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">What
that ill-considered click revealed is that apparently Mike Lee is no longer
married to his childhood sweetheart Jamie, about whom we learned so much in <i>Fried Twinkies</i> and various posts on the
PBR website, including the 2008 announcement that she and Mike had become the
parents of twins. Nope, this is a brand-new Mrs. Michael Lee, hailing from, of
all places, New York, where she apparently met her husband in a bar during the
Madison Square Garden event in 2010.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">What
a stunning revelation this all is! The mind boggles at its implications! Which
end of this tangled rope shall we pull on first?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Well—none
of them. Begging the pardon of Kurt Vonnegut, I don’t give a flying fuck at a
rolling doughnut whether Mike Lee is married, divorced, remarried, a polygamist
with 15 wives and 60 children, or a partner in a line marriage of 10 men and
five women. I would not care if we learned that he’s gay and holds hands with other riders behind
the chutes, and if that were the case, I most certainly wouldn't give a rat’s ass if he and his friend ran away
together in Las Vegas this fall and got hitched at the Tunnel of Love
Drive-Through Wedding Chapel in their brand-new Ford F-150 with Ecoboost.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">No, what I care about is that clearly, back in the Stone Age, somebody (or several somebodies) at the PBR decided
that the riders should be extolled as role models of upright behavior for all
the world to see. Mike Lee has come in for more than his justified share of
this shit because he is a profoundly religious man, and that is just ambrosia
to the dudes at PBR headquarters—they can’t wait to talk about what a fine
Christian man he is, along with all that implies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In
all sincerity, I respect the fact that Lee’s faith is central to his character.
But in equal sincerity, I shouldn’t know a damned thing about his religious
beliefs or a single detail about his personal life. I shouldn’t know the names
of his ex-wife, or his children, or his new wife. None of that is relevant to bull
riding.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Despite
all protests to the contrary, professional bull riding is not a mainstream
sport, and this endless nattering about the riders’ personal lives is one of
the biggest reasons. You don’t see this shit in other professional sports. Just
waltz on over to the National Football League’s website, and you’ll see
instantly what I’m talking about. What you’ll find there are factual stories and
analysis about the SPORT. That’s the way it should be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Here's the point: When a sports organization starts incorporating information about
the athletes' personal lives into the narrative that drives the sport, that organization is forever after obligated to tell EVERYTHING about their personal lives, including the embarrassing
parts that make it clear that doing so just set the athletes up for failure from the beginning. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And when that organization deliberately leaves out the embarrassing details, that action exposes the flaw at the
heart of the narrative. What's even more embarrassing is the fact that the Powers That Be should have
been able to look far enough down the road at the beginning to anticipate such
potholes—or washed-out bridges, as the case may be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">I wish Mike and Dana Lee all the best. I hope they have a
long and loving marriage, but no matter how it works out, I hope to hell never to hear another word about
it from the PBR spin machine. </span></div>
Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-61720600075179217932014-03-02T10:12:00.001-08:002014-03-02T11:01:17.995-08:00Here we go -- Iron Cowboy ConclusionWell, I already know who won thanks to Twitter and the PBR website, but I'll pretend to be excited about this anyway.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Third Round</u></b><br />
<ul>
<li>J.B.'s "internal<b> </b>music." Sigh.</li>
<li>It's weird to see a bull with a nose ring.</li>
<li>Gage Gay has almost Mike Lee-esque form.</li>
<li>J.B. Mauney's buckoff was ugly, yikes.</li>
<li>At least we are hearing less about guys not wanting the million enough, but I don't have hope that will continue.</li>
<li>Gage Gay is pretty canny with his interviews, neatly dodging awkwardness in the questions.</li>
<li>These buckoffs onto the chutes are really unfortunate. Ouch, Robson.</li>
<li>Eduardo Aparecido looked good for most of that ride, but Silvano stuck it out, separated shoulder and all. Sorry to see him making pained faces, but he's working through it.</li>
<li>Stormy Wing is lucky. That Stone Sober is something else.</li>
<li>Okay, this voiceover lady is better than the sex hotline operator one they had before, but sometimes she sounds super goofy.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<b><u>Fourth Rou</u></b><b><u>nd</u></b></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>"Sweet Caroline," of course.</li>
<li>Watch out for Gage Gay, guys. Kinda wanted Guilherme to move on and make his 500th ride, because he looked good for a bunch of that ride, but oh well.</li>
<li>"Two scoops of hoops." Let that one sink in a bit.</li>
<li>David's Dream didn't seem excited about his cameo with J.W. Hart.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<b><u>Final Rou</u></b><b><u>nd</u></b></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>That was a lot of hype for a second and a fraction. Just goes to show that you can never count out bulls like Asteroid.</li>
<li>It's kind of anti-climatic to have the Iron Cowboy champion buck off in a jump and a half; I'm glad this is a one-off event.</li>
<li>Bushwacker was putting on a show!</li>
<li>Joao didn't look like he was really enjoying the Dr. Pepper someone unceremoniously shoved in his hand. He looked a lot happier with the giant 50K check.</li>
<li>Interview with Gage Gay. And no interview with Joao. Shall I assume from this the translator really is toast?</li>
</ul>
<div>
So ends another Iron Cowboy. Even if the format is funky, we learned a few things: Gage Gay proved he's definitely worth watching, Silvano proved he can power through the shoulder injury, and Guilherme got this close to his 500th qualified ride. Not to mention that there are a number of very impressive bulls to keep an eye on for the future.</div>
</div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-67875936279878887352014-03-01T17:39:00.002-08:002014-03-01T19:48:58.120-08:00Iron Cowboy Semi-Live BloggingBlah, blah, blah, million dollars, J.B. Mauney, blah, blah, hype, blah.<br />
<br />
<u><b>First Round</b></u><br />
<ul>
<li>Valdiron squeaks one out. And hey, an interview. Amazing!</li>
<li>Mike Lee is lucky to have walked away from that one. That was terrifying. But how 'bout that Gage Gay? This kid is fired up.</li>
<li>I appreciate Kasey Hayes' shirt, but Ryan Dirteater moves on.</li>
<li>Shepherd Hills Trapper has some funky moves, but I have no idea why Billy Robinson fell off when he did. However, Ty Murray's nattering about guys not putting out the effort for the million dollars is going to get old fast. That's worth betting on, let me tell you. That and Craig Hummer saying things like, "Pound the Alarm is able to pound Palermo." Oh, dear.</li>
<li>Sean Willingham versus Chase Outlaw highlights one of the issues with this bracket style event -- two guys can ride but one of them is still going home, while some guy in another bracket who didn't ride moves on; hard to feel good about that if you're Sean Willingham.</li>
<li>Fabiano Vieira, back to his old form! Now that's nice to see. Not so nice to see is Douglas Duncan "dispatched."</li>
<li>Man, Matt Triplett, you screwed up my bracket picks! But hey, your buckoff heralded the return of the long gone, perhaps lamented Telestrator?!</li>
<li>Many of the Aussies seem to start spurring even if they don't have a good seat, which doesn't tend turn out well, as in this case for Lachlan Richardson.</li>
</ul>
<u><b>Second Round</b></u><br />
<ul>
<li>Blah, blah, blah, million dollars, J.B. Mauney, blah, blah, hype, blah, "Bad to the Bone." Texas Tea wasn't looking so challenging, though; more like Weak Tea. Valdiron's bull was much more difficult-- yet another issue with the bracket style event. Sometimes these "equal" bulls aren't so much. Of course, if Validron had ridden, that would have sucked for J.B., who had the weaker bull.</li>
<li>Crap, why is it always Frank?! Spartacus, indeed.</li>
<li>Who is it behind the chutes with the acid-wash tie-dye look shirt? Stylin'. Nice to see Renato Nunes helping Gage Gay, who keeps rolling on.</li>
<li>A well-deserved tribute to Kent Cox.</li>
<li>Guilherme Marchi marching right towards his 500 qualified rides and maybe a million dollars. I wouldn't complain. Hate that he's in the bracket with Robson Palermo, though. Also hate Ryan Dirteater's freaky buckoff.</li>
<li>It confuses me that Cody Nance has a new helmet and vest, but we can always identify him by his weird hanging tavern sign. Impressive stickiness from Robson Palermo! </li>
<li>It is disconcerting to see Shorty without a hat. Part of it is the hat tan.</li>
<li>Wait, the PBR was picking on Silvano Alves' ride average when he has the second highest of all time? The yelling at Silvano in the chutes is really uncalled for -- that was quite hostile. And gee, ya think a screwed up shoulder can affect a guy? Come on, now. Good to know the whole booth is psychic and can tell what is or isn't affecting a cowboy. </li>
<li>Fabiano is looking pained but he should be happy with moving on. But he's out due to injury? Noooooo.</li>
<li>Wow, Joao Ricardo Vieira (1.98 seconds) is moving on because Reese Cates slapped (1.83) and it comes down to fractions of seconds in less than two seconds?! How unlikely. </li>
<li>Marco Eguchi makes a pretty little ride. Not sure that was a 90.5 ride for Stormy "Bats for the Fences" Wing, but so it goes.</li>
<li>Blah, blah, blah, million dollars, Guilherme Marchi, Gage Gay, dirt, blah, blah, we're not gonna show you the rest until tomorrow.</li>
</ul>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-63731191434348939602014-02-20T13:44:00.000-08:002014-02-20T13:44:03.607-08:00Revisionist History?<i>This post brought to you jointly by Pearl de Vere and The Stockyard Queen, in the brief moments available in our current crazy schedules. Watch out, folks, free-form long-program ranting, perhaps soon to be an Olympic sport!</i><br />
<br />
With J.B. Mauney out (and a <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/2/jb-mauney-not-to-compete-at-pbr-bfts-st-louis-event.aspx">whole press release dedicated to it</a>--you'd think after all the time they invested in making him their star, they'd be worried about announcing he'd not be someplace), we had a moment of desperate hope that we could have a break from the PBR's sort of gross need to pick away at Silvano Alves. But no, scroll down to this: "<a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/behind-the-chutes/2014/2/february-professional-bull-riders-news-and-notes.aspx" target="_blank">ALVES REMAINING OPTIMISTIC IN SLUMP (2-12-2014)</a>." In it, we see such proclamations as:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">...his pedestrian-like average continues a three-year trend in which he’s gone from 69 percent in 2011 to 60 percent in 2012 followed by 55 percent last year, when he lost out on winning his third consecutive world title on the final day of the season.</span></blockquote>
What contributes to his declining average, I surely don't know (but certainly expect that hassling in the chutes isn't helping), but I do know that a 55% average is higher than Joao Ricardo Vieira's right now, and he's #2 in the world. Probably having his every decision analyzed in a poor light and constantly being asked questions that boil down to why he sucks this year isn't too encouraging, either, in addition to articles that question the entirety of a strategy that succeeded two times and nearly a third.<br />
<br />
The PBR has apparently forgotten how scattershot the first part of the season is, where someone unlikely will be #1, and someone else will jump up or fall down 10 or more spots based on his performance over one weekend. Silvano Alves has always played the long game, attempting to steadily accrue the most points by the end of the season--being in the 18th position at the start of the season is somewhat surprising, but the way the PBR has been treating it, you'd think he was 105th, running out of time, and could never possibly recover. And this is not to mention that the PBR implies in their television commentary that if only Mauney were at the event, he would be dominating, rather than talking about people in front of them who are actually riding. People such as Silvano Alves.<br />
<br />
Particularly distasteful is Ty Murray's ongoing shaming of Alves, implying that Alves is just not trying hard enough and has an attitude problem (calling him "lazy," even). Ty would do well to remember that Alves is the FIRST back-to-back PBR world champion. I don't recall Ty banging on Kody Lostroh the season after he won, or chewing on Justin McBride's ass when he slumped after winning his first gold buckle in 2005. As a matter of fact, what mostly happened was the commentators became apologists for the champ, opining that the PBR had a "long season" and that champions inevitably experienced a let-down, or took time off to actually get nagging injuries dealt with, after finally achieving the pinnacle of the sport the previous season. Of course, in our case, the previous season was only over six or seven weeks prior, which is hardly enough time for the guys to get their holiday ya-yas out and settle down to business as usual again. And then there's the small fact that the new point system encourages cowboys to hit the TPDs, meaning they rarely get a break of any kind, even if those of us not paying CBS a gajillion dollars for the LEC aren't seeing it.<br />
<br />
But, let's forget about all that, because <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/2/mauney-to-compete-in-kansas-city-pbr-built-ford-tough-series-event.aspx" target="_blank">the champion returns "in true Mauney fashion" this weekend</a>! Thanks, PBR, for putting my mind at ease. I'm now hoping we can get press releases for each and every event about whether the most important cowboy in the PBR will be attending, so I'll know whether to watch, and if I'm supposed to feel that all his decisions are mature, rather than sad and misguided like Silvano Alves' apparently are, even when sometimes they are essentially <i>the same decision</i>. <br />
<br />
Seriously, PBR, don't frame it like this, and we'll all feel a lot better, Alves and Mauney included, I'd guess. J.B. Mauney is J.B. Mauney, and he proved himself among the greats last year. Silvano Alves is our first back-to-back champ and he's more than proved himself. The PBR doesn't have to focus on trying to tear down the history Silvano Alves made in order to make Mauney look better--their seasons will develop as they may, no matter what the commentators say or the PBR writes. While the PBR's ridiculous posturing about both riders may sway some, the history is and will be there to be seen, and in the end, all this crass nitpicking at Alves really does is make the PBR look completely petty and classless, and all this hyper-focus on Mauney does is create a standard no mere mortal can attain, let alone maintain. Nobody wins, if only the PBR would see it.Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-26146562200568770102014-01-23T11:00:00.000-08:002014-01-27T17:49:16.783-08:00Mauney ManiaFeel free to imagine this post being read in the booming voice used for Monster Truck Rally ads. You know, "Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!" It kind of sounds like that in my head. Only in this case, it would be. "Sunday! Monday! Mauney! Every day! All day!" <br />
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That's because, as we all know, the PBR crowned J.B. Mauney as its world champion last year, and they are never going to let us forget it. Let's review the postings on the PBR website as the new season has fired up:</div>
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<b>1/3/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/pbr-jb-mauney-goes-on-media-tour-in-new-york-city.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney Embarks on NYC Media Tour</a></b>, which begins, "It's been 68 days since J.B. Mauney won his first world title." The PBR is concerned for us, in case we all had traumatic amnesia events sometime between October and now. Or, December and now, since that's when the PBR had a "Throwback Thursday" that was entitled "<a href="http://www3.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2013/12/throwback-thursday-jb-mauney-wins-pbr-world-title.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney Wins World Title</a>." Silly me, I thought TBT were for things that happened more than one month ago.<br />
<br />
Let's not forget that they then tweeted <a href="https://twitter.com/PBR/status/411174794495655936" target="_blank">"#TBT: Remember when @JBMauney won his first world title?!"</a> Gee, PBR, it was so long ago and you never talk about it, so I was in danger of forgetting-- thanks for reminding me! (I am not going to catalog all their tweets about J.B., because I have other things to do with my life.) As to the 1/3 article, outside the general gushing, I have nothing against the world champ having a media tour, but I don't remember them being so excited about some of their past champions.</div>
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<b>1/3/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/jb-mauney-twitter-chat.aspx" target="_blank">Q&A with 2013 World Champion J.B. Mauney</a></b>, which is a transcript of a live Twitter chat with J.B. Mauney. It's as inane as you are imagining. Although it did reveal this gem:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Q: <a href="https://twitter.com/shannonlee13">@shannonlee13</a>: What is your next goal now that you are the World Champion?<br /><br />A: <a href="https://twitter.com/jbmauney">@jbmauney</a>: "To win three in a row." #PBRChat</span></blockquote>
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While I'm sure Mauney would love to do that, as any cowboy would, I'm also totally sure it's the PBR's goal, too, so then an American can be the first to back-to-back-to-back threepeat champ. Since Brazilians cornered the first three-time champion (Adriano Moraes) and the first back-to-back champion (Silvano Alves), an American has to get some kind of first, right?</div>
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<b>1/3/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2014/1/ty-pozzobon-and-fabiano-vieira-split-round-1-in-2014-pbr-new-york.aspx" target="_blank">Vieira and Pozzobon Take Round 1 in New York</a></b>. Based upon the title, you might think this article is about Vieira and Pozzobon. You would be mostly right, but of course it has a giant video in the middle of an interview with J.B. Mauney. Just like at all the events when someone else was the round leader or did something impressive, but the interview was with Mauney. It's almost amusing how the PBR doesn't even try to justify it, they just do it. We should expect it, I guess.</div>
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<b>1/5/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/jb-mauney-continuing-to-ride-his-way-into-the-pbr-record-books.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney's Hot Streak Carries into New Year</a></b> -- "J.B. Mauney continues to rewrite the PBR record books," it says, glossing over Fabiano Vieira splitting the win quickly in the first paragraph so it can get back to J.B., of course with another video interview. </div>
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<span style="color: #363636; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b>1/6/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/silvano-alves-has-uncharacteristic-weekend.aspx" target="_blank">Alves Has Unlikely Weekend in New York</a></b>, which somehow dedicates quite a few of its paragraphs to J.B. Mauney, including this stunner that gets copy-pasted into all of them:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Mauney has now won or claimed a share of four consecutive regular-season BFTS event wins</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;">and five wins all together, including the World Finals, in staging what is the greatest comeback in PBR history. </span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
Unbiased journalism at its best, folks -- why wouldn't an article dedicated to dissing Silvano Alves need to add further insult by dedicating much of it to praising J.B.? At least J.B. himself had the good grace to conclude that this uncharacteristic weekend for Alves isn't one he expects to be repeated. </div>
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<b>1/10/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/fabiano-vieira-looking-to-build-off-opening-event-success-in-pbr.aspx" target="_blank">Vieira: 'Every Win Has a Different Taste.' </a></b> This article purports to be about Fabiano Vieira, who split the NY win with J.B. Mauney. But, wait for it, it's actually mostly about J.B. Mauney or what Vieira thinks about Mauney. And in case we forgot:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Mauney has now won or claimed a share of four consecutive regular-season BFTS event wins</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;">and five wins all together, including the World Finals, in staging what is the greatest comeback in PBR history. </span> </blockquote>
</blockquote>
Where have we seen that before? I'm going to have to stop quoting it because it's in all of them, pretty much.<br />
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<b>1/11/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/jb-mauney-sets-new-pbr-record-for-consecutive-rides.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney Sets PBR Record for Consecutive Rides</a> </b>-- what else is there to say about this? Hummer was about to blast off on the power of his own hyperventilating excitement. But there apparently was more to say in written form. I can't even bring myself to pull a quote.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>1/13/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2014/1/jb-mauney-to-face-bushwacker-in-oklahoma-city-bucking-battle.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney and Bushwacker Set for Showdown in OKC</a></b>, which, surprisingly, actually spends a fair amount of time discussing Bushwacker. Of course, Bushwacker isn't Brazilian and while a champion in his own right, isn't in the same standings as Mauney.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>1/14/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/jb-mauney-serves-as-a-mentor-figure-to-chase-outlaw.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney Serving as an Inspiration to Outlaw</a></b>, in which we learn that Mauney is a shining beacon of light for young American cowboys, complete with fawning introduction and interviews with Mauney. It does raise the question, however, can one be a mentor without knowing it? How zen.<br />
<br />
The flood started to slow down at this point, since Mauney bucked off a bull and so was no longer able to add to the consecutive ride streak, and didn't finish especially well. Which is to be expected-- no one rides everything all the time. However, something quite stunning showed up just recently.<br />
<br />
<b>1/20/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/championship-matchups-highlight-first-pbr-1515-bucking-battle-of-2014.aspx" target="_blank">Champions to Collide in OKC 15/15 Bucking Battle</a></b>, where outside of the standard gushing about Mauney, it features the interesting fact that apparently the 15/15 matches, when based on bull and rider rankings and not randomly assigned, were developed partially to force Silvano Alves into riding bulls he was unlikely to draft (bolding mine):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">“He told Roy to tell me <b>the best guy should have to get on the best bull,” Lambert recalled. “He felt like we had the draft and everything and that our No. 1 bull rider, at that time, dodged the toughest bulls.”</b><br /><br />Lambert had known Roy – a bull rider, contractor and cutting horse trainer – for a long time, but had only met the elder Carter a few times over the years.<br /><br />But he liked what he heard.<br /><br /><b>In fact, so too did the PBR Board of Directors along with the competition committee, they just felt it couldn’t be that way every time there was a 15/15 Bucking Battle.</b><br /><br />“You (have) to mix it up a little more for the competition,” said Lambert, who explained the matchups are set like this only the first time each year and that from here on out – the next one will be in Anaheim, Calif. – the current Top 15 riders will be randomly matched with the Top 15 bulls available that weekend.... <b>This particular way of matching riders and bulls illustrates what the 20 founders had in mind when they founded the PBR as an organization that would feature the best bull riders in the world against the best bucking bulls in the world.</b></span></blockquote>
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This isn't exactly a surprise, but it's extraordinary (and not in a good way) that it was admitted and quoted. The PBR seems to have been struggling with there being so few rides and fans getting bored (thus the draft) versus people apparently feeling the draft lets cowboys choose the "easy' bulls (a whole 'nother loaded topic), and in the process, utterly failing in controlling the messaging and PR about it (characteristically).<br />
<br />
<b>1/22/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2014/1/jb-mauney-vs-bushwacker-reminiscent-of-lane-frost-vs-red-rock.aspx" target="_blank">Mauney vs. Bushwacker Reminiscent of Frost vs. Red Rock</a></b>. I'm kind of afraid to touch this one, to be honest, and probably the PBR should have shown a lot more caution themselves. Let's just say that I think it's best to let "lore" develop on its own as time goes on, rather than to attempt to force it. And having people who have active roles in PBR events being so partisan is, let's just say, not politic.<br />
<br />
<b>1/23/2014: <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/blogs/slade-long/2014/by-the-numbers-jb-mauney-riding-rankest-bulls-at-dominant-rate.aspx" target="_blank">By the Numbers: Mauney Riding Rankest Bulls at Dominant Rate</a></b>. I do generally like Slade Long's statistician's take on things, but at this point, I am totally fatigued by the PBR's Mauney media machine, especially when it basically concludes that he is the best there is and ever was and ever shall be.<br />
<br />
Anyway, I may have missed a few (I admit, my eyes started to glaze over after a bit, especially when every fourth word was "Mauney" -- only a slight exaggeration), but I'm sure the point is fairly clear: that's a lot of articles dedicated to J.B. Mauney in the span of a mere couple of weeks, and the mania is bleeding into articles that are nominally about something else. And this is barely touching the endless commentary on the broadcasts and the numerous interviews with J.B. Mauney (passing over people who actually won rounds or the event, at times), which could have its own dedicated post. And I am only barely getting into the apparent downplaying of Silvano Alves' accomplishments in order to pump up the legend of J.B. Mauney further, and of course the PBR's weird messaging issues.</div>
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<br /></div>
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But let me be clear on this, also. I'm not slamming J.B. Mauney; he is a talented rider and he can't help it if the PBR is in love with him and apparently can't stop talking about him for five seconds. But as much as I tell myself that, the PBR is making it very, very hard for me to like him at this point. Mauney's not the only bull rider on tour. He's not the only world champion on tour. He's a talented guy who made a good attitude adjustment, but there are only so many times we need to hear that he's "having fun" and credits his family for his success, only so many articles we need to read about how super amazing he is or someone else thinks he is-- we get it. <br />
<br />
Seriously, PBR, we get it. We really get it. You love him. All must love him or despair. He's simply the most supercalifragilisticexpialidocious rider there ever was or ever will be. Are you satisfied? What else do we have to say to get some variety in coverage?</div>
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<br /></div>
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Final note: if the PBR isn't worried about causing fan fatigue, maybe they should should chew on this: their deification of Justin McBride likely hastened his departure from the sport. Living up to the hype becomes stressful; constantly dealing with the media becomes overwhelming. Think long and hard, PBR, before you hang everything on one guy. Mauney is your new golden boy, but the longer you put him on your own special pedestal, the more likely it is he'll want to get off.<br />
<br />
(In the distance, I can still hear Hummer's voice shouting, "Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! Mauney! Mauney! Mauney!")</div>
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Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-70311468425814437852014-01-17T13:10:00.001-08:002014-01-18T05:46:58.913-08:00Remember When . . . ?<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Howdy,
friends. It’s a balmy 45 degrees here in Big Sky Country, and we are still
sending our condolences to our friends who were freezing their asses off thanks
to the Polar Vortex. I have to confess that it was refreshing for once to be in
the warm part of the country.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And I
also have to confess that I literally could not bear to watch the event in
Chicago, solely because of that awful limestone dirt they laid down in the
arena. I watched maybe a dozen bulls slip and slide and fall, and I turned my
attention to the Property Brothers instead. So I had to glean my knowledge of
what happened from the PBR website, and we all know what happens when we go
there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">One
day last week, my good friend <a href="http://bullridingmarketing.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Kris DiLorenzo</a> and I were commiserating about the
PBR, and for some reason, and pretty much simultaneously, we both remembered
that <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2010/9/sports-marketing-leader-dockery-clark-named-pbr-cmo.aspx" target="_blank">lovely press release</a> that the PBR sent out in September 2010, announcing Dockery Clark had been hired as chief marketing officer. At the time, it was a big deal because as far as anyone outside the PBR knew, the executives had always been men up until that point. That
sent me off on a Google search to see if Ms. Clark was still laboring in the
PBR’s halls in Pueblo. Well, guess what—the answer is no.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">But
here’s what’s really interesting. According to her LinkedIn profile, Ms. Clark had
worked for Bank of America for 11 years and then for Miller Coors for almost
four before she move to the PBR. She was there a mere 11 months before she
departed to become—wait for it—the chief of staff for the Democratic National
Convention in Charlottesville.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I
nearly fell off my barstool when I saw that. She may not be a DEMOCRAT, but I’d
say the chances are just pretty damned good that she is. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And oh,
Lord, the images this conjures up. I picture a hard-working professional woman,
somebody with the track record to prove she could take the PBR to the next level and
the chops to know how to do it, trying her darnedest to pull the sport into the
mainstream. That, as we all know, is no small objective—the dudes who run the
outfit have been aspiring to that for 20 years, and as far as I can tell, they
have made no discernible headway. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So here she is, faced with a Herculean task,
and all while she was doubtless having to listen to endless assaults on our
president’s character and that of anybody who doesn't think Tea Bagger members aren't in need of huge hits of psychotropic drugs and electroshock therapy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Can’t
you just hear it, boys and girls? Can’t you just imagine the obnoxious,
adolescent, sexist, bigoted blather that the good ol’ boys handed out during
her tenure? I don't mean such talk would necessarily have been aimed at her<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">—</span>I'm talking about the way those guys doubtless talk among themselves just any old time.</span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">You can’t? Well, just tune into any PBR broadcast and listen to JDub
for maybe five seconds, and you’ll get at least the watered-down, cleaned-up-for-primetime
version. Or you can just go to a live event and listen to Flint for fifteen
seconds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And it also wouldn't surprise me to learn the good ol' boys slandered her while they were all hanging out in the men's room.</span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">It's no wonder she jumped ship. And I would have given a pretty penny to be a fly on the wall when she handed in her resignation and the Powers That Be learned she was going to work for</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">President Barak Hussein Obama. A few of those boys might have even fainted dead away and awakened wondering what the world was coming to.</span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Of
course, the national political convention comes but once every four years, so
Ms. Clark has since moved on to work for a big marketing firm that is based in
Chicago. I hope she sets the world on fire there. That will be one good way to
show the PBR Powers That Be that they lost a keeper, somebody who could have
made a serious difference to the perception of the sport. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Godspeed, Dockery
Clark. I wish you all the success in the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-19066606972947625932014-01-07T12:26:00.001-08:002014-01-07T12:26:35.012-08:00Just an Old-fashioned Love SongFolks, there is a possibility that we may have a guest post here in a few days, courtesy of one of our long-time readers who was trapped by the polar vortex in NYC and thus got to go to Madison Square Garden this past weekend for the PBR event. If that happy event does come to fruition, you will of course be the first to know.<br />
<br />
In the meantime, though, I present a very short list of the bulls who won my heart at MSG. Because as you all know, I'm all about the bulls. And that's why the name of the rider is in parentheses!<br />
<br />
Buck Dynasty (Stormy Wing)<br />
Razorbuck (Kody Lostroh)<br />
Candy (Reese Cates)<br />
Boot Daddy (Ben Jones)<br />
Devil of Ramadi' (Jordan Hupp)--although I really can't approve of the bull's name.<br />
RFD HD (Brant Atwood)<br />
Percolator (Emilo Resende)--sorry, Shawk! I know that one broke your heart.<br />
High Steaks (Marco Eguchi)<br />
<br />
But my absolute favorite was Ballistic, who unloaded L. J. Jenkins in the third round with a most original bucking style. And it doesn't hurt that he's a beauty. I'm such a sucker for a platinum blonde!Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-70976967043257474432014-01-03T11:03:00.001-08:002014-01-06T07:06:58.639-08:00Caution: Vulgarity Ahead<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Here I am, folks, out in the Montana cold, rolling
up hundreds of feet of garland and tiny LED lights that I had swathed over the fences and, truth be
told, moping just a bit. No, I don’t have the post-Christmas blues. Fortunately
for me, I really do love the holidays, probably because my parents did, and although
I do sympathize with folks who find the season difficult because of personal
losses or difficult circumstances, I don’t have any patience with people who
want to piss on other people’s parades by railing about the “commercialism” and
the rat race exhaustion and, of course and most important of all, the “War on
Christmas.” If you have a problem about the holidays, I will thank you to keep your
damned mouth shut about it. Go sit in the corner and brood upon your own
self-righteousness and leave me the hell out of it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The sad thing is that what I’m moping about
isn’t like to get resolved anytime soon. The PBR season starts tonight, and I
am finding it hard to work up any enthusiasm. I am more than happy to blame
this on my dear friend and partner in crime, Pearl de Vere, because she
recently reminded me of <a href="http://turnhimout.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2008-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&updated-max=2009-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&max-results=50" target="_blank">a post from way back in 2008</a> in which I was complaining
about—wait for it—a lot of the same shit I’m still complaining about. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Her observation prompted me to think about
all the things that the PBR bosses still need to fix and seem oblivious to,
from the very serious issue of making wearing a helmet mandatory to the less
worrisome, but genuinely stomach-churning, matter of making Flint quit twerking. (In Pearl’s immortal words, “That shit has to stop.”) Is it really possible that he didn't get the fact that parents all over the country were horrified by Miley Cyrus' little display of bad taste?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Top it all off with the way the last
championship was stolen from Silvano Alves, via a few points shaved off each successful
ride at a time, and we are facing a disheartening situation. I will be very,
very surprised if we don’t see the same thing this year, so as to guarantee
that an American wins the title. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I mean no disrespect to J.B. Mauney, who
fought the good fight and gave us some spectacular rides in the process, but I would be lying if I said that I don’t think he got
some help from the judges. I doubt that the PBR as a whole is organized
enough to orchestrate a conspiracy, but I am also just pretty damned sure that
some individual judges decided to take matters into their own hands and make
sure Alves didn’t three-peat. (For more on this subject, I invite you to check out <a href="https://bullridingmarketing.wordpress.com/2013/12/29/lets-get-it-over-with-final-day-of-finals/" target="_blank">Kris diLorenzo's excellent posts on her blog</a>, Bull Riding Marketing.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">All that being said, I don’t mean to suggest
that the dudes who run the PBR should be jumping every time I say frog,
although that would be nice. But it would also be nice if they would quit
acting like anybody who makes a suggestion is the Antichrist and obviously just
out to spoil their fun.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Let’s consider for a moment just one issue—making wearing helmets mandatory. Virtually anybody with any sense (which mostly means
people over the age of 21 who weren’t born in a barn and who aren’t trying to
ride bulls for a living) would agree that bull riders should wear helmets. It is, <a href="http://turnhimout.blogspot.com/2008/05/channeling-ruby.html" target="_blank">as Ruby would say</a>, as plain as the nose on your face. But aside from the issue
of public opinion, there is an ever-growing body of hard evidence that repeated concussions and even less significant head injuries have serious long-term effects. </span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 14.4pt;">And now there's a formal medical diagnosis
for a condition that can be the end result of multiple head injuries: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_traumatic_encephalopathy" target="_blank">c</a></span><span lang="EN" style="color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 14.4pt;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_traumatic_encephalopathy" target="_blank">hronic traumatic encephalopathy</a>. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 14.4pt;">Just trot on over there, please,
and read about what this condition entails, and then ask yourself if it makes
any sense for the PBR to continue to ignore this very serious threat to the
health of the riders. How can simple bullheadness and misguided adherence to
what they perceive to be the Cowboy Way possibly make more sense than adopting
a policy to diminish such a clear and present danger?</span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Back in August, the <a href="http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000235494/article/nfl-explayers-agree-to-765m-settlement-in-concussions-suit" target="_blank">National Football League settled a class-action lawsuit </a>with a bunch of its retired players who had suffered multiple concussions and are now living with the consequences. The league shelled out $765 million bucks to help care for these players, and now <a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/9690036/older-players-cut-nfl-settlement-concerns-growing-whether-enough-money-exists" target="_blank">it looks like that amount won't be nearly enough</a> to take care of everybody. </span></h1>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Granted, the PBR does not have anything like the number of participants as the NFL, but does it seem at all likely that the PBR could afford anything approaching a settlement that, let's say, set aside a similar amount per rider? I'm sure that the riders sign their lives away for the privilege of riding in the PBR, but there's always the prospect that an athlete might take on an organization that deliberately sidesteps important safety issues. Even if it was impossible for a rider to file a lawsuit, the publicity he would get for raising the issue would not be good for the PBR.</span></h1>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">And that’s just one example of
the PBR’s hell-bent determination to ignore the thoughtful and well-meant urgings
of observers of the sport. We could go on forever, and sometimes it seems like
we have, and literally nothing ever changes, and we continue to hear the same
bullshit justifications from the organization. </span></h1>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></h1>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Honestly, it’s no wonder I’m in
a funk. Who do we have to fuck to get some action?<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-21236098293695395472013-11-02T16:59:00.002-07:002013-11-02T16:59:38.573-07:00A Bang and/or a WhimperAnother PBR season has come to a close, and boy, as you can probably imagine, do I have something to say about it. But before we get into any banging or whimpering, let's start off with a hearty congratulations to J.B. Mauney, who staged what was, if not the most amazing comeback "in sports history" (seriously, Craig, histrionic much?), certainly an extremely impressive run. He's a very talented rider and it all finally came together for him this year. And also congratulations to Joao Ricardo Vieira for a stunning debut year that netted him the Rookie of the Year award, and of course to the very deserving Bushwacker for Bull of the Year and Jeff Robinson for Stock Contractor of the Year.<br />
<br />
But-- and you knew there was going to be a but-- I have some real issues with the way the Finals played out and the aftermath. While it couldn't have been clearer that the PBR would love J.B. Mauney winning this 20th anniversary year (or any year), the issues had little to do with him. He was doing his job, which was riding bulls. Whether you agree with the scoring at the event or not (and I'm not sure each of J.B. Mauney's rides was truly 88.75 or better), he doesn't control the scoring, and in the end, it probably didn't matter. (I will leave the analysis of Silvano Alves' turned down re-rides to someone better at math than I.) Where the true problem comes in is the extremely ugly undertone to much of the commentary surrounding the Finals and many fan reactions, and it all makes me very uncomfortable. <br />
<br />
It doesn't help that the PBR feels the need to put country flags next to the names in the rankings on the TV broadcast -- a sea of Brazilian flags with a lonely American flag here and there, a buoy of hope is what the commentators seem to imply. But why? This isn't the Olympics; it's man versus bull, not country versus country. But you wouldn't know it from some of the commentary, which went on about the possibility of draping the American flag over the winner and fed all sorts of 'us versus them' fantasies. It also doesn't help that the commentators tend to say "the Brazilian" this and "the Brazilian that," as if that is the first name of all the Brazilians in the PBR. And there was even a moment where they were saying something about how the crowd was on their feet, screaming for J.B. Mauney, but silent for Silvano Alves. If that is indeed true, how tacky, but did it need to be said, and with such breathless wonder?<br />
<br />
But most of all, what bothered me was the fan comments. It's as if all the machismo of the "American Cowboy Way," all the hopes and dreams of some commentators and many American fans, was placed upon J.B. Mauney, and his winning would validate all the repressed (well, and expressed) white male angst that a cautious guy from Brazil who plays the odds came up here and trounced the competition twice in a row. Throughout the run up to the Finals and after the conclusion, Twitter, Facebook, and I'm sure elsewhere blew up with people going on and on about how J.B. is a "true cowboy" who takes on the best bulls, unlike that coward Silvano, and no Brazilians ever choose the tough bulls, and all that other crap we've heard before, but now with a note of hysteric triumph that their guy won, and won their way. The <i>right</i> way. The <i>American</i> way. <br />
<br />
Let's ignore Valdiron de Oliviera choosing Bushwacker in ABQ, and Joao Ricardo Vieira seeming pretty adamant he can ride anything, Guilherme Marchi's hot streak, and any other inconvenient facts here and and focus on the sentiment -- that even though the PBR has set up a game with a variety of ways to play it, and Silvano's way worked twice in a row and almost worked a third, the only legit way to win is apparently to win the way some American fans want you to win. Not to mention, be an American.<br />
<br />
I'm not even going to get into some of the blatantly racist things I have seen on the internet, because I don't see any value in giving those people any of my time. But this creeping ugliness is really disturbing. No one has to like Silvano Alves (although hopefully people can acknowledge that he was a class act about his loss). No one has to like his strategy (and to be honest, I was baffled by it sometimes). Everyone is free to prefer whatever riders they want. I'd agree that if all of the PBR was full of riders with Silvano's strategy, it wouldn't be very exciting. <br />
<br />
But people shouldn't feel free to say that a two time world champion, who has ridden many a tough bull over his career and stayed on bulls in amazingly sticky ways, is a coward and/or not a true cowboy, merely because he plays the game his own way and is from another country. That sickens me, especially when it's clear that for many, this is based in a really horrible place, and it further disgusts me that in an attempt to ramp up the excitement, the PBR has tacitly encouraged this kind of 'us versus them' mentality.<br />
<br />
So here's hoping for a new season that is about the best cowboys versus the best bulls, no matter the country of origin of either, and for balanced commentary that doesn't fan any flames.Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-52280456301027761502013-10-15T08:27:00.002-07:002013-10-15T08:42:46.305-07:00Where's My Shovel?<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We’re cleaning up the Stockyard, friends and
neighbors, preparatory to the big end-of-the-season shindig we call the PBR
World Finals, and Lordy! is there ever a lot to do! We must admit, the
Montana Barn Cat and I, that we have been sorely distracted this season, what
with trying to keep our work and living situations from getting completely out
of whack and tossing us summarily off the teeter-totter. </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Keeping up
with all this crap has pretty much convinced us that the notion of multitasking
is bullshit, pure and simple. You can’t keep your eye on two balls at once—you
have to toggle back and forth, and sometimes you lose track of one and get smacked in the face for your inattentiveness. That’s life.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yet we have to confess that more than our standard obligations that have us out of sorts. No,
one problem that has seriously weighed on us has been our inability to lose
ourselves completely in the beauties of bull riding every weekend. Since we are
anxious to be fair in our approach to all things, we are perfectly happy to lay
ALL the blame for that sorry state of affairs on the altar of the Powers That
Be at PBR HQ in Pueblo, CO.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ever since the Big Versus Debacle</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">, when
NBC kicked the PBR and all its issue to the curb, the boys in Pueblo have been trying
and failing to get decent TV coverage for what they bill as one of the “fastest
growing sports in the world.” After some initial floundering around, in January 2012, <a href="http://www.spirecapital.com/media-room/news-press-releases/cbs-sports-network-signs-multiyear-television-agreement-with-pbr?searched=pbr+cbs+sports&advsearch=oneword&highlight=ajaxSearch_highlight+ajaxSearch_highlight1+ajaxSearch_highlight2+ajaxSearch_highlight3" target="_blank">the outfit signed on with CBS Sports Network to broadcast</a> the next several seasons.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="ajaxSearch_highlight ajaxSearch_highlight1" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In a press release issued at the time, PBR</span><span style="line-height: 16px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 16px;">President and COO </span><span style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Sean Gleason</span><strong style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </strong><span style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">stated that </span><span style="line-height: 16px;">"CBS Sports Network is an ideal network partner for PBR. Our fans wanted more live programming, consistent timeslots and continued enhancements in how the events are presented on television. CBS Sports Network is an aggressive, growing sports network that allows PBR to deliver against all of those objectives." </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, guess what, friends and neighbors? The hallmark of this arrangement has been NO consistent timeslots for the broadcasts. We poor fans are lucky if we get to see one night of an event out of three, two at the most, and they are ALWAYS televised at
some unpredictable hour of some unpredictable day. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">To compensate for the lack
of broadcasts, the brainiacs at PBR HQ came up with the brilliant idea of airing the live events
on the Internet via the so-called Live Event Center, which obliged those truly
dedicated to the cause to either watch on their computers or figure out how to
stream the signal to their TV sets. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This hamfisted approach had an immediate
effect—people who for years had turned on Versus every Saturday and Sunday at
roughly the same time, give or take an hour on occasion, were suddenly scrambling
to figure out if, and then when, bull riding would be broadcast. This confusion
still has not sorted itself out. I literally cannot tell you how many fans have
written to me over the past two years, moaning and complaining about this sad
situation. And I have to admit I’m right there with them.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After all, <a href="http://turnhimout.blogspot.com/2008/05/killing-time.html" target="_blank">I’m the woman who owned up to her addiction to bull riding in the second summer that this blog was up</a>. I had no
problem admitting then that I had a problem, and I wish to God that I had no
problem admitting that I have a problem now. But the fact is, the current state
of affairs has very nearly cured me of my irresistible urge to watch bulls jump
every Saturday and Sunday nights. </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The good news is that the execs at PBR HQ have
pretty much single-handedly discovered a cure for addiction. If all sources of
alcohol (including that found in Lysol, hair spray, and mouthwash) suddenly
vanished from the face of the earth, alcoholism would follow suit pretty much
immediately. Alcoholics would either dry out, find a new addiction, or wither
up and die, but alcoholism would be a thing of the past. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I wish I could consider this progress on behalf
of humanity, but I really can’t. If I could fix one thing about the PBR—and believe
me, there’s a hell of a lot that needs fixing—I would nail down a stable
television schedule that would put bull riding back on the tube at least two
nights of every weekend, on the same network, at roughly the same time. That would
go a long way toward reviving the flagging interest that many fans tell me they
are feeling. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And it would also put more butts in the seats at
the live events. I am virtually certain that most people who go to the events got
interested in the sport because they’d seen it on TV first. Did any of you actually manage to see the broadcast of the Cooper Tires Invitational last weekend? Did you happen to notice the zillions of empty seats? How fast can a sport be growing if
there’s nobody there to see it? I’m pretty sure that everyone in that audience
didn't just decide to go buy beer at the same exact moment. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm also just pretty damned sure that the dudes at CBS Sports aren't nearly as enthused about bull riding as they were in late 2011. When a sport ranks so low on the totem pole that it gets bumped off the air by beach volleyball, you know things have gotten serious. No doubt the comparative importance of the sponsors plays a role in such programming decisions. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Nike has hell's own drag with a sports network compared to Bad Boy Mowers.</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">There's a lot of talk of late about throwing every single member of the U.S. House of Representatives out into the street and starting over from scratch with some responsible people who might take their obligations to the country seriously. Well, somebody in Pueblo better be scrambling to fix this mess with the broadcast schedule. We fans can't vote anybody at PBR HQ out of office, but we can damned sure quit following the sport altogether. Shortly after we do that, nobody will be working for the PBR</span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18.399999618530273px;">—</span><span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">nobody. </span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">That would be one way to start cleaning up this mess. As we denizens of the Stockyard know, sometimes putting things in order means you have to shovel out a big pile of shit.</span></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.399999618530273px;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-16062196292977957132013-09-16T15:04:00.001-07:002013-09-16T15:07:25.754-07:00S. Goes to Oakland, Part II<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>And here it is, the conclusion of S.'s adventures in Oakland.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Saturday started off more auspiciously than Friday,
thankfully. There were actually two whole concession stands open! (There is only a tinge of sarcasm in that statement. As a
vegetarian, having the pizza stand open was an improvement in choice over the “cheeseburger with no burger” I ended up with on Friday).
This boded well for the attendance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i39.tinypic.com/2zezcdt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="140" src="http://i39.tinypic.com/2zezcdt.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Guilherme Marchi</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The crowd was still intimate enough that we were able to hit
the sponsor booths without it being too insane. I have to admit that I was ridiculously keen to do this, because Guilherme
Marchi was at the Monster Energy Drink booth, and while I don’t drink energy
drinks, I have somehow missed meeting Guilherme Marchi other than in a drive-by at the rail, and I didn't want to let this opportunity pass. Besides being a great bull rider and appearing
to be humble and kind, he certainly has a million watt smile. (They don't call him "Hollywood" for nothing.) I'm happy he's making a charge up the standings late in the season, and I managed not to turn into a giant idiot while talking to him, so there is that, too.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I had previously been somewhat surprised to see that Silvano Alves was doing a
signing at the Wrangler booth. I get the impression he doesn't
do them often, but I could be incorrect on that, as I don't attend that many events. I recall getting a picture with him at the 2010 finals, and while he was very polite, he seemed really bewildered as to why anyone would want to talk to him or get a picture with him. I suspect his improving English has helped
him feel more comfortable meeting fans in America, because he seemed quite
relaxed here. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i41.tinypic.com/2uif6n6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="141" src="http://i41.tinypic.com/2uif6n6.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Silvano Alves</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
After meeting these two, we ended up being herded by Chad
Berger. It was pretty funny—he was verbally
prodding us down the line and forcefully (but with good nature) shoving Cooper Tires promo materials at us. I was with some people who have been to an
event or two but aren't die-hards who would recognize a stock contractor at a
glance, but when I explained who he was, they exclaimed, “I was wondering what the deal was. Now it makes sense!” We got a good laugh out of it.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Having cruised the few other booths to be found and entering
contests (I'll let you know if I win a welding machine, because that could be interesting, and/or terrifying) and buying RRF raffle tickets, we met up with another quite amusing fan
in one of the club access bars, and then headed into the event. As the concession booths had indicated, attendance was indeed much improved, which
was a relief. I’m not sure this will
help Oakland make it on the schedule ever again, but it really helps the atmosphere of an event.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i40.tinypic.com/m2905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://i40.tinypic.com/m2905.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Another one down</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
What didn't help the event at all was the really small amount of
rides. There were only 13 rides on
Friday and a measly 8 on Saturday. The
crowd tends to lose momentum when cowboy after cowboy gets turfed, and many
weren't even interesting buck offs or because the bulls were outstanding; the
cowboys just seemed tired and dispirited, and certainly were riding (or not, mostly) that way. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
There were a number of on-the-edge of re-ride bulls that
ended up not becoming re-rides. I’m not
sure if this was a batch of judges who aren't big on re-rides or what, but a number of cowboys got dinged in points
that way, including, surprisingly, J.B. Mauney.
I was convinced that if he stuck on, he’d get an upper 80s score and be
in the championship round, but his bull
under-performed and with only one 70-something score counting toward the event, Muaney was done for the
weekend. The whole thing seemed a bit odd, but I guess every bull rider has moments that go his way and moments that don't, and hopefully it evens out in the end.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i40.tinypic.com/2r6pnqv.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="111" src="http://i40.tinypic.com/2r6pnqv.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Flint and the Contra Costa FD shirt</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway, so it fell to Flint and the in-arena announcers to
try to keep the crowd positive through the long stretches of chute preparation, and the very short stretches of chutes cracking and cowboys hitting the dirt in seconds. I’m not
sure Flint twerking was exactly what we needed, though. I do appreciate Flint’s dancing, generally,
but I’m not terribly interested in seeing anyone twerking, let alone Flint.<br />
<br />
There was a nice moment, however, with the
guy who later ended up being the Fan of the Night. First he got the t-shirt that Flint
had gotten covered in dirt, atmosphere and bull snot. He was such a good
sport about it that he took off his shirt to put the dirty one on immediately, and gave
his shirt to Flint, who wore it for a bit. The original shirt? It was for the Contra Costa Fire Department, as the guy is a firefighter. I really hope he had a good weekend and enjoyed his belt buckle and snotty shirt, because
he would go home and presumably nearly immediately end up embroiled in the Morgan fire
that spread over much of Mount Diablo and threatened the outer areas of the
Contra Costa city, Clayton, for several days. (The fire is thankfully now contained.)</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i44.tinypic.com/168vt4h.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="167" src="http://i44.tinypic.com/168vt4h.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Joao Ricardo Vieira and Smackdown</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
We were also subjected to a film reel of the "Sexiest
Cowboy" photoshoot. While the problems I
have with this “contest” are myriad (Who chose the finalists? Based upon what? Why only Americans and
Brendon Clark? Just a few to start), the
photoshoot looked hilariously cheesy.
Pensive cowboys leaning against weathered wood or with rusty cargo train
cars in the distance; how innovative. And then the guys, with varying levels of self-consciousness, declaring things like, "I am the sexiest cowboy alive." Yeah. I can't wait to see how this all turns out.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway, we laboriously made our way toward the championship round,
and again, the cowboys continued the downward trend. Joao Ricardo Vieira started well on Smackdown and gave us some short-lived excitement,
but Smackdown showed he still has it and won the contest of wills this time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i39.tinypic.com/iypy6a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://i39.tinypic.com/iypy6a.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Silvano Alves with the win</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I was terrified that we were going to have the first unveiling
of the “sudden death” rule that Craig Hummer mentioned a few events ago but we
have yet to see; I can't find anything about it on the PBR site but from
memory, apparently if no one rides in the championship round, the top three
have to get on another bull and whoever rides first, wins? I don’t get it and it sounds questionable,
really. Are the stock contractors
bringing extra short go caliber bulls or are they the short go re-ride bulls,
and is there a new draft? Do they go in
order from top guy to third guy? What happens if those three don't ride during the sudden death round? Do they have to go again? Will
the PBR ever stop launching random and ill-explained rule changes in the middle
of the season? (<i>PdV - Probably not.</i>) Thankfully, Silvano Alves gritted his way
through an inelegant, yet 8 second ride, which avoided the first sudden death
scenario and clinched the win.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I get the feeling that the PBR doesn't find Silvano very
dynamic and they'd like someone else to have a turn holding the giant trophy
aloft, but anyone in the top 10 is going to have to get through Silvano's slow
and deliberate strategy that is backed by his very high-level of skill. No matter
what happens, I hope the ride percentages for everyone increases over what we saw in Oakland,
because that was depressing. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Please let me know if you have any questions about anything at the event. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i>So there it is. Thanks to S. for sharing her observations. Sadly, her hopes for the riding percentages didn't come true in Springfield, but we've got a few events to go before the Finals.</i></div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-45798368949981427742013-09-12T15:21:00.000-07:002013-09-12T15:22:30.126-07:00S. Goes to Oakland - Part I - Friday<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>While the regular writers for the blog are slacking on their blogging duties, S. has come through to tide us over with her tale of attending the Oakland event last weekend. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i41.tinypic.com/dbk9h.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://i41.tinypic.com/dbk9h.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Fabiano Vieira</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
For some reason, the last time the
PBR was in town, about four years ago, I didn't go to Oakland.
The location is ridiculously convenient for me in comparison to California’s other three events, so how could I resist this time? Unfortunately, a Friday evening is not so
convenient, especially when the event is at the Oracle Arena, and there is an
A’s game taking place at the larger Coliseum right next door.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Apparently I was not alone in thinking this way. Either because of the urban area or perhaps the weekday evening and/or
the economy, things were pretty sad on Friday.
They only had one concession stand open, and the cowboys doing meet and
greets at sponsor booths were practically twiddling their thumbs. The plus side of this was that there weren't
really any lines or any rushing, so I was able to tell Fabiano Vieira that I was happy
he was back and wish him good luck, and it's the most relaxed I've ever seen
the guy with fans. I was also able to
thank Chad Berger for his breast cancer
awareness charity work and shake his hand.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i39.tinypic.com/2h7e8zp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="156" src="http://i39.tinypic.com/2h7e8zp.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>J.B. Mauney gets the flame intro</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The pretty sad attendance numbers certainly became entirely clear when we
entered the arena. I know people would
rather see the championship night if they can only go one day, but the amount of empty seats in all levels was truly pathetic. Although I will say,
the crowd was very engaged and enthusiastic-- even Flint said something about the crowd making up for being small by
having great volume.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Speaking of Flint and the entertainment in general, the Best
Dressed Fan was a little girl who seemed to find him rather alarming. During a break between the flights, they
trotted out something even worse than the Stud of the Night, which I didn't
even think could be possible. It's the
Kiss 8 Second Kiss Cam, where Gene Simmons et al. yell about how
people should kiss for 8 seconds, and then the audience in general is forced to
watch people in the crowd slurp on each other for 8 seconds,
with varying degrees of cringeworthiness.
And then apparently the videos go online for people to vote on or
something? I hope the people kissing give permission
prior to this occurring. I have no
desire to see any of the videos again, so I won’t be looking. Also fairly horrifying was the video from
the “Sexiest Cowboy” photoshoot. More on that in my next post.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://i41.tinypic.com/fd7w3q.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://i41.tinypic.com/fd7w3q.jpg" width="152" /></a> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The most enjoyable thing about this event is that the bulls were
by in large decent. I had been a little worried
about this since there had been some articles about this being the last chance
for some lesser-known West Coast bulls to prove themselves before the
finals, and I have not had good luck with events full of lesser-known West Coast bulls. Chad Berger and
Cindy Rosser brought some pretty good ones, so that helped. There were a few re-rides, but not an
inordinate amount, for which I was extremely grateful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: center;">A couple of the bulls were pretty squirrelly, though. Multiple bulls refused to leave the arena
without lots of prompting, reveling in a victory lap or five. Several had
to be roped. One even ended up falling
down and rolling around by the side of the exit gate while being pulled by the pickup man and his horse, who was already behind the chute area. Eventually Julio Moreno dropped his side of the rope, since it was just banging the downed bull into the chutes and gate, and somehow this led to Shorty holding the other
end of the rope and hauling on it—I have no idea how he thought that was going
to end well. Thankfully the bull seemed
to tire of the game at this point and ambled out, apparently no worse for wear after his adventure.</span></div>
<a href="http://i44.tinypic.com/258zbjn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="169" src="http://i44.tinypic.com/258zbjn.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
One somewhat amusing sidebar: my seat was next to the aisle to PBR
Party Barn. The bad part of this is that
there were drunken people sloshing along the aisle to and from the Party Barn
all night. The entertaining part was
watching some of the cowboys who were done for the evening getting beers. There were a few repeat customers among
them; I won't name them but let's just say that none of them were from Brazil. Another amusing sidebar: one of
the in-arena announcers (I think it was Clint Adkins) said something like, “He
needed that ride so he can afford diapers,” after Brendon Clark rode. And then he said, “Wait, was I supposed to
say that?" as I thought, what the heck, is Brendon Clark having a kid; we didn't know that, did we?! No, no, we didn't. The event was being broadcast on the Live Event Center and the radio, and immediately after this bombshell, Alli Clark's phone (she was sitting near the announcers) started to blow up with calls from friends who didn't
know. Sorry, Alli. Everyone knows now. The moral of the story? Don’t tell the guys with microphones anything
you don't want the whole world to know.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i39.tinypic.com/168hc8y.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="140" src="http://i39.tinypic.com/168hc8y.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The face of disappointment</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
Thankfully it appeared that no one got too banged up at this event, although
Fabiano Vieira was looking very pained after his high-step away
from his bull. I wish this guy could get
a healthy season, because he’s clearly very talented. In other cowboy news, Renato Nunes was
apparently “too tired” for his usual backflip, but not too tired for a giant
cheeky grin at his compatriots behind the chute. I was really happy to see Emilio Resende and
Valdiron de Oliveira start to get back into the groove, and wished Edevaldo
Ferreira would have done the same. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
J.B. Mauney unexpectedly launched off his “gimme” bull
earlier in the evening, so there was a lot of anticipation about his ride on
the bonus bull, Stanley FatMax.
Since J.B. Mauney seems to thrive on riding the “unrideable” bulls, I
wasn't surprised that he ended up riding, and it was a good, gritty ride. I also shouldn't have been surprised that they
trotted J.B. out on the shark cage to close out the event, although the ride
didn't count toward the event standings. I like J.B. in the abstract, as he is a dynamic rider, but it's very wearying the way the PBR gets so in a froth whenever he does anything (and even when he doesn't). I'm sure Stormy Wing, who won the night, wouldn't have minded giving an interview, but oh well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Following the event was on-the-dirt signing, which someone apparently
forgot to tell the security guards about, as a fan club representative had to come
over and force them to let us onto the dirt.
After that it was the usual crazy swirl of cowboys, missing some while
you’re talking to others. I was happy to
catch Joao Ricardo Vieira, though, because he has a certain impish quality I enjoy
and he has certainly impressed in his debut year. While I think Silvano Alves will be very
tough to catch, it would be pretty exciting if Joao could manage to win Rookie
of the Year and the World Title in one year. But if
it’s either of them, history will be made and I’ll be happy.<o:p></o:p></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i39.tinypic.com/25814ci.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="148" src="http://i39.tinypic.com/25814ci.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joao Ricardo Vieira</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: center;">After this we fled quickly, trying to get out before the A’s
fans flooded the area. Alas, ball four was called as we were walking by the arena, and we
ended up in the midst of them, although we met some hilarious new bullriding
fans on the train whose husbands had been at the ball game while they watched bullriding, so all was not lost.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Tune in later for Saturday!
Hope this was at least marginally entertaining.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<i>I will try to get part two up over weekend. Or at least before too many events have passed...</i></div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-34804696538445517152013-06-21T10:52:00.001-07:002013-06-21T10:52:57.967-07:00We've come a long way, or have we?I honestly did have plans to rant about the idiocy of the PBR drawing back guys based on standings (including a guy who got disqualified in his earlier attempt) for the Last Cowboy Standing, but life distracted me and the rage faded, especially as none of the drawback guys actually won. But if there's one thing we know about the PBR, it's that it will invariably find ways to bumble and thus irritate.<br />
<br />
So here we are in the depths of the break, and the depths of fluff articles on the website--a time when you would think the PBR would have fewer opportunities to annoy. Let's be clear, I don't have a problem with fluff content when there isn't much to cover. However, I do have a problem with this, in <a href="http://www.blogger.com/(http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/other-features/2013/6/a-heartfelt-victory.aspx)">an otherwise nice article</a> about Chase Outlaw riding (and winning) to honor a family friend.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"I was glad I was able to do that for him after all he's done for me," said an outwardly emotional Outlaw. "I held my word for him . . . and knowing that I wasn't being a little weak-hearted girl. I actually beared-down and rode and got it done for him. This win right here will be one of the most memorable ones I've had in my life." </blockquote>
Let me take a breath here. No, that's not helping.<br />
<br />
PBR, seriously, you published <a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/20th-anniversary/2013/1/mainstream-impact.aspx" target="_blank">web articles in the near past</a> about how bad the early PBR cowboys were at PR and how Justin McBride needed media training after a gigantic error (insert your own observations about the success of any such efforts), implying that you have come so far . . . and then you put out this little gem? <br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The things wrong with this quote are numerous, and I'm not just talking about the grammar. So let's start with Outlaw. Now, he was emotional, and I'm sorry for his loss. However, do none of these chuckleheads who keep saying this kind of stuff have mothers? Sisters? Girlfriends? Wives? An aunt? Any women in their lives who perhaps don't appreciate the implication that they are weak and lesser? Would it have been that hard to say that he was happy he wasn't "weak-hearted," and left girls out of it?<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There's lots more I could say about that, believe me, but I don't want to dogpile on Chase Outlaw when he's just the latest in a long line to utter something similar. Let's move on to this quote being included at all. Assuming that ellipses mean the same thing to Keith Ryan Cartwright as they do to me, there was some sort of statement between "I held my word for him" and "and knowing I wasn't being a weak-hearted girl." So not only did Chase Outlaw make this utterance, but some series of writers and editors decided to edit out something else but opted to leave the "weak-hearted girl" part in and publish it for the world to see. So now not only do we have this statement, but the PBR has also doubled down on it, despite previous protestations about how far the organization has come. Of course, this is the organization whose CEO talked about "<a href="http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/01/27/this-aint-a-one-time-rodeo/#more-8876" target="_blank">marketing to buckle bunnies</a>" and seemed bemused when women found that objectionable, so the cluelessness may be endemic.</div>
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Now, I know I'm probably going to be told that I'm taking it too seriously and I'm too PC, etc., etc., etc. Believe me, I have heard that before. I will be told that the cowboys just don't know any better, and it's just the way they were raised, they don't really mean it that way. You can tell me all those things, but that doesn't mean that Chase Outlaw, or any cowboy, making demeaning comments about women is okay and should pass without comment, or that the PBR deciding to publish such comments is acceptable. </div>
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If the PBR wants to be taken seriously as a sport, it might start by treating women, who Jim Haworth himself says are more than half their audience, as something other than weak and lesser. Because women can very easily take their dollars, which spend just as "strongly" as any man's, somewhere else. Somewhere where we aren't giving money to an organization that publishes articles like the one quoted.</div>
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Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-55042647760795886842013-05-15T14:09:00.003-07:002013-05-15T14:09:43.419-07:00Vegas in My Rear-view Mirror<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Oooh,
don’t look now, because I think Pearl is really steamed. Yes, I have been
taking surreptitious peeks at her for the past few days, and the woman is
definitely pissed. She’s sitting over there, eyes twitching, fingers tapping,
and I can tell she’s about to blow. Pretty soon, she’s going to slam both
hands down on her desk, and it will be Katy bar the door. So I better get my
licks in while I can, and then steady the soapbox while she climbs up on it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Here
we are, at the beginning of the Cowboy Christmas break, with the Last Cowboy
Standing behind us. It has not been the greatest of seasons for
the devoted fan, not by a long shot. The broadcast schedule has been an endless
merry-go-round of confusion, the Pure PBR was a bad idea that has gotten
progressively sillier, several riders have very nearly gotten their guts stomped out,
and our good friend <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chicken-on-a-Chain/98774112610?fref=ts" target="_blank">Chicken on a Chain</a> is making his usual astute observations
about the LCS. (Take a look, please, at the May 11 entry.)</span><span lang="EN-GB"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And
to top it all off, now we learn that Justin McBride is going to Africa to hunt
<a href="http://www.pbr.com/en/news/features/behind-the-chutes/2013/5/behind-the-chutes-lcs.aspx" target="_blank">LEOPARDS</a>. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">LEOPARDS????? I’ve never been McBride’s biggest fan, and
this just about tears it for me. Clearly he has too much time and money on his
hands and it apparently hasn’t occurred to him to spend either doing something
besides shooting the shit out of something. Honestly—LEOPARDS????? Who in hell
shoots a LEOPARD????? Oh, right, the same glassbowls who shoot
elephants and rhinos. McBride, you and I are through. <a href="http://turnhimout.blogspot.com/2010/01/dear-kody-lostroh.html" target="_blank">I will not have any truck with trophy hunters.</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Having
said all that, though, I have rarely been happier watching the PBR than I was
during the third round of the Last Cowboy Standing, when the rankest of the
rank were in the house and the boys all hit the dirt. Of course, everyone was
anticipating seeing Asteroid and Bushwhacker go head to head, and they did not
(they never) disappoint, but apparently those other five bulls did not get the
memo that those two are the only ones in contention for Bull of the Year. As Ty
Murray says when words seem to fail him, those bulls bucked. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I
loved watching all seven of them, but I particularly loved I’m a Gangster Too,
who is the spittin’ image of his daddy, and David’s Dream, who came flying out
of the chute, sensed instantly that Silvano Alves was leaning too far to the
right, took a hard turn to the left and dumped him in the dirt, and then raced
for the outgate, snorting and slinging snot. He hit the brakes just before he
slammed into the back of the pen, tossing his head and telling us in no uncertain terms that he was the
wrong bull to mess with last Sunday. Yes, Mr. Dream, yessir, I understand you perfectly. Turns out bovine is my fourth language.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I
will leave it to my colleague to address the issues that have her so stirred up, but one that I have
to confess really bothers me is the way the bulls’ damned names keep changing.
I could have sworn I had seen I’m a Gangster Too before, and guess what! I had!
Only then, his name was Teflon Tom! And who is New Holland Powerstar? The bull
formerly known as Quiet Riot! </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">If this keeps up, I’m going to petition Cody
Lambert to smack some name tags on the bulls’ asses before they leave the
chute: My Name Was _______, and Now It’s _______! What's Your Sign?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Now I
must go prepare the soapbox for my friend and colleague, the lovely and
talented Pearl de Vere. Stand by for further observations!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Stockyard Queenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03036587088523124787noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4866947503973668447.post-62883412566480900352013-03-29T15:03:00.002-07:002013-03-29T15:30:41.394-07:00A victim of circumstance?<span style="font-family: inherit;">Well, another season of PBR is well underway, and as we all know, that means another season of figuring out what the heck the rules are at any given moment. While I will probably never be reconciled to the rules suddenly changing at least once a season, let alone the PBR's norm of one large change and multiple small modifications per season (whatever happened to the new slap rules, anyway?), I was willing to give the new cut and points scheme a chance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyone who has followed this sport any amount of time is used to The Powers That Be trimming the field by now, so the evolution to what essentially boils down to a cut every week should not be a surprise. The previous qualifying system, involving money earned for some things and points for others, certainly wasn't the most intuitive; streamlining that was a great idea, in theory. And it has always bothered me that established Built Ford Tough Series cowboys could go regularly to Touring Pro Division events, which are nominally about finding new talent, so I'm on board with whatever makes it less likely for the BFTS regulars to spend too much time at the TPD events. With TPD points worth a quarter of BFTS points, anyone doing decently in the BFTS is probably not going to see value in risking injury by slumming it in the TPD. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">But, as we also know, sometimes the obvious solution turns out to cause more issues than anticipated. We’re seeing it play out right now. Getting hot at the top of the season has always had benefits, but the advantages seem to have been exaggerated with the new system. A guy can get invited to the BFTS thanks to a TPD win, get hot at precisely the right time and score well at one BFTS event, and then linger at the upper level for quite some time while doing very little. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Coming up by making enough at the TPD events has never been easy, but now a high profile guy like Austin Meier or Valdiron de Oliveira can get injured or cold at precisely the wrong time and with no ceremony whatsoever, be quickly punted down to scrabbling for quarters of points. And we know Austin Meier can ride—even when cut, he was seeded in the Iron Cowboy by virtue of last season's standings and managed to win that grueling event. Valdiron de Oliveira is coming off back surgery and is rusty, but he was the world number one or two for most of last season and is pain free for the first time in years</span>—<span style="font-family: inherit;">there's no telling what he can do when the rust is knocked off. But Meier and presumably de Oliveira will be driving from one Podunk TPD to another, getting one-fourth the points a few cowboys raised from the TPD, who will remain nameless, do by occasionally riding a BFTS long go bull. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Now, I have every faith that Valdiron de Oliveira and Austin Meier will be back eventually. In fact, dominating some TPD bulls and gaining confidence might be just what they need. And i</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">t's not that there is a perfect system, although t</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">he PBR clearly hasn't discovered anything close as of yet. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> I</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">t's certainly not just that I don't want to see the "best cowboys" the PBR has to offer and am just clinging to familiar old guard cowboys, although I’m sure there is some element of that. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">No, where I'm coming from is this: it sounds great that we will always be seeing the best cowboys each week, but with this new system, the "best" seems to have been redefined in a way that makes it very easy for the mighty to fall and face a hard climb back, while the, er, less mighty might just get lucky at the right time and fill a spot long past their expiration date. Watching guys I admire claw and scratch at the bottom while malingerers hang on at the BFTS level is not my idea of a good time. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It remains to be seen how this will play out for the remainder of the season, of course. Only time will tell, assuming the rules don’t change all around again in short order. And I'm not a betting person, but I'm pretty sure I would have a safe bet on my hands if I said they will.</span></div>
Pearl de Verehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00710636662894485591noreply@blogger.com8