Published: July 03, 2009 10:36 am      

Rodeo: It’s all about adrenaline for bull riders

PBR makes its annual stop in Wimberley

Wimberley — Luke Snyder tried numerous sports throughout his youth, but none gave him the adrenaline rush he craved.

Football, while it was competitive, didn’t entice him.

While it was physically demanding, Snyder craved more. He figured if he’d have 11 200-pound men chasing after him, why not combine the weight and throw a saddle on to its back.

Well, that’s what Snyder did. When he turned 14, he went signed up for a rodeo with his friends and hopped on the back of his first 2,100-pound bull.

“I was hooked from that day,” Snyder, who is from Raymore, Mo., said. “I definitely feel that out of all the sports, you get the biggest adrenaline rush out of bull riding. I’ve never found anything as challenging as this. It drew me to it.”

Jose Moya coveted the same adrenaline rush, so he signed up for a rodeo in his hometown of Salamanca, Mexico.

Moya didn’t just stay on the bull the longest — he won the event.

“I was hooked, even though all the money went to charity since it was a benefit,” Moya said. “It pumped me up even more since I knew I could do well. I knew from that day on it was what I wanted to do.”

Moya just turned professional in 2009.

Snyder, on the other hand, joined the Professional Bull Riders Tour when he was 17.

The 5-foot-9, 150-pound rider from Missouri has earned more than $1 million in his short career. He bounded into the national spotlight in 2001 when he won the PBR World Finals.

Injuries and inconsistency plagued Snyder from 2004-07, but he reached six figures again in 2008 ($117,846). Snyder suffered a concussion in April, but was back riding the next day.

“You play sports long enough, it’s going to happen,” Snyder said of injuries. “It’s so physically and mentally demanding that you’re bound to get hurt.”

Don’t tell that to Moya, who has yet to suffer an injury on the professional tour.

Moya has seen his share of injuries through his friends though. While it may make some cringe, Moya knows it’s all part of the sport.

“I’ve seen friends break arms and legs,” Moya said. “I have friends with metal plates in their faces, but it doesn’t scare me. This isn’t a sport for the weak.”

While riders know injuries are part of the sport, they can be dehabilitating — but not just physically.

“What kills me the most is sitting at home (when I’m injured),” Snyder said. “You just want to be able to go, but you can’t. It’s tough, because this is our job and every day you are put up in a hospital or resting at home, you’re losing out on possible money.”

There are no guarantees in the world of professional bull riding.

A rider must finish in the top six of an event to earn a paycheck and with up to 50 other athletes, the competition is fierce.

Even the competition to be a part of the Build Ford Tough Series (PBR’s major league) is daunting. Those riders at Thursday night’s Veterans of Foreign Wars Rodeo in Wimberley were vying for a chance at the big time.

Each event gives the riders a chance not only impress, but to earn money — which is the foundation of the sport. Should a rider finish in the top five in the end-of-the-year standings, they are “called up” to the BFTS.

The bottom five finishers in the BFTS are dropped to the Challengers Tour, which makes stops in Wimberley and other towns.

“It’s cut-throat out there,” Snyder said. “The hardest thing is to go from being a World Champion right back to the Challengers Tour. You were at the top of your game and then if you slip up just once or twice, you’re back to fighting for a spot.”

A rider’s focus must be completely on the task at hand — or under hand. One slight slip-up could be the difference between sixth and seventh place (money and no money).

Once they saddle the bull in the chute, their focus must be on the 2,100-pound animal underneath them. When the gate opens, all bets are off.

The rider is at the whim of the bull and must hang on for the ride.

“You need to match them jump for jump,” Moya said. “Once you get into a groove, you just got to hold on with everything you have.”