Bull Pen 2009 July/Aug

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mailto:[email protected]

4 July/August 2009 www.bullpenmagazine.com

FEATURES

6 Bull Pennings

8 Bedford’s BULL-etin/ABBI Schedule

10 ABBI Benefits

24 ABBI Event Recaps

44 Bull Biz w/Cody Lambert

45 Partner Profile

47 Pro Bull Stats

48 Nutritional News

49 Key Comments

50 Ask Dr. Warner

52 ABBI Junior Breeders

56 Sale Recaps

62 Stock Market

Next Bull Pen: Sept./Oct.

CLASSIC ISSUEDeadline is Aug. 1

TABLE of CONTENTS

PUBLISHERChristopher BurkhardtVP OF PUBLICATIONS

Susan BedfordDIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Jeannie KaiserCONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Cody Lambert • Justin McKeeDr. Jonathon Beckett

Dr. Gary Warner • Bridget CookAmy Gardner • Sugar Kuhn Slade Long • Allen Glanville

Cindy GotoskiGRAPHICS WRANGLER

Cedric ManiquizPHOTOGRAPHERS

Allen Glanville • Andy Watson MARKETING

Lisa Marie Swearingen 949-294-5515

Cindy Gotoski 714-434-2579Darren Epstein 818-346-1332Maury Kaiser 765-647-4992

ABBI’s BULL PENis published bi-monthly by

Fan★Corp Western Lifestyle Publishing

714-434-2579bullpenmagazine.com

[email protected] ©2009 All rights reserved Printing by AA1-Litho

12 DNA Q&A

18 American Heritage Futurity

35 Breeders Trust

36 Futurity Focus

40 Cross E Bucking Bulls

DEPARTMENTS

Black Pearl, named byJulie Ravenscroft after the

pirate ship, makes CraigSasse walk the plank

in Decatur. allen glanville photo

On the Cover:

Joshua Chavez

Equine/Bovine Dentistpg. 40

Jr. Futurity champion Rex Samford andJr. Futurity reserve champion

Colt Baker in Ardmore.pg. 18

Jr. Futurity

Who’s Your Daddy?Sugar Kuhn explores the impact

Mr. Juicey is hvaing on Blythe Bucking Bulls

pg. 54

bronte’ phillips photo

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The marquee event of the year for the ABBI is arguably theAmerican Heritage weekend and I think that this was the mostsuccessful Heritage we have ever had. It has turned into a Fridaynight through Saturday night event, and it is quite the extrava-ganza. It was interesting to see so many new people enter theevents that we hadn’t seen before. I went down the list of com-petitors and there were some new names to me, which is alwaysexciting. I think people are realizing with the payouts at theHeritage that if you are going to raise bulls, it is important tokeep your bulls paid up and continue with the program once youare in it. We paid out over $380,000 at the Heritage and I thinkjust about everyone at the event would tell you it was well worthit to participate.

The Derby itself was really important to me since I had a lot todo with getting it started. It turned out to be more then I couldimagine. 75 animals participated this year and it was $30,000-plusto the winner. The calves were spectacular, and I mean spectacu-lar. I couldn’t imagine how good those calves were going to be.Everyone I talked to commented on how stiff the competitionwas.

It was neat to have PBR Livestock Director Cody Lambert inArdmore. It was a great opportunity for him to see our up-and-coming superstars and he roped bulls and helped out. We sin-cerely thank him for coming and we are glad he got to see our 3-year-old calves.

The Derby calves were well-behaved in the chutes. When youcan buck 75 bulls plus five re-rides in less than three hours, youhave got to be excited. I believe I can accurately attribute thatsuccess to Curt Blake and the staff he put together for the week-end. I’d give a shout out to every single one of them individuallyif I could. They worked as hard and as diligently as any group Ihave ever seen. They did a great job, and I can see that eventdoing nothing but growing.

I want people that bought tickets for the Derby to know howmuch that was appreciated. Those are funds that are going to beused through USBBA to help promote our junior futurities. I knowI bought tickets for the Derby because I felt like it was a greatway to promote the event and to help sponsor our junior mem-bers.

I would also like to say that I appreciate everyone’s thoughtsand prayers for my daughter Hannah who got knocked out at theevent. We know that bull riding is a dangerous sport, and unfor-tunately we got to see that first-hand. But she is doing much bet-

ter, and it just brings up the point that you need to be on yourtoes at events. We are thankful she is all right. Our family reallyenjoys attending the ABBI events together we’ll all be at the ABBIevent in Tulsa.

We have made a few adjustments in the rules that we areexcited about. There are a lot of people that would love to entertheir 3-year-olds in events, but we could never guarantee thatthey would only buck once during a weekend. We just got itapproved, on an event-by-event basis at this point, that you cannow mark on your entry fee to have your 3-year-old bull drawnout if he is going to be bucked twice. So What we have done isallow you to draw your bull out for a small fee of $25. We hopethat it really helps the breeders out with another opportunity tobuck their young bulls. This will also ensure we will start seeingmore 3-year-olds.

We are looking into doing a 3 or 4 D futurity this year, whichgets more bulls the chance to compete for prize money. Moredetails will be coming out in the next edition of Bull Pen. Just areminder, please utilize our website, www.americanbuckingbull.com. It is full of information and lists payment and nomina-tion deadlines. We are working hard on the registry site trying toclean up some things. We are also encouraging people to usethe online registry. It is cleaner and faster and we would love tohave more people use it.

To show how much we mean that, starting July 1, if you use itto register cattle online, we have lowered the price to $35. Wehope people take advantage of it.

As always, we are looking forward to the Finals this fall. Wewill be coming out with more information, but for now I’d like tosay that the whole Wild Card is going to be in Las Vegas this year.We will take four bulls from the Wild Card and move them oninto the weekend competition. The Wild Card this year is a win-ner-takes-all $50,000, plus the opportunity to move on and com-pete for $250,000 in the ABBI Classic Finals.

Again, if you have any questions or comments, please let usknow. Thank you for supporting your organization.


americanbuckingbull.comamericanbuckingbull.comBull Pen, FanCorp and ABBI are not responsible for opinions or claims made in this issue.

The American Heritage Weekend

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Props to the ConatsRod and Bonnie Conat truly believe that kids are the future of our

sport, so they signed over one of their bulls to a junior breeder tocompete with for the season. “We decided to pick a boy from theWest,” shared Rod. That boy, Connor Fitzpatrick went on to win thirdat the Junior Futurity in Ardmore with 749 Switchback.

“We want to try to get more kids from up here and the West Coastinvolved in the bucking bull industry,” said the Montana-based hus-band and wife team. “We’ll probably do it again next seasonbecause the future of the industry are these kids. We cater to kids

100%.” The Conats mean that literal-

ly. They had 30 high school kidsin their barn as we spoke whowere all waiting to get on prac-tice bulls. If Fitzpatrick wants tocompete in Tulsa, Rod saidthey will haul Switchback therefor him as well. “We just wantkids to get excited about buck-ing bulls and we want to dowhat we can to help inspirethem, whether that meansthem starting their own breed-ing program or becoming abull rider.”

Ty's Curtain CallWell Ty almost made it to the end of Dancing With the Stars. Our

Cha-Cha cowboy made it to the final four before he had his curtaincall. I was lucky enough to get to be one of his guests in the studioaudience the week before when Murray beat out rapper Lil' Kim toget to dance another week. I was truly impressed by how nice every-one was and the sense of family and camaraderie that was evidentamong the final teams. And (since so many ladies have asked me),yes, Gilles Marini is that hot in person. Olympian Shawn Johnsonultimately won the coveted disco ball trophy, with Marini coming insecond. Since then, Murray has been busy doing as many radio andTV appearances as possible to help promote and further the percep-tion of bull riding as a real sport. Thank you, Ty, for representing usall and being the best ambassador our sport could ask for.

New ABBI Ground RuleBreeders who want to enter their 3-year-olds in Classics but don't

want them to have to buck twice now have an option. A new ABBIGround Rule allows for the designation on the entry form of a “buckonce” preference at select events. If the event becomes a two-headevent, “buck once” preferences will be drawn out of the event anda nominal $25 office fee will apply.

Diamond S Adds Another MemberWelcome Lela Victoria Pickens, born June 16 at 12:42 p.m. Lela is

the daughter of Scott and Kelly Pickens and a welcome addition tothe Diamond S gang!

Dog's Best FriendIt turns out acclaimed canine

and Western bronze sculptorJames Rogers was reallyinspired by Sugar Kuhn's two-part story on working dogs inthe last two issues of the BullPen.

Rogers dropped by the BullPen office recently to tell ushow much he enjoyed readingabout our industry’s cattledogs. We also got to see one ofhis latest sculptures “Waitingout the Storm” as well as thematching belt buckle, which Ithought was a really cool con-cept. Note the photo, whichshows how he mounts theremovable buckle on his sculp-tures. The backside of the buck-le has a complete story aboutthe inspiration for the scene. Note the dog hiding under the coat.

Besides being a fan of the industry and a fan of man’s best friend,I learned that Rogers resides in my hometown of Rancho Cucamonga(ok, stop laughing. And yes, I am well aware that it is the city nameused in Road Runner cartoons).

You can see his work for yourself at jamesrogersstudio.com.

Retraction: Pull Like A ProBull Pen Magazine sincerely regrets several errors in last month's

BULLetin item titled “Pull Like A Pro.” Cody Lambert does notendorse, nor was he involved in the development or design of PullPro. We apologize for any impression to the contrary.

Like any flank strap, the Pull Pro must meet certain criteria to beallowed to be used at PBR and ABBI events to ensure the safety ofthe animals and the cowboys. Lambert, in his capacity of PBRLivestock Director, informed the makers of Pull Pro on changes theyneeded to make to be in compliance with PBR rules and regulationsregarding flank straps. Bull Pen apologizes for unintentionally givingthe impression that Lambert was somehow involved or supportedthe Pull Pro product.

Mikel J. Moreno ABBI Scholarship: Accepting ApplicationsIf you are a junior member who is headed off to college in the Fall,

don't forget to get your application in for the Mikel J. MorenoScholarship Fund.

Mikel, the late son of Cindy and Julio Moreno, was a successfulbucking bull breeder, talented athlete and all-around amazing per-son. After he lost his long battle with leukemia in 2006, the awardwas established to help other junior breeders follow the collegedream that Mikel never got to achieve. Jonathan Chandler won theaward in 2007 and Bryn Agnew was last year's recipient. Contact theABBI office for more information.

Rod Conat supports junior breedersfrom his ranch in Montana.

fanc

orp

foto

News, Notes & Nods


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www.bullpenmagazine.com July/August 2009 9

Tentative 2009 ABBI Event Schedule

SUBJECT TO CHANGEPlease see americanbuckingbull.com for latest updates and information.

EVENT DATE LOCATION TOUR1 Feb. 14 Oklahoma City, OK PBR BFTS Classic2 March 7 Kansas City, MO PBR BFTS Classic3 April 4 Stephenville, TX Spring Spectacular Futurity4 April 4 Stephenville, TX Discovery Tour Spring Spect. Classic5 April 4 Nampa, ID Buckingstockbroker.com Futurity6 April 24 Omaha, NE PBR BFTS Classic7 May 2 Weatherford, TX Diamond S Bucking Bull Futurity8 May 15-17 Pueblo, CO PBR BFTS Classic9 May 16 Stephenville, TX 4 C’s Discovery Tour Classic 10 May 16 Stephenville, TX 4 C’s Futurity11 May 23 Decatur, TX Enterprise Tour J.W. Hart Invitational Classic12 May 30 Ardmore, OK Junior Futurity13 May 30 Ardmore, OK American Heritage Futurity14 May 30 Ardmore, OK American Heritage Derby15 June 5-6 Elk City, OK Justin McBride PBR Challenge16 June 20 Winner, SD Winner Futurity17 June 20 Winner, SD Winner Discovery Tour Classic18 June 20 Stephenville, TX 4 C’s Discovery Classic 19 June 20 Stephenville, TX 4 C’s Futurity20 June 26-27 Kinder, LA Classic /Futurity21 July 17 Tulsa, OK PBR BFTS Classic22 July 18 Tulsa, OK Junior Futurity23 July 31-Aug. 1 Weatherford, TX Enterprise Tour Classic24 Aug. 13 North Platte, NE North Platte Enterprise Classic25 Aug. 20-21 Sulphur Springs, TX Enterprise Tour Classic26 Aug. 21 Sulphur Springs, TX Jr. Futurity27 Aug. 20-21 Archdale, NC Challenger Tour Classic28 Aug. 21 Archdale, NC Futurity29 Aug. 29 Stephenville, TX ABBI American Breeders Cup30 Sept. 18 Reno, NV PBR BFTS Classic (Futurity TBD)


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ABBI Member Benefits

Members receive 6 colorful, educational issues of Bull Pen mag-azine each year. In addition, mem-bers qualify for the specialMember Rate when they advertisein Bull Pen, the ABBI BreedersGuide or the ABBI Las Vegas

Finals program. Bull Pen is the Authority on Breeding, Buying andBucking Bulls.

Big Tex would like to extend a great discount to all ABBI mem-bers and PBR riders, stock contractors and bull owners. All you have

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Priefert manufactures cattle and horse working equipment andhas a new line of Bull Walkers endorsed by Bob Tallman. As the offi-

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Adriano Moraes, two-time world champion Chris Shivers and 1999PRCA world champion “Mighty” Mike White. All of Priefert’s manu-facturing is done in Mount Pleasant, Texas, and nothing leaves theplant without reaching the company’s strict high-quality standards.www.priefert.com

Makers of the Original Blue Bucking Dummy and the “Ultra” BlueDummy, now the PREFERRED Dummy of the ABBI. Check out the

“Little” Blue Dummy, only 14pounds, for weanlings andyearlings. Little Blue donatedthree Ultra Blue dummies to

benefit the Jr. Futurity at auction. www.buckingdummy.com

Courage is measured in seconds. Many dream about it. For thelucky souls who live it, there’sWrangler Western Wear.

T&S truck model feeders may be mounted in the back of a pick-up or on a flatbed. Choose from 2 - 8pounds per feeding, while a countercounts each dump of feed from the secu-rity of your own cab. Unique patentedfeeders, with nothing else to compare.Available in three sizes. www.t&sfeed-ers.com

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A USBBA Publication

From your official sponsors:

2008 ABBI BOARDOF DIRECTORS

General ManagerAndee Lamoreaux

President Russell Gant

V.P. Brad Boyd

Jim Bob Nall

Randy Bernard

Scott Pickens

J.W. Hart

Cody Lambert

Shawn McDermott

Ty Murray

ABBI SHAREHOLDERSScott Accomazzo & Moody-

Rice Cattle Co.David M. Allen

Berger Bucking BullsDiamond S Bucking Bulls

& Scott PickensDillon & H.D. Page

Jerome & Tiffany DavisBob Diedrich

& Jason DiedrichBrad Boyd & Toby Floyd

Russell GantLyndal Hurst

Doug & Stephanie JosephDon & Janelle Kish

Joe MerrickJulio Moreno

& Cotton RosserJim Bob & Diana Nall

Paradise FarmsMonty Samford

Tony Sharp & Craig Zaunbrecher

Kaycee SimpsonBob & Kristen Tallman

Thomas Taylor& Nikki GuselTom Teague

Trevor WalkerCliff Wiggins

ABBI Contact Info:101 West Riverwalk Pueblo, CO 81003

Phone: 719-242-2747 Fax: 719-242-2746

[email protected]

Cattleac chutes are built with thesame heavy material needed forstrength and lasting durability.

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Cooper Tires is the official tire sponsor of both the ABBI and thePBR. A fraction of a second real-

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DNA Q &A:Bull Pen Magazine Contributing Editor Sugar Kuhn sat down foran in-depth DNA discussion with MMI Genomics Chief ofOperations Dr. Dennis Fantin from the company that does parentverification from the bloodcards for the ABBI registry.

SK: Hello, Dr. Fantin. I understand that you are quite accom-plished in the field of animal DNA testing.

DF: Thank you for your kind words, but I need to let you knowthat we have a group of outstanding individuals here at MMIGenomics who have diligently worked to advance the field ofAnimal DNA testing. The real credit should go to them. I’m onlyglad to be one small part of it.

SK: You are a PhD and MBA, a patent-hold-er, an inventor and a scientist all wrapped upinto one?

DF: Yes, many different titles for a pretty sim-ple guy. At the end of the day I’ve been veryfortunate throughout my career to be ableto blend two areas that I really love—scienceand business!

SK: Tell me a little bit about your educationand background in the field of genetics.

DF: Well, I’m a scientist by profession andmy background is in biochemistry, thebranch of science that deals with the studyof the molecules of life. Early in my career Iworked with a company, Applied Biosystemsthat built scientific instrumentation for lifescience research. The company was a pio-neer in the area of automated DNASequencing and other DNA based technologies. These toolswould become very critical to the area of human genetics andrevolutionized our understanding of the structure and function ofDNA.We quickly realized that DNA could be a valuable tool for manyapplications for livestock and companion animal breeding and itbecame my responsibility to look at developing systems thatwould allow DNA technologies to be used in various agriculturalindustries.

SK: You are the Chief of Operations for MetaMorphix, which isthe Maryland-based parent company of MMI Genomics, which isalso the company that does parent verification for our ABBIbreeders. I believe MetaMorphix was responsible for successfullymapping the entire bovine genome, correct?

DF: Yes, we were the first ones to “sequence” the bovinegenome back in 2001 when we were part of Celera Genomics.

Celera Genomics, under the guidance of Dr. Craig Venter, led theeffort that sequenced the human genome. After that effort wascompleted, Celera’s huge sequencing capability was directedtoward sequencing the genomes of a number of key speciesincluding bovine, swine, chicken and canine.

Since 2001, public efforts have added greatly to these sequenc-ing ventures and completed additional work on these and manyother species. Our knowledge of the cattle DNA is quite exten-sive. We know the sequence of the over three billion bases (indi-vidual chemical molecules) that comprise the entire cattlegenome.

SK: How does this feat benefit our industryand what role does it play later on down theline?

DF: Knowledge of the entire bovine genomeopens the door to discoveries that have wide-spread benefits for the industry both todayand in the future. DNA is becoming anincreasingly valuable and important tool formaking better breeding decisions. Already,DNA science has helped us map (find) thelocation of genetic defects in the cattlegenome and build DNA tests that help usscreen for carriers of these defects. In this waymutations that have deleterious effects can bebred out of the population through selectivebreeding.DNA analysis also helps speed up the selec-tion process in breeding programs accelerat-ing the rate of genetic improvement in thebreed. When we know the ancestry of ourbucking bulls, for example, we can make cer-

tain assumptions about the expected performance of the proge-ny and the importance of the animals as breeding stock. AndDNA technology is also being used in some very novel ways topredict certain carcass and production characteristics. For exam-ple, MMI Genomics has used this knowledge to develop DNAtests that can help predict traits of economic importance, such asmarbling (amount of intramuscular fat) in beef cattle. If an animal’sgenetic potential to marble is high, for example, that animal maybe managed in a way that allows the trait to be expressed fully(days on feed, feed composition) and be worth more than an ani-mal that may not be able to marble very well.Eventually genomic sciences will allow us to unravel a deep

understanding of how genes interact to produce beef cattle withmore tender meat, for instance, or dairy cattle that produce moremilk with higher protein content, or even bucking bulls that per-form better in the arena.

SK: So, let’s start with the groundwork when it comes to what

Knowledge of the entire bovine genomeopens the door to discoveries that have

widespread benefits for the industry bothtoday and in the future. DNA is becoming

an increasingly valuable and important toolfor making better breeding decisions.

What is the Truth behind ABBI’s DNA testing program?

We sent Sugar to find out.



service you provide for ABBI members. The staff, officers andbreeders want to better understand this DNA testing process andits challenges. What are some very basic things we need tounderstand about the science before we can understand thechallenges?

DF: First of all, every cell in a living organism contains DNA whichin turn contains the instructions or the genetic code for that livingorganism. Each individual has its unique DNA but some “pat-terns” in the DNA are repeated and inherited by the offspring.When a specific pattern or marker is identified and categorized, itcan be matched back to the suspected ancestors to establish apositive relationship.The DNA molecule itself is made up of a combination of four

variations of a chemical structure called bases and referred to asA, C, G and T. These four bases are arranged in a specific waythat is linear. This arrangement or sequence is then millions ofbases long. It is this precise sequence that determines the genet-ic code, or the differences between animals.Further, these linear arrangements of bases are then arrangedinto chromosomes. Cattle have 29 pairs of these chromosomesand one pair of sex chromosomes. Each animal has two copies ofthese chromosomes. Each offspring gets one set of chromo-somes from its mama and the other from its daddy. Thus, anyvariation that the parents may have intheir individual DNA is passed on stablyto its offspring.Additionally, we call the variationsinherited from mom and dad at anyparticular location “alleles.” The basisof using DNA as a fingerprinting tech-nique is that we can trace back anddetermine how these alleles were inher-ited from the parents.

SK: Now that we have a baselineunderstanding of the science, let’s talkabout the process. Since I myself am anABBI breeder, talk me through the cor-rect way to do things on my end once Iget that blood card.

DF: The first step in the process of obtaining a good qualityresult from a DNA analysis starts when you receive the samplecard. Instructions should be followed closely on taking a goodblood sample. A single spot of blood on the card about the sizeof a nickel is all that is necessary. Something that is not alwaysrecognized is that oversaturation of the card with blood usuallyleads to problems with the analysis. When this happens, certaincomponents cannot be washed out to the necessary degreewhich then leads to an inhibition of the DNA reaction.Additionally, the cards should not come into contact with otherwet cards, should be allowed to air dry in a relatively clean envi-ronment before shipping, and they should be kept away fromextreme heat or weather. While gloves aren’t necessary or evenpractical in many cases, we do recommend washing your handsbefore you start sampling. Of course this isn’t always practicaldepending on the situation.As far as how you should handle a sample, we mainly just askpeople to use good sampling technique and common sense.Don’t carry over blood from one animal sample to another. Don’tlet sample cards get contaminated with manure. Don’t drop themon the ground or let them get soiled. If one does, discard it andget a fresh sample. Follow these basic rules and it’s unlikely you’ll

run into any surprises.Another important part of this process is to identify the sample

correctly and ensure that the tag, brand number or animal IDnumber is correct and that all information on your sample sub-mission form is double-checked and accurate.The breeder should always write the animal’s tag, brand or ID

number on the blood card, before they send it to ABBI. Once itarrives at ABBI the sample subject’s registration number is alsowritten on the card in red.

SK: So, I’ve done my part. What happens to the blood card onceMMI receives it from ABBI?

DF: Once we receive your animal’s sample, it goes through multi-ple laboratory processes and rigorous quality control mecha-nisms. The following is a brief summary of the steps that eachsample must go through prior to reporting the results:First, when the sample arrives at the laboratory from ABBI, eachis opened separately, examined and logged into our proprietaryLaboratory Information Management System. This is done toensure that it can be easily tracked and monitored through eachlaboratory process. At this time the animal’s information is loggedinto our system and the sample is given a unique barcode identi-fication.

The next step is DNA Isolation and Amplification.Each sample is delivered to our DNA isolation lab-oratory where the DNA is extracted from the bloodcard. We then perform PCR, a laboratory processthat amplifies the concentration of DNA by makingcopies of it. This gives us a sufficient amount ofDNA for the test.Once the PCR process is complete, we are ready tobegin Parentage Analysis which seeks a commongenotype between the subject and the suspectrecorded sire and dam, or in some cases to aselected inventory of suspect animals.Finally the actual Analysis takes place. Themicrosatellite markers are identified and comparedto the markers of the selected group, ultimatelydetermining parentage.

SK: Help us again understand exactly what ABBI is asking you todo when they send MMI a breeder’s blood card. The ABBI isactually asking you to verify that the dam and sire of an individualare truly what a breeder is saying they are, right?

DF: In the strictest sense, ABBI is asking us to protect the integri-ty of their studbook by certifying pedigrees. In this way the valueof these animals is maintained through bloodlines and lineage,and DNA is an ideal way to do this. It cannot be changed oraltered and it is a permanent record of an animal’s identity. DNAdoesn’t lie. Through the DNA process, we can confirm a breed-er’s claim as to parentage, for sure.

SK: So, let’s talk about the “elephant in the room.” That ele-phant, of course, being some of the challenges or difficultiesfaced in achieving the results that the breeder is expecting.Assuming the blood card itself was handled properly and thesample has not been compromised in any way, what are somethings that can cause the results of a test to come back as incon-clusive?

DF: If a blood card is handled properly and uncompromised, weexpect the sample to complete testing the first attempt.


Sometimes, the test may not yield DNA types in the firstattempt. If this happens, the sample is tested a second time withresults reported back the following week in most cases.Now, when we encounter inconclusive results in a parentage

case, we must consider unpredicted variables. Including bullsjumping fences, cows switching calves, a cow losing a calf thenstealing another cow’s calf to replace the one lost, a calf graftingonto a cow that is not the natural mother, and simple manage-ment oversights like which bulls were in which pastures at certaintimes.If none of these situations are the case when we have inconclu-

sive results, then it may havesomething to do with theidentification and labelingprocess. When we get a bloodcard, it should have the animalID number written on it whichthe breeder has done, and thesample subject’s registrationnumber in red, which ABBI haswritten. We are very careful tolook up samples by MMIGSample ID or ABBI registrationnumber to avoid evaluatingthe wrong sample in any particular case.Poor penmanship can cause clerical errors during sample entry

or barcode labeling of the sample. Because the lab has very tightoperating procedures regarding the chain of custody of samplesand their respective records, we can easily trace back througheach step of our processing and conduct an administrativereview to ensure that the results are correct, as far as our per-formance goes.Another example of labeling errors on the breeder’s end canoccur when breeders use the cow’s tag, brand or ID number toidentify a calf. A breeder can unknowingly submit a calf that hadswitched cows. Under these circumstances, this identification sys-tem can lead to inconclusive or incorrect results.

SK: I can’t wait to get into these areas further with you in the verynear future. For now though, let’s move onto another area wherebreeders have had some challenges.It’s common in our industry to see herds or certain lines in whichheavy line breeding has been implemented for multiple genera-tions. In these cases there may be little genetic variance withincertain herds and lines and breeders are encountering specificproblems. An example would be where an individual tests backto their grandsire (which may have been deceased long beforethe mating occurred), or a full sibling, or a son of the actual sirehimself. Help us understand this.

DF: The true sire should always “qualify.” Where there is very lit-tle genetic variance, the likelihood is that other full sibs, half-sibs,and/or grandsires may also qualify. In these cases, extra markersalong with the “removal” or “exclusion” of potential qualifiersbased on birth dates, etc. are usually required to resolve parent-age.

SK: Explain what you mean by removal of potential qualifiers andexclusion of parents?

DF: Since parent identification is a process of exclusion, the chal-lenge comes in when we don’thave any information aboutpossible or suspect parents andare forced to try to match to anentire inventory of a specificbreeder.As many bucking bull owners

can attest, a multiple resultdoes not provide as much valu-able information as a singleassignment to a parent. Themultiple assignment occurswhen several animals can quali-

fy as the parent of a specific calf because the test was runagainst a member’s complete inventory of animals, making it avery inefficient way to use the technology.One of the most important aspects of DNA parentage identifica-tion is that it is a process of excluding potential sires on the basisof their genotype. It is therefore important that DNA from allpossible parents be included in the tests because the processdoesn’t “prove” parentage, it “excludes” parentage which canbe complicated if the possible sires are closely related. The DNAtest is most successful when it can assign paternity by confirmingthat the calf’s genotype shares a marker with the alleged sireand/or dam.

SK: I don’t know about everyone else, but understanding thissure gives me a different perspective on the process. I guess I’vealways gone into it with the misconception that the lab is match-ing an individual to a dam and sire. And I’m relatively sure I’mnot the only one that has been running under that impression.I’m glad you’ve explained this.

DF: Good. I hope it makes things clearer for those who havefaced challenges.

Visit bullpenmagazine.com for anextended version of this interview.

It is important that DNA from all possible parents be included in the tests because the process doesn’t “prove” parentage, it “excludes” parentage which can be complicated if the possible sires are

closely related.



http://www.bullpenmagazine.com/index.php/articles/education/sugar-kuhn/122-qaa-dna-discussion-with-dr-dennis-fantin



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American Heritage Junior FuturityMay 30 in Ardmore, Okla. by Susan Bedford

Photos by Allen Glanville

I t isn't every day that a teenager can say he is $10,000 richerbecause he didn't listen to his father. 16-year-old Rex Samford wonthe Ardmore Junior Futurity with a bull and training regimen that

went against his father's advice. “I told him I thought he should bringa different bull,” chuckled dad Monty Samford after the fact, “but hewas adamant about the one he had chosen. I guess he knew whathe was doing!”

-22 definitely impressed the ABBI judges. He was awarded an88.25 which is an extremely high score for any futurity bull. “Ithought he could win, because he'd been bucking really good atthe house,” shared Rex. “He is out of Party Time and from themama of What I Say. I exercise him every day and run him through.He's real hard and a real good bull.”

The first ABBI Junior Futurity event of the year was held theweekend of the American Heritage. Junior members entered 28futurity bulls in the competition and over $15,000 in prize moneywas paid out. Money raised from ticket sales from the ABBI Derby

the night before went to help fund the Junior Futurity, offset-ting about half of the prize purse paid out.

Rex also plans on competing at the two remaining Juniorevents for the season: Tulsa, Okla. and Sulphur Springs, Texas. “ Ihave one more bull at the house that I'll take to Tulsa and then I'lltake Party All The Time back to Sulphur Springs,” said Rex.

In second at the season opener was Colt Baker with 7542, whoearned a score of 86.5. He won $1,000 and a heifer donated byDiamond S.

"He was bucking really good, so I thought maybe he could comein first or second," said Colt of his bull out of the great Dr. Hou. "Mybrother has a really good bull too, but I like my bull and think I'll takehim to Tulsa too."

Colt, 14, and his brother Cade, 10, are both involved in the JuniorFuturity system. The brothers have an agreement to share everythingthey win. "They boys really aren't competitive with each other,"shared mom Paige, "The ABBI Junior Futurity is such a a wonderfulprogram for the kids to be involved with. And Colt was as excited toget the Smash Hit heifer as he was the money."

“I have a daughter who is participating in the Junior Futurity eventsthis season,” explained David Simpson, “and I think the program is so

Rex Samford’s -22 Party All the Time earned first-place honors and $10,000 at the ABBI Youth Futurity in Ardmore.

The participants of the 2009 ABBI Junior Futurity in Ardmore..

Brad Boyd, Jr. Futurity winner Rex Samford, Reserve ChampionColt Baker, David Simpson and ABBI’s Andee Lamoreaux.

American Heritage Weekend



RANK ID. BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT 1 -22 Party All the Time Rex Samford 88.25 $10,0002 7542 7542 Colt Baker 86.50 $ 1,000 + heifer3 749 Switchback Bar C3, Connor Fitzpatrick 78.75 $ 1,222 3 5G 773 You Wish Hannah Gant/5G Bucking Bulls 78.75 $ 1,222 5 GV 674 Infinity Hunter Murph /Green Valley Ranch 76.75 $ 724 6 728 728 Megan Walker/Walker Bucking Stock 69.75 $ 634 7 997 997 Rayni Maxey 68.75 $ 543 8 T21 Page T21 D&H Cattle/Bailey Buck 66.759 74 Call 2 Duty Colt Baker 63.5010 10 Bucking Nightmare Aaron Rayan Halpain 60.0011 770 Smarty Pants Jonathan Jaynes 59.7512 707 Right Now Laramie Wilson 59.0013 10-7 Broadway Kassidy McKee 55.0314 JF 78 Pokerface Hayden Wilson 53.0015 765 French Dip Jonathan Jaynes 52.5016 725 Bobbie Hou Jake Wilfong 50.2517 5G 7440 Screamin Demon Lucas Gant/5G Farms 48.1518 7505 Smoked Onion TBR Bucking Bulls / Austin Brito 47.7519 762 BBD 762 Taylor Simpson / Diamond S 46.2520 89 Bow Jack Hunter Christman 39.2521 731 Bust-A-Move Mason Watters 38.2522 777 Misery Business Beka Jo Williamson 34.7523 951 951 Eli Flinn/Owens Cattle/Red Tank Ranch 32.0024 732 Speckled Fire Jake Wilfong 30.7525 94 Jack Attack Matthew Jack 29.2526 707 4LCC Hells Done Popped Garrett Lemons - 4L Cattle Co. 26.7527 711 Mezcal Montano Land & Cattle 26.5028 RT 754 Packin Heat/Tuff Eli Flinn/Owens Cattle/Red Tank Ranch 25.2529 59T Mr. Myjestic Brenon Smith 21.2530 1897 Turbo Stormy Maxey 0.00 TOTAL PAID OUT

$15,344

American Heritage Junior Futurity Results

important to our younger members that I wanted to find a way tohelp out and support it, so we donated a Smash Hit heifer.”

Splitting third were Connor Fitzpatrick and Hannah Gant. Connorwas another junior breeder who benefited from the generosity a fel-low ABBI member. “As we see this grow, there are more and morepeople getting involved and helping kids with their breeding pro-grams,” shared ABBI President Russ Gant. “Rod Conat and his wifedid a really good thing, they donated the calf for Connor to competewith.”

Hannah's 5G773 You Wish and Connor's 749 Switchback wereeach a 78.75. Each earned $1,222 for their 4-second performances.In fifth was Hunter Murphy with a 76.75 for GV 674 Infinity, whichgave him $724. Megan Walker was sixth with 728's score of 69.75which was worth $634. Rounding at the money was Rayni Maxey

whose 997 wasscored 68.75 for$543.

All the juniormembers flanktheir own bulls atthe events andare encouragedto be as hands-on as possible inthe raising, feed-ing and care oftheir animals athome. Pleasecontact the ABBIif you are inter-esting in sup-porting theJunior Futurityprogram.

Colt Baker’s 7542 was second place at the ABBI YouthFuturity in Ardmore and earned $1,000 and a

Smash Hit heifer donated by Diamond S.

Colt Baker’s 7542 was second place at the ABBI YouthFuturity in Ardmore and earned $1,000 and a

Smash Hit heifer donated by Diamond S.



http://www.otterdozer.com/

Heath Ellis explained the remarkable ride: “602 turned back rightat the gate and kicked over his head, he was perfect tonight. I hopeour win inspires other breeders, because you don’t have to be a big-time breeder to win at the ABBI events.”

Ryan Ellis added, “Lots of kick and air. We knew when he got hisfeet he was going to be great.” 602 was sired by Wildlife and out ofa Rafter 7r cow bought at the Page’s sale a few years ago.

Second place was D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle’s S45 High Society with90.25 points; third was D&H Cattle/Teuteburg‘s 30S Monty the Bullwith 88.75.

This class of 3-year-olds proved they could perform at a stand-aloneevent and we should see more of them in the future. It was alsorewarding to see half of the field or more comprised of graduates ofthe ABBI Futurity system, something many said would never happen.Last season’s Futurity champion, 632 Copp Hou tied for 4th with 88.5,and American Heritage winner, Davis Rodeo/Brian Canter’s 691 SuperFreak, finished tied for 19th with a respectable 87.

Russ Gant, president of the ABBI, remarked on the Derby. “I thinkthe original intent of the Derby was to give exposure to the 3-year-olds. We have the Heritage for the 2s and the Classics for the 4-year-old bulls, but no gauge to look at the 3-year-olds. The Derby will alsogive Futurity bulls a place to advance and make some money andkeep up their owner’s interest, because everyone has a chance towin. The quality of bulls at this first Derby was unbelievable, andexceeded all my expectations.”

The ABBI held its first ever Derby for 3-year-old bulls at theHardy Murphy Arena in Ardmore. The event was createdbecause of all the interest by members wanting to see their

bulls compete with others their own age. In the past, despite theage difference, 3-year-old bulls have done quite well and for thelast couple of years have been the top finishers at the ABBI WorldChampionship Finals in Las Vegas.

The event got the interest of the breeders as 75 bulls wereentered, and put on quite a show. Everyonethought it would become a marathon andlast forever, but Curt Blake and crew buckedthe field in less than three hours—an amaz-ing feat.

This event was on Friday night in conjunc-tion with the ABBI American HeritageFuturity that was held Saturday. Both breed-ers and fans turned out and enjoyed theevent.

When all the scores were checked and re-checked, Cross E Bucking Bulls’ 602Ricochet was declared the winner. 602bucked his way to a score of 91 and pickedup a check for $32,695 along with a bonus of$10,000 for competing last season at theAmerican Heritage as a 2-year-old. The crewat Cross E were beside themselves, remark-ing, “This is our first win—wow!” along withbig smiles and praise for their bull.

RicochetRicochet

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 34 Ricochet Cross E Bucking Bulls 91 $42,6952 21 High Society D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle 90.25 $18,8633 28 Monty the Bull D&H Cattle/Teuteberg 88.75 $11,9464 13 War Wagon Shad Smith 88.5 $7,3094 20 Futrell D&H Cattle/Futrell 88.5 $7,3094 29 Copp Hou Lightning C Cattle 88.5 $7,3094 71 Ice T&D Rafter HB Cattle Co. 88.5 $7,3098 26 Page D&H Cattle Co. 88.25 $4,1658 47 Mail Man Boyd/Floyd Bull Co. 88.25 $4,1658 50 Jed Clampett Jaynes Gang /J. Nelson 88.25 $4,1658 53 Top Diamond Diamond S/Tom Peterson 88.25 $4,1612 59 Feeling So Fly Jaynes Gang / J.Nelson 88 $3,14413 11 Walk 'N Tall Walker Bucking Stock 87.75 $2,67213 35 Lil' Red Cat Center Point Ranch 87.75 $2,67215 10 Pro Bull Max Boot Heel /Manns.Ag Ctr 87.5 $2,13815 49 Hippy Music Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 87.5 $2,13817 22 Juicy Fruit D&H Cattle/Futrell 87.25 $1,79217 31 April Fool Bad Co. Rodeo 87.25 $1,792

Ardmore Derby Results

Brad Boyd, Tiffany and Ryan Ellis, Craig and Kelly Ellis, Russ Gant, Heathand Mandy Ellis, with children Dillon, Landon & Myles Ellis.

ABBI Derby, Ardmore, Okla., May 29Ricochet Zings Home with $42KStory & photos by Allen Glanville

Ardmore Derby Recap






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American Heritage FuturityPays Out �$387,450

The American Heritage Futurity is always one of the most antic-ipated events of the season, with a huge prize purse that drawssome of the most talent-

ed Futurity bulls of the sea-son. “This was the most suc-cessful Heritage we haveever had,” shared ABBIPresident Russ Gant. “Thisreally is becoming a signa-ture event for the ABBI andone that breeders fromcoast-to-coast come outfor.”

The 2009 event had 151bulls entered and $387,450paid out. 77 Jug Headpocketed the big dollars,winning over $100,000 foran 83.75-point score thatlanded him in first.

“He bucked like hell, Ithought!” said a happy H.D.Page following the victory.“He does everything onecan do, and he does it rightin the gate.”

Jug Head had placed atsome events, butD&H/Flinn (Eldon, Lyndon,Randal and Jason Flinn)weren't expecting him togo all the way at one of themost prestigious ABBIevent of the year. “He neverfails to kick, he leaps andturns and does it all—justlike you want one to,”enthused H.D. Page, “but Ifelt like he was missed thefirst few times I took him toevents.”

“It was the first bullthat we partnered on withthe Flinns,” shared H.D.“Randal and I bought himoff the internet. His sire(Wrangler Renegade) is outof Wrangler Sports Jacket.”Jug Head was purchasedfrom 3 Bar A.

“We sold three bulls atthat sale,” shared ScottAshley about the sale ofJug Head. “The other twowere half-brothers to JugHead and they were bought

by Guilherme Marchi. Chris Shivers bought our heifers.” Ashleysaid that Jug Head’s dam came from the late Vicky Long’s pro-

gram. Long boughtPlummers from CharliePlummer before his death.“Renegade’s dam is a half-sister to Mossy OakMudslinger,” explainedAshley of how things camefull circle back to thePages.

Ashley was thrilledwhen he had heard JugHead had won—andshocked when he learnedhow much money the bullhad won. “I had no ideathe event paid out thatmuch,” said Ashley, who isnow looking into compet-ing at Futurities.

One of the big differ-ences from last year wasthe amount of time thebulls bucked with adummy. At the start of theseason, the rule went intoeffect that changed it fromfrom six to four seconds. “Idon’t think changes wemade for this year–likebucking the calves with adummy for only 4 sec-onds–affected anythingnegatively,” assessed Gant.“I think it is going to saveour calves a bit more, so Ibelieve that we made theright move by going to 4seconds with the futuritycalves.” Last year'sAmerican Heritage winner,Davis/Canter's SuperFreak, was back to com-pete in the 3-year-oldDerby. “I thought the qual-ity of the bulls was reallyhigh again this year,”shared Jerome Davis.

U-7042 Pure Smoke fin-ished a mere quarter-pointbehind the champion. TheCody Ohl/Ken & TexBrashear bull’s 83.5 wasworth over $58,000. A

quarter-point behind PureThe winners of the 2009 ABBI American Heritage Futurity were

Randal Flinn, Dillon Page, Lyndon Flinn, Eli Flinn, Eldon Flinn, and H.D. Page.

77 Jug Head, owned by D&H Cattle Co/Randal Flinn,wins the ABBI American Heritage in Ardmore.


Smoke was 46 LilMoody. The AMBucking Bulls’ athleteearned nearly $35,000for his 83.25. D&H’s 33TDouble Dip was fourthwith an 83 and splittingfifth was 715 QuickTurnaround (MontySamford/Warren Dozier)and 83T Lil' Squirt(D&H) with 82.75.

D&H dominated thenext five places: 45THigh Times (82.5); T03Itchy Kitty (81.75,owned with Jirl Buck);01T All The Above(81.25); Page 94T(81.25); and 40T WildYeller (81.25).

Cody Ohl / Ken &Tex Brashear foundthemselves in themoney again with 702White Velvet in twelfthwith an 81 for$9,686.Boyd-Floyd/Jackson's 649Get N Busy was an80.75. Splitting four-teenth was 716(Andrews Rodeo) and30T Crazy Bag (D&H CattleCo / Bagley) with 80s.

In the last six payingpositions were 710 Little White Out from Cody Ohl / ShondaTillman with 79.75; S 731 from Diamond S Bucking Bulls with a79.5; 705 Octane from Cross E Bucking Bulls also with a 79.5;

701 from Trevor Walkerwith a 79; 205 MammerJammer from Boyd-Floyd/ Nacarrato with a77.75 and, with another77.75, Page 13T fromD&H Cattle Co/ Weber.

Breeders enter theiranimals in the AmericanHeritage system andthen make payments tokeep them eligible forcompetition when theyreach 2 years of age.D&H Cattle Co. and theirpartners are big believersand supporters of theAmerican Heritage andare diligent about regis-tering their calves. Theirbelief in their animalsand the AmericanHeritage system paid off.The D&H name was on10 of the top 20 finishers,earning the Page familyover $200,000.

But some of thenames in the winner's cir-cle were unfamiliar tomany-which is a goodsign that our industrycontinues to expand and

attract new breeders.“With the big payouts atthe Heritage I think it is

getting more people interested in the ABBI and more people arekeeping up with those payments,” explained Gant. “It is great tosee new names and new faces!”

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 77 Jug Head D&H Cattle Co / Flinn 83.75 $100,7372 U-7042 Pure Smoke Ohl/Ken & Tex Brashear 83.5 $58,1183 46 Lil Moody AM Bucking Bulls LLC 83.25 $34,8714 33T Double Dip D&H Cattle Co 83 $25,184 5 715 Quick Turnaround M.Samford/W. Dozier 82.75 $20,3415 83T Lil' Squirt D&H Cattle Co 82.75 $20,3417 45T High Times D&H Cattle Co 82.5 $17,4358 T03 Itchy Kitty D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle 81.75 $15,4989 01T All The Above D&H Cattle Co 81.25 $11,9469 94T Page 94T D&H Cattle Co 81.25 $11,9469 40T Wild Yeller D&H Cattle Co 81.25 $11,94612 702 White Velvet Ohl/Ken & Tex Brashear 81 $9,68613 649 Get N Busy Boyd-Floyd/ Jackson 80.75 $8,718 14 716 716 Andrews Rodeo 80 $7,36214 30T Crazy Bag D&H Cattle Co / Bagley 80 $7,36216 710 Little White Out Ohl/Shonda Tillman 79.75 $6,19917 7R31 Diamond S 731 Diamond S Bucking Bulls 79.5 $5,52117 705 Octane Cross E Bucking Bulls 79.5 $5,52119 701 701 Trevor Walker 79 $4,843 20 205 Mammer Jammer Boyd-Floyd/ Nacarrato 77.75 $1,93720 13T Page 13T D&H Cattle Co/ Weber 77.75 $1,937

American Heritage Futurity Results

Randal Flinn is dunked with water by D&H Cattlecrew after his big win at the ABBI American

Heritage Futurity.

Photos by Allen GlanvilleStory by Susan Bedford


U-7042 Pure Smoke, owned by Ohl/Ken & Tex Brashear, was reserve champion and earned $58,118 in Ardmore.


The mighty bull from Dillon andH.D. Page and Cliff Wiggins has doneit again.

The seemingly unstoppable Classicbull racked up another win in Omahaduring the ABBI Classic/PBR BuiltFord Tough Series event held April24-25.

10-5 Crosswired earned a 91.5 fromthe judges for a payday of just over$11,000.

“He's really been coming throughfor us this year,” said H.D. of theirbull's latest win. Crosswired, thereigning ABBI Classic Champion, isproving he's just as good as a 4-year-old as he was last year when heearned over $250,000 in Las Vegas.

PBR cowboy Brian Canter wasthrilled to get on Crosswired. “He's areally, really, good bull,” said Canterof the animal that he rode to a 93-point score on in round one.

Just behind the Page protégé was

Black Pearl—the same bullthat was the OKC Classicreserve champion. 250Black Pearl, owned now bySteve and JulieRavenscroft, Brad Boyd andToby Floyd, earned a 90.25for $6,383 after bucking offBrazilian Valdiron deOliveira in just over threeseconds.

“We're real proud of

Pearl,” said Julie who was wearing herlucky Black Pearl necklace. “But I do hopewe can get a win this season soon.”

Top Notch Ranch had the third placebucker (514 Top Notch Jap with a 89.5)who bucked off Ryan McConnel, followedby Canadian breeder Todd Braithwaite's580 Double Dippin’ with an 88.75.Double Dippin dumped Reese Cates. 17Fat Lip from Circle T Ranch & Rodeo was88.5. after bucking off Zack Brown. Hewas followed a quarter-point behind by56 More Bucks, who shook of KaseyHayes before the whistle.

R36 Good Time Charley(D&H/Buck/Watts) was an 87.5 in seventh.Brendon Clark rode Charley for an 88.Boyd, Floyd, Mendell's 42 Bomb Doctorwas 87.25. Splitting ninth/tenth and thelast of the prize purse were L539 OverThe Edge (Lufkin Ranch & Rodeo) and510 Red Bone (Hebert Bucking Bulls)were 87. Bomb Doctor, Over The Edgeand Red Bone all dumped their cowboysbefore the whistle. Omaha was yet anoth-er event where the cowboys fought theClassic bulls, and the bulls won.

H.D Page and Cliff Wiggins.

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 10-5 Crosswired D&H Cattle Co./Wiggins 91.5 $11,1702 250 Black Pearl Ravenscroft / Boyd-Floyd 90.25 $6,3833 514 Top Notch Jap Top Notch Ranch 89.5 $4,7874 580 Double Dippin’ Braithwaite Ranches 88.75 $3,9895 17 Fat Lip Circle T Ranch & Rodeo 88.5 $3,3916 56 More Bucks Peterson, Mansour, Lanhams, Nelson & Teague/

The Jaynes Gang 87.75 $2,7937 R36 Good Time Charley D&H Cattle/Buck/Watts 87.5 $2,3948 42 Bomb Doctor Boyd, Floyd, Mendell 87.25 $1,9959 L539 Over The Edge Lufkin Ranch & Rodeo 87 $1,4969 510 Red Bone Hebert Bucking Bulls 87 $1,496

ABBI Classic Omaha Results

D&H Cattle/Wiggins’ 10-5 Crosswired was awesome in Las Vegas in 2008. allen glanville photo

CrosswiredCrosswired

ABBI Classic, Omaha, April 24Crosswired Electrifies Nebraskaby Susan Bedford

photos by Allen Glanville


For up-to-date Classic rankings visit americanbuckingbull.com


www.americanbuckingbull.com

ABBI Futurity, Weatherford, Texas, May 2Wet & Wild Weekend in WeatherfordStory and photos by Allen Glanville

Diamond S Bucking Bull TinTop Spring Futurity

Diamond S Bucking Bulls heldtheir second annual Futurity attheir beautiful facility locatedjust outside Weatherford, Texas.This event was marred by oneand a half inches of rain beforethe event and continued duringthe event. Everyone knows justhow tough it is to have your 2-year-old buck well under perfectconditions, but can you imaginebucking them in the mud andrain.

By halfway through the event,Dean Wilson and Riley Samford,who were handling the dum-mies, looked like a couple ofmuddy drowned rats.

Taking photos at this typeevent is quite challenging. I waswearing a slicker, my camera in arain jacket with my wife Leighholding an umbrella over us,and I’m sure that would havemade an interesting shot.Despite all the bad weather, the64 Futurity bulls actually buckedquite well and the turnout wasamazing, both owners and fans.Watching these youngsters throwing mudand water made for some interesting shots,and seeing the ring crew pulling the muddydummies out of the mud was different. Oneof the children made a mud man, similar toa small snowman, giving those in atten-dance something to laugh about.

When the mud was wiped from thejudge’s sheets, D&H Cattle Co.’s Page 33Thad outscored the field with 91 points andclaimed the check for $7,741. Despite theconditions, 33T still managed to buck andkick with authority. Anytime you have a futu-rity bull score 90 points-plus, it’s amazing.

One of 33T’s owners, H.D.Page, gave us his take on thisbull. “I was tickled he didn’thurt himself, but he did every-thing a bull could do, dry orwet conditions. 33T was siredby Mudslinger and out of aMudslinger daughter who isthe dam to Geetus. We aregoing to call 33T DoubleDip.”

With back-to-back wins thisseason, it looks like D&HCattle Co.’s Futurity bulls arestarting to dominate thisseries, something that willmake them smile and givethem bragging rights.

Second/third went to SJR364, owned byRavenscroft/Boyd- Floyd and262 Three Mile Smile, ownedby Boyd-Floyd Bull Co., eachwith 89.25. Cody Ohl/ShondaTillman’s bull 710 Little WhiteOut placed fourth andAnderson & Crawford’s 330Hou Done It, along with D&H

Cattle Co./Flinn’s 77 Jug Headtied for fifth.

This event, along with theBBQ dinner Friday night, sure made for agreat weekend. David and Amie Simpsonlived up to their promise of making theirevent one enjoyable weekend. David alsosaid he was making plans to cover his arena,assuring everyone a muddy event will nothappen again.

H.D.Page and Randal Flinn were rainsoaked afterPage 33T won the ABBI Futurity in Weatherford.

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 33T Page 33T D&H Cattle Co. 91 $7,7412 364 SJR 364 Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 89.25 $3,7242 262 Three Mile Smile Boyd Floyd Bull Co. 89.25 $3,7244 710 Little White Out Cody Ohl/Shonda Tillman 86.50 $2,3375 330 Hou Done It Anderson & Crawford 85.25 $1,7165 77 Jug Head D&H Cattle Co./Flinn 85.25 $1,7167 7215 Diamond S 7215 Diamond S Bucking Bulls 84.75 $1,4618 65T Page 65T D&H Cattle Co. 84.50 $1,1689 7052 Diamond S 7052 Diamond S Bucking Bulls 83.75 $1,02210 2313A I'm Your Huckaberry Tim Baker/Jaynes Gang 82 $818 10 722 Dark Mood Accomazzo & Crowther 82 $81812 71 Diamond S 71 Diamond S Bucking Bulls 78.75 $70113 C255 Everclear Oakes and Greene 78 $613 13 380 SJR 380 Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 78 $61315 58T Page 58T D&H Cattle Co. 77.75 $51815/16 TD2 Page TD2 D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle 77.75 $518

ABBI Futurity Weatherford Results

Splish, splash—Page 33T takes a bath—and comes out with a clean $7,741.

Page33TPage33T



The PBR's Built Ford Tough Series eventin Pueblo, Colo, was held during the week-long Wild Wild West Fest. The ABBIClassic was part of that Built Ford ToughSeries event, which wowed a packedcrowd at the Colorado State Fair EventsCenter—as well as VERSUS televisionviewers at home.

Perhaps the only serious bucking bullfan not watching the action was JulieRavenscroft.

“And as luck would have it, Black Pearlwins! The one time I'm not there!” lamented the breeder fromher hotel room while on vacation in the Bahamas. But Julie'shusband Steve, along with Brad Boyd and Toby Floyd, wereall on hand to see their bull take his first win of the season.

Julie's disappointment about missing Black Pearl's perform-ance was offset by her elation at their victory, and she relishedthe texts and phone calls that poured in from friends and fam-ily to give her a play-by-play of the action. “I even recordedhim bucking for Julie,” said LeAnn Hart, “but then I couldn'tget the video to send from my phone!” Juliewill, however, get to re-live the momentBlack Pearl bucked off Chris Shivers for ascore of 91.75 indefinitely, thanks to TiVo.

Each year Julie and Steve Ravenscroftpicks a theme to name their bulls. BlackPearl—named after the ship in the Pirates ofthe Caribbean movies- was part of their"pirate theme" calf crop.

The win put Black Pearl second overall inthe Classic standings after 10-5 Crosswired.Black Pearl has over $24,000 in season earn-ings, while Crosswired is just under $38,000.Crosswired finished the 2008 Classic seasonin the No. 1 spot, followed by Black Pearlwho won $100,000 in Las Vegas.

In second place in Pueblo was 56 MoreBucks who has been doing a great job forThe Jaynes Gang/Peterson, Mansour, Langhans, Nelson &

Julie Ravenscroft

PBR Built Ford Tough Classic, Pueblo, Colo., May 16Black Pearl takes the Treasure in Puebloby Susan Bedford



RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 250 Black Pearl Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 91.75 $10,8752 56 More Bucks The Jaynes Gang/Peterson, Mansour, Langhans,

Nelson & Teague 90.25 $6,214 3 510 Stinger Hebert Bucking Bulls 90 $4,6614 10-5 Crosswired D&H Cattle Co/Wiggins 89.25 $3,5924 52 Neon Ghost Jeff Robinson/Bryan Smith 89.25 $3,5926 503 I'll Make Ya Famous K. Branum & G. Baker 89 $1,9816 522 Legacy Bryan Smith 89 $1,9816 R16 Check Out D&H Cattle Co/Buck 89 $1,9816 L539 Over The Edge Lufkin Ranch & Rodeo 89 $1,9816 4 Top Notch Jap Top Notch Ranch 89 $1,981

ABBI Pueblo Classic Results

BlackPearlBlackPearl


Elgin Veterinary HospitalGary D. Warner, DVM

600 Highway 290E, Elgin, TX512-285-3375

[email protected]

Special interest in bucking stock. We have available digital radiography, ultrasonography,

arthroscopy, hydraulic chutes and tables, and hospital

facilities with special bucking bull pens.

We are located 20 miles east of Austin, Texas.

Teague this season. He earned a 90.25 and Cody Campbell rode him for a90.25 to win the round.

510 Stinger, who bucked off Renato Nunes, earned third with a 90 forHebert Bucking Bulls. Splitting fourth was the bull we've been accustomed toseeing in the No. 1 position at Classic events this year, Crosswired, from D&H/Wiggins. He shared an 89.25 with 52 Neon Ghost from Jeff Robinson/BryanSmith. Kody Lostroh made it to the whistle on Neon Ghost for an 89.25;Crosswired made quick work of Brian Herman.

The last five positions were all split by the bulls that earned an 89; 503 I'llMake Ya Famous (Kooper Branum & Gene Baker), 522 Legacy ( B r y a nSmith), R16 Check Out ( D&H Cattle Co / Buck), L539 Over The Edge (LufkinRanch & Rodeo) and 514 Top Notch Jap (Top Notch Ranch).

As evident after needing an 89 to be in the money in Colorado, the caliberof Classic bulls this season has been extremely high. This makes the remainingevents of the season all that more exciting to watch as we see who will makeit to the Finals and, once there—who will be able to capture the crown.





http://www.reaganbuckingbulls.com/

http://www.wwmanufacturing.com/

ABBI Classic, PBR DIscovery Series, Stephenville, Texas, May 16Ground Zero Scores 90.25 in Second WinStory and photos by Allen Glanville

Having too few events tobuck their 3 and 4-year-oldbulls would put a hardship oncontractors getting their ani-mals ready for Vegas and theABBI Finals.

So, the 4C’s Ranch held anABBI Classic in Stephenvillewith 32 bulls entering. Thisevent marked the return forthe Carrillo family to ABBIClassic competition. With theeconomy suffering and manyClassic events canceling dueto loss of sponsorship, 4C’sgot together with the ABBIand worked out a plan to helpall involved.

The events are to be PBRDiscovery level ABBI events,where only bulls who have notwon money could compete,unless there were not enoughbulls entered, giving bulls achance to make a name forthemselves and help theirowners with their programs.“We want these events to ben-efit all involved, 4C’s, the ABBIand the owners of thesebulls,” claimed Gilbert Carrillo,“along with the fans who lovebull riding. We have made aSummer Series out of theseevents with points from each event going tothe series championship. We love this sportand really are looking forward to having

these events.” 911 Ground Zero, owned by Ace of

Spades/Moody-Rice/Lonestar, was the topscoring bull for this event with 90.25 points

earning them a check for$3,365.

Coming off his big win atthe Spring Spectacular,Ground Zero is really start-ing to make a move in theclassic standings.

Scott Accomazzo, one of911’s owner’s remarked,“First I want to give God allthe praise for this win and tothank all our partners. He isjust one great bull. He wasthe first bull ever born at theAce of Spades Ranch andhe has turned out to be onespecial bucking bull.”

Ground Zero was sired byHoudini and out of Flying SRanch’s cow MS0 (MSO isnow owned by Moody-Rice), the same breeding asNightlife and Wildlife. Withfull brothers like that, he justhas to buck.

Second went to Page 22Sowned by D&H Cattle Co.with 89.5; third was LyndalHurst’s 527 Big Mike at 89.0;fourth went to H&D BuckingBulls 507 Chick’ N Friedwith 87.75; and fifth wasBraithwaite Ranches 580Double Dippin’ at 87.25.

This event should be the stepping stonefor many ABBI Classics due to 4C’sRanchmaking a Summer Series for them.

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 A911 Ground Zero Ace of Spades/

Moody-Rice/Lonestar 90.25 $3,3652 22 Page 22S D&H Cattle Co 89.5 $1,9233 527 Big Mike Lyndal Hurst 89 $1,442 4 507 Chick'N Fried H & D Bucking Bulls 87.75 $1,2025 580 Double Dippin Braithwaite Ranches 87.25 $1,0226 4126 Pro Bull Max Bootheel Ranch/Mannsville 87 $ 8417 610 Ice T.&D. Rafter HB Cattle Co. 86.75 $ 7218 5203 Unicorn Lyndal Hurst/Bubba Terrell 86.5 $ 6019 510 Tax Man Diamond O Bulls 86.25 $ 48110 655 Futrell 655 D&H Cattle Co./Futrell 86 $ 21010 6214 Comanche Moon 4C's/Barker 86 $ 210

ABBI Classic Stephenville Results

911 Ground Zero, owned by Ace of Spades/Moody-Rice/Lonestar, wins the ABBI Classic in Stephenville. Rider is L.J. Jenkins in Decatur.

GroundZero

GroundZero

Scott AccomazzoFor up-to-date Classic rankings visit americanbuckingbull.com




ABBI Futurity, Stephenville, Texas, May 16Back at the Ranch...Story and photos by Allen Glanville

4C’s Summer Series ABBIfuturity was held at the 4C’sRanch Arena located inStephenville, Texas. Gilbertand Julie Carrillo decided aftertalking with the ABBI and com-ing up with new ideas thatthey would work out a series ofevents for the 2009 season.

“We sat down with the ABBIand went over all their newideas,” said Gilbert, “andfound we could put on someevents. The economy is toughright now and events are get-ting harder to put on. Wewanted to have events for thecontractors and be able tokeep our facility going and theresponse has been amazing.We plan on having lots of newideas in the future, and ourgoal is for this to be beneficialto all involved.”

This ABBI Futurity was thefirst event held at the Carrillo’sfacility in a couple of years butit didn’t take long for the wordto get out and the contractorsto return.

The first futurity didn’t havea large turnout, but the bullsthat did compete brought theirA game and impressed all whoattended. This type of event’s payout isdetermined by the number of entrees, andby season’s end the numbers will increase.

Cody Ohl/Shonda Tillman’s 710 Little

White Out outscored the field with animpressive 87.75 points and picked up acheck for $3,754.

Scott Accomazzo brought the bull for theowners and had this to say: “I was proud

just to hang a flank on thisgreat bull and he is sureshowing some great prom-ise. I think with this win, 710is probably leading thepoints for the year. He isgood every time we buckhim.”

Cody Ohl added, “It suremakes it fun when you havea bull as good as 710, hehas almost the same tripevery time. I have a greatpartner, Shonda Tillman,and I want to thank BobbyStallings for letting mebreed to his bull WhiteOut.”

701 was sired by WhiteOut, a Strawberry Wine sonand out of cow Good andBald, Wall’s breeding.

Second place went to 705Shakey Waters owned byShow Sports Bucking Bullswith 86.25; third was CircleT Ranch & Rodeo’s 723 with84.75; fourth was Anderson& Crawford’s 330 Hou DoneIt with 83.25; and fifth wasCircle T’s 701 with 82.75.

The Carrillos have a greatfacility and the success ofthis Summer Series will be

one many will attend. They have also addeda new Neckover Trailer to be awarded tothe high point bull for this series.

Cody Ohl

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT

1 710 Little White Out Cody Ohl/S.Tillman 87.75 $3,754 2 705 Shakey Waters Show Sports 86.25 $2,616 3 723 Circle T 723 Circle T Ranch & Rodeo 84.75 $1,820 4 24 Hou Done It Anderson & Crawford 83.25 $1,251 5 739 Bongo Show Sports Bucking Bulls 82.75 $1,024 6 701 Circle T 701 Circle T Ranch & Rodeo 82.50 $ 910

ABBI Futurity Stephenville Results

Stephenville winner, Cody Ohl/Shonda Tillman’s 710 Little White Out, performs in Ardmore.

LittleWhiteOut

LittleWhiteOut



ABBI Classic, Decatur, Texas, May 23It’s Showtime for More Bucks & Down TimeStory and photo by Allen Glanville

(56) is really coming on strong as a 4-year-old, and we have highhopes for him in Vegas. He has been tremendous the last few weeks,beating some tough bulls.

H.D. Page added, “I just knew 572 was going to be good but wenever can get a rider to warm him up. Tonight the rider made the cor-ner on him and showed what he could do. My partner on 572, JimAnderson, asked me why I was dragging him to the event. He wasnot sure he was going to do anything. I text-messaged him and toldhim he won the event, and he sure is tickled about his bull beingentered.”

572 is sired by Houdini and out of a Bodacious daughter. Thirdwent to 10-5 Crosswired, owned by D&H Cattle Co./Cliff Wigginswith 90.25, third was 250 Black Pearl, owned by Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd with 89.75 these two bulls have been dominating the compe-tition all season and continued to rack up points. Fifth/six were bulls-8 Bring It, owned by Chumley-Long Cattle Co. and 63 Mad Maxowned by Martinez Bucking Bulls, each with 89.50.

This event was produced by ABBI’s own Curt Blake (ABBI EventDirector) who did an excellent job of keeping the chutes loaded andrunning a smooth event. It’s not often fans get to watch CodyLambert roping in the arena along with James DeBord, and both gota workout that will leave the fans looking forward to next year’s event.

The sixth annual Wise County Challenger Charities J.W. HartChallenge was held at the Wise County Sheriff’s Posse grounds inDecatur, Texas. This was their fourth straight ABBI Classic event andpromoters Wendell Berry Jr., Roy Young, Calvin Jackson and AndrewRottner once again did their best to put on a first-class event. Thisventure has been voted the PBR’s best event for minor league bullriding three times. This group donates the profit to local charitieswith the United Way being their prime target with over $200,000donated over the five previous years.

Wendell Berry remarked, “We were really surprised by the spon-sorships this year. Believe it or not, they were up, and our communi-ty really backs us with this bull riding.” The fans pouring into thearena with standing room only made that pretty clear.

This year’s event also featured Hart on his last bull before retiringand he chose a bull he raised, Cat Man Do for his exhibition ride.Hart lasted only a few seconds before hitting the terra firma. Thisevent was also a homecoming for the Hart family, because joiningJ.W. were his brother Cody and brother-in-law Cody Byars, alongwith third-generation bull rider and nephew Clancy Hart (Cody Hart’sson) who rode in the miniature bull riding at halftime. Clancy sureshowed the Hart try on his little bull.

Forty-five bulls competed in this Classic and they were truly test-ed by the riders. Hardly a contractor could say his bull didn’t getshown. Many newcomers were listed in the draw but they broughttheir rope with intentions of winning. Scotty Knap of Albuquerque,N.M. was just this type rider, riding Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd’s 259Parrothead for 86.5, and backing it up in the short go with 89 points.Knap had just bought his PBR card a few weeks earlier.

Co-champions for this event were The Jaynes Gang / Peterson /Mansour / Langhans / Nelson & Teague’s 56 More Bucks, fresh offhis second place finish in Pueblo the week before, and D&H CattleCo/Jim Anderson’s 572 Down Time, with 90.5. Each bull performedwith plenty of kick, buck and excitement to win their first event andpick up a check for $7,422 along with the bragging rights for a cou-

ple of weeks. Tom Peterson,

one of MoreBuck’s owners,said, “I think he

DownTimeDownTime

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 23 More Bucks Jaynes Gang/Peterson, Mansour,

Langhans, Nelson & Teague 90.5 $7,4221 37 Down Time D&H Cattle Co / Anderson 90.5 $7,4223 29 Crosswired D&H Cattle Co / Wiggins 90.25 $4,0484 38 Black Pearl Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 89.75 $3,3745 15 Bring It Chumley-Long Cattle Co. 89.5 $2,6145 17 Mad Max Martinez Bucking Bulls 89.5 $2,614 7 4 Top Notch Jap Top Notch Ranch 88.25 $1,8557 16 Red Bone Hebert Bucking Bulls 88.25 $1,8559 14 Red Dirt Road Diamond S Bucking Bulls 87.75 $1,34910 6 Unicorn Lyndal Hurst / Bubba Terrell 87 $ 59010 35 Ace In The Hole Boyd-Floyd/Oules/Winfield 87 $ 590

ABBI Decatur Classic Results


MoreBucksMoreBucks





http://www.buckingdummy.com

As the season draws closer to its finale, expect the caliber of bullsat Classic events to remain as high as ever.

Steve, Julie, Toby and Brad Boyd all have their eyes on LasVegas. “We entered him into a Wild Card last year which he won,and then he got second in Las Vegas (at the 2008 ABBI ClassicFinals),” said Floyd. Floyd likes Black Pearl’s chances at the 2009ABBI Classic Finals, but keeps things in perspective.

“After the last event, he’s the favorite for Las Vegas—but what-ever bull wins the next event will be the new favorite!” Floyd chuck-led. He also shared that Black Pearl will probably be bucked at allClassic events within 100 miles of his home of Stephenville, Texas.

Black Pearl, owned by Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd, is at it again,racking up another win as he heads toward Las Vegas. It only tookthe Pueblo Champion three weeks to find another treasure. Thistime it was $12,270 in Elk City at the Justin McBride PBR Challenge.

Black Pearl is a Houdini son out a Whitewater cow from theRavenscroft breeding program. “We raised him and he is from theNebraska Sandhills,” reported Julie Ravenscroft. “Justin McBridewas raised just east of Hyannis (where the Ravenscroft ranch is), sowhen I saw Justin after the event, I told him I thought it was prettycool that the Sandhills bull won the Sandhills cowboy’s event!”

“In Elk City, he was good and we bucked him two nights back-to-back,” stated Toby Floyd. “I think he wasn’t quite as strong as inPueblo, but he was consistent and the judges liked him and scoredhim well.”

“He came back and scored higher in the second night than thefirst night,” addedSteve Ravenscroft,“and we were reallyhappy with that.”Black Pearl was 90.75on Friday and 91.75on Saturday.

“More Bucks wasawesome and the bullto beat after the firstround and hedeserved to win thefirst round,” statedSteve emphatically.“HeeBee GeeBeewas real good in the

second round and BlackPearl was solid and the judges gave us the benefit of a doubt in thesecond round. I guess this proves the bull’s durability and this wasthe first time he’d been bucked two times in a row. We didn’t knowif he could handle it, but I guess he can.”

The Jaynes Gang/Nelson, Teague, Peterson, Mansour &Langhans 56 More Bucks was 91.25 in round one and 90.25 inround two, finishing one point behind Black Pearl. “Bennie Beutlerput on a great event,” said Julie, “and there so many great Classicbulls there. It really was an honor to win.”

563 HeeBee GeeBee was an 86.75 and a91.25 for 178 total; Jeff Robinson/BryanSmith’s 52 Neon Ghost was fourth with a total175.5. Rounding out the top five was 126Huckleberry from HX2/Junk Bull with 175.25.

Hebert’s 510 Red Bone was 175; followedby a seventh split between 262 GringoHoneymoon from Jerry Nelson and 572Down Time from D& H/Anderson. Both bullswere 174.75. Ninth was a bull we’ve becomeaccustomed to seeing in the Top 10, 514Top Notch Jap from Top Notch Ranch with a174.5. Rounding out the money was -8 BringIt from Chumley-Long Cattle Co. with174.25.

BlackPearlBlackPearl

RANK ID BULL OWNER SCORE PAYOUT1 250 Black Pearl Ravenscroft / Boyd-Floyd 182.5 $12,2702 56 More Bucks The Jaynes Gang / Nelson, Teague, Peterson,

Mansour & Langhans 181.5 $7,0113 563 HeeBee GeeBee Boyd-Floyd Bull Co./XS 178 $5,2584 52 Neon Ghost Jeff Robinson/Bryan Smith175.75 $4,3825 126 Huckleberry HX2/Junk Bull 175.25 $3,7256 510 Red Bone Hebert Bucking Bulls 175 $3,0677 262 Gringo Honeymoon Jerry Nelson 174.75 $2,4107 572 Down Time D&H Cattle Co/Anderson 174.75 $2,4109 514 Top Notch Jap Top Notch Ranch 174.5 $1,75310 -8 Bring It Chumley-Long Cattle Co. 174.25 $1,533

ABBI Elk City Classic Results


Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd‘s Black Pearl bucks off Ryan Dirteater at theABBI Oklahoma City Classic in February.

Toby Floyd


ABBI Classic, Elk City, Okla., June 5-6Black Pearl Sails Againby Susan Bedford






http://www.cattleaccattleequip.com/



Mandan Does It Again In Worcester

Worcester, Mass., May 4The Worchester PBR Bull Team Challenge

was short on quantity but big on quality.Only two bull teams made the trek to theevent outside of Boston, but both made themost of the opportunity for the competitionheld during the Built Ford Tough Seriesevent. The seemingly unstoppable MandanMafia led by Chad Berger beat out the JeffRobinson helmed Mac-Nett Industries.Berger's team earned 137.50; Robinson'steam was 135.25. These were two of thehigher team scores of the season, thanks totwo deep pens of heavy hitters.

Code Blue was once again the high-scor-er for the Mafia with 46.5. Teammate Big Texcontributed a 46 and All In added a 45.

2 0 0 7PBR WorldChampion BuckingBull Chicken on aChain brought a big46.25 to the table forMac-Nett. BoogerButt was 44.75, whileVoodoo Child was44.25.

With another victoryunder his belt, it isstarting to look likeBerger's bull teammay be the front-runner come LasVegas. His Mandan Mafiateam is sitting securely atopthe event average rankingswith 137.625, proof that

after four events Bergercan be confident he's puttogether a consistent andhigh-scoring pen.

However, the slate getswiped clean on October 30

and there are any number ofteams who could earn this year's

Challenge crown—especiallywith such a wide field of rankbuckers participating this sea-son.

The 2009 season has just three moreteam competitions before Las Vegasby Susan Bedford

Renato Nunes ridesRobinson/Tedesco/Larry the Cable Guy’sChicken On A Chain in 2008. Chicken is a

member of the Mac-Nett Bull Team.watson photo


http://www.blattnerlivestock.com/

One of the best programs in place in the ABBI is also one ofthe least understood. Which is a shame, since it has thepotential to make a lot of people a lot of dough.

“We made around $60,000 oneyear in incentives from the program,”apprised Dillon Page. “One year wewere transferring some of the officeduties around and somehow misseddoing it, and it cost us probablybetween $30,000 and $40,000. Thisprogram has great, great potential—but more people need to getinvolved.”

The American Breeder’s Trust is aprogram put in place to benefit breed-ers. Whether owned by the same ordifferent breeders, both the sire andthe Futurity bull can receive incen-tives—if they are registered.

Beyond Futurity bulls, winningClassic bulls also get bonuses for beinga part of the program come Las Vegas."The 2, 3 and 4-year-old years arewhen breeders can make the mostmoney off of their bulls. This isa way to make even moremoney,” affirmed ScottPickens.

“What people didn'tunderstand when we startedthe program was that theyneed to register both the sireand the calf,” explained Page.“You need to pay the sirewhen you breed him and thenthe calves when you weanthem. But people seem to for-got to pay up the calves.”

The American Breeder'sTrust pays out incentives towinning Futurity bulls and theregistered sires of those bulls. In a nutshell, registering your herd sirescan earn you money as their Futurity offspring enjoy success in theABBI. And that success doesn't mean the bull has to have a first-place finish—incentives are paid based on the order of how the bullsfinish who are part of the American Breeder's Trust program.

“We pay a few calves every year and have paid some of our siresin. It is a great deal, but more people need to do it!” urged SteveRavenscroft. Ravenscroft's 2006 calf Hippy Music earned $2,268 in2008 at the ABBI World Finals, and his sire, Houdini, earned GeneBaker $5,750.

“It is a good thing, but we need to get more people involved,”added Page. “I'm not sure how we reach people and make them

understand it better, but it is a great deal.” As more breeders get themessage and get involved, the bigger the incentive awards grow.More bulls equals more bucks for everyone involved.

2005 calf Mission Accomplishedearned Diamond S $15,716. His sire,Mission Pack, earned Trevor Walker$6,125.

“It is designed to increase the value ofyour calves,” explained Pickens."TrevorWalker is a good example. His 2-year-oldsare paid up in the incentive program andso when he sells them, that makes themworth more.In theory if you have two bullsof equal ability, the one that is paid upshould be worth more money because hisearning potential is higher. In theory, everybull calf that hits the ground should beregistered that yearling year because itmakes them more valuable.”

Breeders have two options for regis-tering their sires into the program. Theycan register them the breeding year forthe following year's calf crop for $250, orfor $1,000 for a lifetime nomination (good

for all future year's calf cropssired by that bull). Those are themost economical options, butyou can also register a bull for$750 prior to March 1 of the calfcrop year, or after March 1 for$2,500 for those calves to be eli-gible.

The system for registeringcalves is similar. It costs $250 toregister one by Dec. 31 of theirbirth year or the payment canbe broken up into two pay-ments of $150 (due by Dec.31of birth year and Dec. 31 thefollowing year). If you miss thefirst deadline, then it is an extra

$1,000 to be eligible. After Dec. 31 of the following year it is $2,500.Simply put, get involved and make the deadlines to invest in

your animals. The fees are reasonable considering the potential pay-off.

“Since the ABBI took over, we've only had this program in placefor five years," stated Pickens. "You can't be the Kentucky Derby infive years! But look at what similar programs have done for the horseindustry and you can see the potential. People need to look at thebig picture and get involved.”

“If you believe in your sires and your breeding program, thennominate your calves,” said Ravenscroft. “It really is that simple.”

ABBI’sBreeders Trust

Dillon Page Scott Pickens

2005 calf 569 Mission Accomplished earned Diamond S$15,716 in 2007, shown here at the American heritage

Futurity that year.



FUTURITY FOCUS

by Sugar KuhnPhotos by Allen Glanville

We’ve climbed over four events on Futurity Hill and can see the WorldFinals at the bottom of the other side. Even though we still have fourmore events to go, let’s take a look at where we’ve been so far and howthe competition has measured up.

What a "Spectacular" way to get started!We kicked off the season on April 3 at The Bradberry’s Best Spring

Spectacular inStephenville andit was indeedSpectacular! In asnappy five-and-a-half hours,managementgot all 175entriesbucked.

Near thetop of theorder, Page65T, a 36Backlashson out ofa WesternWishesdaughter,splasheda 86.75pointmarkingon theboard

for D&H.The battlefor firstgot busy

when Boyd-Floyd’s black horned bull 649 Getin’ Busymatched the marking.

These two bulls shared the event win and bothbagged a little over $15,000. Jarrett Callahan’s bull 50-4Moses parted the waters with an 86.5 effort which wasgood enough for third and $6,649.

Things got a bit slippery in a tie for fourth. 710Black Ice from 4C’s & Barker and 710 Little White Outfrom Cody Ohl and Shonda Tillman matched eachother’s efforts by sliding 82.75 point markings ontothe judges’ sheets. Each nabbed a slick $4,433. D&HCattle Co. & Flinn’s Wrangler Renegade son, 77 JugHead, popped into sixth after posting an 82 andbeing paid $3,694. Moody Blues son, 46 Lil’Moody entered by AM Bucking Bulls snatched sev-enth place and $3,324 for his 81.5 point effort;and Andrews Rodeo bull 716, a red FenderBender son, smashed into the pay window andeighth place with an 81.25 out. 716 squealedaway from the scene with nearly $3,000.

Roundingout the top10 at theSpringSpectacularwere Circle Tbull 723 inninth with an 81and 705 Octanefrom Craig, Heathand Ryan Ellis with an80. Other bulls in the top 20 were Guidry-Hurst bull 254;Geronimo for Lufkin Ranch & Rodeo; Blender from Bridges &Smith and Ken Elliott; Little Casino from Loagan Helton;Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd bull SJR 380; Walker Bucking Stock’s767; 2 Buck Chuck from John & Karen Sirridge;, I’m YourHuckaberry from Tim Baker and The Jaynes Gang; SmootheRide from the Torres Bros.; Boyd-Floyd’s LIT; and WalkerBucking Stock’s 764.

Mining "Diamonds" in Weatherford

One month after the season opener, breeders were polishing"dia-monds" ofthe buck-ing sort. OnMay 2, TheDiamond SBucking BullSpringFuturity gotunderway withsome veryshiny competi-tion. D&Hdipped into thetop slot withtheir double-bredMudslinger bull33T, properlynamed DoubleDip. He posted adapper 91 pointscore which paidthe red horned bull’s


Half–Way Haven

D&H Cattle Co.’s Page 65T tied for the win at theABBI Spring Spectacular

in Stephenville.

Boyd-Floyd Bull Co.’s 649 Getin’ Busy shared the $30,000

purse in Stephenville.

D&H Cattle Co.’s 33T Double Dip posted91 points in Weatherford.


owners $7,740. Boyd-Floyd Bull Co. split sec-ond and third, once with partners Steve andJulie Ravenscroft and their 196 Tightrope son,SJR 364, and again with their white and brownspotted bull 262 Three Mile Smile, a Boding son.The split paid $3,724 for each slot which yieldedmore than toothy grins.

Cody Ohl and Shonda Tillman were back at the"diamond cutter" with another fourth place finish,except they weren’t sharing this time. 710 LittleWhite Out put up 86.5 points for a sparkling $2,336payday. The effort presented a 1.75 point cushion

ahead oftwo bullsthatshared thefifth andsixth placefinish. 330Hou Done ItfromAnderson &Crawford,"Hou" didn’tquestion their$1,716 portionof the tie withD&H and Flinn’sever presentbucking dynamo,77 Jug Head.

FinallyDiamond S cut intothe seventh holewith a bull by 52

Houdlum and out of aL918 Downdraftdaughter. Diamond S

7215 pulled a $1,460 check for his 84.75 point labor. Making hissecond splash of the season was D&H’s 65T Back Ordered, mark-ing an 84.5 and netting $1,168, but not before being sandwichedby another Diamond S gem. 7052, out of a Lil’ Wasp daughter andby 7-57 Gold Coast Deputy Sheriff, landed in ninth with 83.75points for a little over a $1,000.

The bottom of the diamond mine was stacked like cord wood.2313A I’m Your Huckaberry from Tim Baker and The Jaynes Gang,and 722 Dark Mood from Scott Accomazzo and Jimmy Crowthers,each posted an 82 to evenly straddle the tenth and eleventh position,while Diamond S 71, a Gigolo son out of a Bo’Nanza daughter,sparkled into twelfth. C255 Everclear from Oakes and Greene and SJR380 from Ravenscroft’s and Boyd-Floyd stacked into a 13th and 14thsplit, and two D&H bulls both out of Hotel California daughters jock-eyed into a 15th place tie: 58T, by Crazy Train and TD2 by SportsMachine.

Bring it on Back!The third event on the ABBI Futurity schedule on May 16 landed us

right back where we started, in Stephenville. This time the action wasbrewing at the 4C’s Arena. The event paid money to six places with theevent winner pocketing $3,753; second $2,616; third $1,820; fourth$1,251; fifth $1,023 and sixth a respectable $910.

Right "out" inthe lead was a veryfamiliar face, 710Little White Outwho blinded thecompetition forCody Ohl andShonda Tillman,blowing 87.75points onto theboard. 705ShakeyWaters, a C31Blues Manson, markeda 86.25 forShow SportsBuckingBulls. CircleT 723 wasback put-ting up84.75, andthe brownbull 330Hou Done It from Anderson & Crawford shuffled out an 83.25which took fourth.

Show Sports Bucking Bulls and Circle T were double fistin’ itat the pay window; Show Sports’ 739 Bongo bounced into fifthwith an 82.75; and Circle T’s 701 came around in sixth with an82.5.

Other top 15 bulls earning points were: WS 897 fromWatson & Sons; 755 Traveling Jones from Shawn & AllisonDavis; 733 E.T. also from Show Sports Bucking Bulls; Page35T from D&H; 719 Shot of Bo from Rafter HB Cattle; Page52T from Jay Hudgins; 702 Slimdini Star fromCarpenter/Hudgins/Treichel; 700 Firestorm from 4C’s/Hayes;

Cody Ohl and Shonda Tillman’s 710 Little White Out scored 87.75

at the 4C’’s Arena

Steve and Julie Ravenscroft’s 196Tightrope son SJR 364 tied for

second in Weatherford

Ardmore winner D&H Cattle/Flinn‘s77 Jug Head performed in Stephenville.



RK 725 Sancho from Richard Treichel; andJA715 from D&H and Jason Aduddell.

Off to Ardmore!Next stop Okla. It’s one of the seasons most

prestigious—the American Heritage Futurity in

Ardmore. Not only is it the largest regular season payout, but it’sarguably the most competitive. This is the place to be if you wantto see which young buckers and skilled breeders or trainers arepacking heat.

Of course, everyone knows D&H Cattle Co. is serious aboutbuilding and entering big-time buckers, but nothing was more evi-dent of that than this year’s American Heritage results. Out of 148aspiring 2-year-olds entered, D&H handled nine of the top15 moneywinners. No stranger to fetchin’ futurity greenbacks was event cham-pion, 77 Jug Head. The black bull kicked out 83.75 points, taking thetitle and collecting the largest payout to date in the amount of$100,737 for co-owners D&H and Flinn. This Wrangler Renegade sonfinds himself sitting second in the year-end points race with over$106,000 earned as of press time mid-June.

Also doing a lot of frequent flying to the bank this year is six-timeWorld Champion Rodeo Cowboy, Cody Ohl. Ohl, along with partnersKen and Tex Brashear, watched their 54 Up In Smoke son, U-7042Pure Smoke, narrowly miss the big win by a quarter-point. The 83.5was good enough for a second place finish, over $58,000 and a boostinto a comfortable spot in the overall point standings. Moody Bluesson, 46 Lil’ Moody, picked no better place to run with the big dogs.This gray and gritty 2-year-old stuck 83.25 points up and pulled$34,870 out of the pot for owners A M Bucking Bulls LLC, while hold-ing his own in third. Lil’ Moody stands firmly in the fifth overall stand-ings after this successful out.

D&H’s double-dipping 33T narrowly landed in fourth with an 83

and tugged another $25,000 into the every growing D&H pile. Of course,83T Lil’ Squirt pulled his weight for the Pages, getting into a water fight forfifth with Monty Samford and Warren Dozier’s 715 Quick Turnaround. Thesetwo bulls both posted 82.75 marks and their owners each sopped up over$20,000.

“Don’t quit now” must have been the Page mantra at the treasurechest. The multiple PBR Contractor of Year winner head-to-tailed ‘em

down through ninth place starting with 45T High Times, a Hustlerover Kish cross, who started the string by winning $17,435; fol-lowed by T03 Itchy Kitty who clawed his way to eighth for D&Hand co-owner Buck Cattle Co., scratching up over $15,000. Thehits kept coming from D&H in a three-way tie for ninth from buckyyoung-guns 01T All the Above, 94T and 40 T Wild Yeller who eachpulled in another $11,946.

World Champ Cody Ohl and partners Ken & Tex Brashear wereback for $9,686 from a white-hot out from 702 White Velvet whoput up an 81 and placed one notch ahead of Boyd-Floyd’s 649Getin’ Busy’s 80.75. White Velvet smoothly sits in the top 21 over-all at this point in the competition while Getin’ Busy holds a moresolid sixth.

716, the Fender Bender son from Andrews Rodeo refused tobe shut out and threw up 80 points to tie 30T Crazy Bag fromD&H/Bagley for 14th and $7,361.

The 2009 Futurity field is broad and hefty. The talent and deepgenetics of today’s buckers, coupled with hard work and knowl-edgeable handlers, is bringing us an un-matched show this sea-son. Young buckers pulling checks and reaching the top tiers ofthe result board are only a glimpse of the talent. Some othersteady contenders that were not mentioned in this feature buthave been steady throughout the season’s events, and amongthe top 20 in the overall standings include: 84F Studly fromJohn Vinchot/The Jaynes Gang; Walker’s 701; Top Browniefrom Tom Peterson & The Jaynes Gang; Twist N Shout fromShippy Rodeo Bulls & Lesko Livestock; Jaguar from Two PairBucking Bulls & The Jaynes Gang; and Shake the Bank fromShippy Rodeo Bulls and Don Brown.


FUTURITY FOCUS

Ohl and Brashear’s 54 Up In Smoke son, U-7042 PureSmoke, missed the win in Ardmore by a quarter-point.

Third-place AM Bucking Bulls’ 46 Lil’ Moody scored 83.25 points and pulled $34,870

out of the pot in Ardmore.


FUTURITY FOCUS

2009 Futurity StandingsAs of June 11

ID BULL OWNER PTS1 W710 Little White Out Cody Ohl/Shonda Tillman 3862 77 Jug Head D&H Cattle Co./Flinn 3743 364 SJR 364 Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 3264 380 SJR 380 Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 3255 46 Lil' Moody AM Bucking Bulls LLC 3136 649 Get N Busy Boyd-Floyd/Jackson 3087 716 716 Andrews Rodeo 3008 705 Octane Cross E Bucking Bulls 2959 65T Back Ordered D&H Cattle CO 28610 767 767 Walker Bucking Stock Breeders 27711 87T Smoothe Ride Torres Bro's Bucking Bulls LLC 27512 84F Studly John Vinchot/The Jaynes Gang 27313 714 Little Casino Loagan Helton 25714 S729 Twist N Shout Shippy Rodeo Bulls/Lesko Livestock 25615 771 Top Brownie Tom Peterson / The Jaynes Gang 25216 701 701 Walker Bucking Stock Breeders 24417 373 Jaguar Two Pair Bucking Bulls/Jaynes Gang 24018 254 254 Guidry - Hurst 23719 U-7042 Pure Smoke Cody Ohl, Ken & Tex Bershear 23520 S732 Shake The Bank Shippy Rodeo Bulls/Don Brown 23021 702 White Velvet Cody Ohl/Ken & Tex Brashear 22922 1487 Tribulation Kenny Jack/Rick Taylor 21923 2313A I'm Your HuckaBerry Tim & Cheryl Baker/Jaynes Gang 21523 782 Oreo Walker Bucking Stock Breeders 21525 705 Crawfish Twisted Sisters/ The Jaynes Gang 21026 33T Double Dip D&H Cattle CO 20727 267 LIT Boyd-Floyd Bull Co 20028 H755-1 Hou Too Ace of Spades/Creamer/Lonestar 19329 723 Circle T 723 Circle T Ranch & Rodeo 18830 CW7 Break The Bank Chad & Cherie Weishuhn 18731 S733 Shake N Bake Shippy Rodeo Bulls/Crooked Horn 18632 703 Moody Hou Moody-Rice Cattle Co 18133 708 Rush Hour Cross E Bucking Bulls 17934 710 Black Ice 4C's/Barker 17735 34T Hot-N-Juicey Torres Bro's Bucking Bulls LLC 17636 -20 -20 Andrews Rodeo 17337 50-4 Moses Jarrett Callahan 17238 734 Plumb Nuts Bryan Smith 17139 72 Ready Set Go Flying D Buckin Bulls 16640 101 Pop Tart Steve Alsedek/The Jaynes Gang 16441 L744 Geronimo Lufkin Ranch and Rodeo 16342 194 Blender Bridges & Smith/Ken Elliot 16243 58T Flyin Train D&H Cattle Co./Margy Haines 16144 764 2 Buck Chuck John B. & Karen L. Sirridge 15845 63 Carpe Diem Sean Scalco 15746 7571 Li'l Red CJ Pilcek 15547 760 760 Walker Bucking Stock Breeders 15447 764 764 Walker Bucking Stock Breeders 15449 5097 Soul Train MR Bucking Bulls 15250 252 Santana Boyd-Floyd Bull Co / Darnell Bros 149

ID BULL OWNER PTS51 W1-5A Brulé Patricia & Jan. Ricketts/Jaynes Gang 14852 278 GDY 278 Guidry Land and Cattle 14753 7028 Demon Ronald Wood 14654 653 Naughty By Nature Boyd-Floyd Bull Co. 14455 715 Quick Turnaround Monty Samford / Warren Dozier 14255 83T Lil' Squirt D&H Cattle Co. 14257 369 SJR 369 Ravenscroft / Boyd-Floyd 14157 J702 Fully Wicked Brandon & Mich.Gilbert/Jaynes Gang14157 45T 45T High Times D&H Cattle Co. 14160 T03 03 Itchy Kitty D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle 14060 38 Wicked Warrior Crazy G & E Bucking Stock 14062 17 17 Diablo Mark White & David Holland 13963 01T All The Above D&H Cattle Co. 13763 7 Dirty Deeds BA Livestock - Brian Agnew 13763 94T Page 94T D&H Cattle Co. 13763 40T 40T Wild Yeller D&H Cattle Co. 13767 755 Rolex Cody Ohl, Tye Farmer & J. Meazell 13668 215 Fine Young Cannibal Boyd-Floyd Bull Co 13569 753 753 Tim & Cheryl Baker 13470 716 Circle T 716 Circle T Ranch & Rodeo 13370 30T 30T Crazy Bag D&H Cattle Co./Bagley 13372 704 Outlaw Hurricane Torres Cattle Co. 13172 L722 Diablo Lufkin Ranch and Rodeo 13174 7R31 Diamond S 731 Diamond S Bucking Bulls 13075 700 Firestorm 4C's/Hayes 12876 701 T-Bone Kleinhans / Lyons 12776 205 Mammer Jammer Boyd-Floyd/ Nacarrato 12776 13T Page 13T D&H Cattle Co. / Weber 12779 C254 Black Betty Oakes and Greene Bucking Bulls 12679 MC704 Mr Davis McCoy Ranches & Sunset Farms 12681 L703 Backdraft Lufkin Ranch and Rodeo 12581 19T 19T Smooth Operator D&H Cattle Co. 12583 101 Witch's Brew Sean Scalco 12383 TD2 Bucking Machine D&H Cattle Co./ Shores Cattle Co. 12383 27T 27T Mud Cat D&H Cattle Co. 12386 723 Grandin BRH & Gene Baker 12286 472 Economic Barometer Boyd-Floyd Cattle Co. 12288 752 752 Blythe Bucking Bulls 12188 S74 Hunter's Hat Trick Shippy/Laird Bucking Bulls 12190 180 Vader Bridges & Smith/Don Brown 11990 J79 J79 Andrews Rodeo 11992 S723 Airacuda Shippy Rodeo Bulls/Brown / Kile 11693 2147 Ready to Rumble Kenny Jack/Richard Treichel 11593 527 The Warrior Bridges & Smith/Don Brown 11595 720 COPP 720 Jerry Copp 11496 717 Energizer Yancey Brothers Bucking Bulls 11396 JA 719 Shot of BO Rafter HB Cattle Co 11398 -77 Maytag DC Cattle Company 11298 T07 Page T07 D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle 112100T13 Thermal Kitty D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle 111

VBBI Video Futurities Get Off The Ground in 200963 Carpe Diem from Sean Scalco was the

first Video Bucking Bull champion, wowingthe judges with a score of 78.636, worth$2,635.

In second, less than a point behind CarpeDiem, was 373 Jaguar with 77.967. Jaguarearned Two Pair Bucking Bulls/The JaynesGang's just under $2,000. In third with77.703 was 101 Pop Tart from Steve Alsedekand The Jaynes Gang. In fourth was 767Yukon Cowboy, from Skippy Johnston/TheJaynes Gang, with 77.402. In fifth, and in themoney, was 734 Plumb Nuts from BryanSmith with a 76.334.

Scalco found out he won the VBBI eventby checking his computer. “I just clicked onthe event once it was over, and there werethe results!” Scalco also judged the event (ascan any registered member). “I did judge my

bull the highest, because I honestly thoughthe was the best. I like that everyone canjudge and then a small percentage of thatgoes toward your final score.”

Scalco is becoming a big fan of VBBIevents because he likes the fact that there isno hauling or travel-related stress placed onthe animal. He also counts the money andgas saved as big bonuses. “Video events arealso nice because sometimes you have agood bull but he needs to be around yourother bulls to stay calm—then you have toenter more than one bull at a regular Futurityjust to keep your really good one calm!”

Scalco also thinks that most bulls will buckbetter in an environment they are used to,so he expects the popularity of the VBBIs togrow.

Sean Scalco’s Carpe Diem won the first VBBI event.



When you thinkof dentistry,you probably

don’t think it appliesto your favoritehorse or a worldchampion buckingbull. ABBI breeder Joshua Chavez is outto change the way people care for theiranimal athletes.

Chavez’s love of rodeo livestockstarted when he began riding steers at8 years of age. He rode his first bull in ajunior rodeo when he was 11 andturned pro after getting his PRCA cardat 18. Bull riding put him through col-lege on a full scholarship but afterenough buckoffs, his interest movedmore toward breeding rather than rid-ing.

Chavez started by buying a coupleof cows off Marty Foutch. Chavezprefers Plummer bloodlines. “My herdsire is a grandson of Rooster fromRonnie Roach on the sire side andChaos on the dam side” he stated. “We are a not so ‘ranchogrande’ at this moment, but we’re getting bigger one step at atime. And we’re always looking for more bloodlines to enhanceour program.” Chavez is starting out slow and saves to buyeverything he’s got. “It takes us a little longer because we haveto plan for our purchases and put money away to afford

them,”admitedChavez. “I’d like toeventually takesome bulls to thePBR or get a coupleinto the Cups, but Idon’t need my nameup there. If any ofthe big boys seeone of my bulls andwants to buy him,I’d be happy to sellhim. I just want tobe proud of whatI’m raising.”

Chavez becamea believer in equinedentistry when henoticed one of his

horses wasn’t eatingwell and kept toss-ing his head. He wasgoing to take him tothe vet when hiswife of 12 years,Jennifer, suggested

he call a friend from college who special-ized in equine dentistry.

“I’m from the old school where youtake them to the vet when they need care,not to a dentist,” related Chavez. But hiswife persevered. Their friend came over,worked on the horse and shortly thereafterChavez noticed a major improvement. Thehorse started processing his feed muchbetter, so he didn’t have to feed him asmuch. Chavez also noticed that heresponded to the bit better.

From that moment on, Chavez knewthere was a significant part of livestockcare that was generally overlooked, so hedid some research and found the TexasSchool of Equine Dentistry.

“They teach you why you work on ahorse’s mouth and what to look for,” explained Chavez. “Many ofthe overall health issues will start in a horse’s mouth.”

Chavez quickly learned that dentistry also works hand-in-handwith chiropractic care. “When a horse’s back or neck is out ofline, many times the issue starts because their teeth are unbal-anced which puts pressure on the TMJ joint—which makes themuscles surrounding that joint get sore and tight and the prob-lem moves down and affects the neck and back,” said Chavez.“Horse chiropractors will usually ask if they have had a dentistlook at the mouth first. If not, the horse will usually need to comeback much sooner than they should.”

The basic principles apply to the bucking bull industry as well.The value of these bucking athletes and their genetics continuesto rise and their lifespan is increasing, so it makes sense to addchiropractic care and dentistry to their overall program.

Stated Chavez, “Dentistry problems occur because of thingswe humans do to our animals. We feed them on the fence or in apen rather than on the ground. We put horses in stables andplace their feed high, rather than allowing them to graze on apasture where they cut their feed themselves, which is a naturalmotion.”

The same issues occur with rodeo livestock when they’rebeing hauled to events. They travel, eat, and sometimes sleep ona trailer. When livestock are able to eat as close to the ground aspossible their muscles are stretched along their neck and back—

and the bottom jaw moves forwardwhich allows the teeth to wear evenly.When we feed livestock higher thanthat we diminish that necessarymotion. The bottom line is when ananimals’ mouth is balanced, they eatbetter and perform better.

As Chavez finishes up his educa-tion, he looks forward to working onbucking bulls as well as horses. “Therearen’t too many bucking bull dentists,”he explained, “and this way I’ll be ableto ensure the dental health of my ownherd—and hopefully help otherbreeders as well.”

Joshua ChavezJC Rodeo Genetics • Equine Dentistry

Joshua Chavez


by Cindy Gotoski




www.jcrodeo.com

www.priefert.com


In the Spring of 2004, CrossE Bucking Bulls was born.Craig Ellis, along with his

sons Heath and Ryan, purchasedthree cows at the D&H Bred toBuck Sale. Just five years later,they had a champion.

Back in Ardmore, Okla. almostto the day of the anniversary thatthey had purchased those firstPage cows, Cross E won the firstABBI American Heritage Derby.Picking up a check for over$42,000 for the 91-point score oftheir 3-year-old bull 602 Ricochetseemed like a dream.

“We didn't expect to win theDerby in Ardmore,” confidedHeath, “but we knew we werebuying quality and breeding toquality, so we expected to havesuccess, but maybe just not this much so quickly. Our goalwas to be in the Top 10 in Ardmore, but we didn't know ifhe'd be good enough to win.”

“I can't even explain how we felt thatnight,” said Heath the day following theirbull's victory. “It was pretty crazy! He’sbucked his tail off since day one and weknew once he grew into himself he’d bepretty solid.”

Ricochet may have big-time talent, butCross E Bucking Bulls is definitely a smallbreeder. Their herd measures just around30 cows and heifers and 20 bulls, rangingfrom yearlings to breeding bulls. But CrossE, based out of Comanche, Okla., is proofthat quality counts over quantity.

“If we're going to spend the money and the time, we'regoing to do things right,” explained Craig of the theorybehind the formation of Cross E. It was pretty black andwhite for Cross E: buy proven genetics, work hard as a fami-

ly and enjoy the results. Shared Heath, “We got

into it because we thoughtbucking bulls were excitingand it was something wecould do as a family. “

Heath works with Craigat his metal building con-struction and contractingcompany. Ryan is a fire-fighter for the city ofDuncan and helps takecare of the cattle on hisdays off.

"So far, Ardmore has

been the highlight for me since weraised that bull. I'm relaxed as I canbe when I'm around the bulls. Bullsdon't worry me, but my job doessometimes. Taking care of them isn'twork to me. Work is at the fire sta-tion, where I have 24 (hours) on and48 (hours) off," said Ryan, whoseschedule allows him to help out withthe bulls but gives him few daysactually "off."

"We get up every morning. Makethe rounds, get the bulls, check thecows, exercise the bulls. When itcools off we feed. Then by the timeyou're done, it is morning and it istime to start over again. So I guess itis non-stop basically, but I reallyenjoy it though."

“We’d raised some commercialcattle,” said Craig, “I'd been in the

racehorse business and my dad had been in the racehorsebusiness. My youngest son Ryan had rodeoed a lot as a calfroper and we enjoyed rodeos, especially the bull section of

it. So we thought we'd try our hand atbucking bulls.

“We started with H.D. and Dillon's stock,which really helped us out,” explainedCraig. “We built up most of our herd fromthat. We also got some Rafter 7r and nowwe pick up a little blood here and a littleblood there to diversify a little bit. We dowhat we can to help out our program andhelp out others with their programs whenwe can.”

The entire Ellis family enjoys beinginvolved in the industry. Craig’s wife Kelly,

Heath’s wife Mandi and Ryan’s wife Tiffany are all an essen-tial part of Cross E's success. Heath and Mandi’s boys—twins Myles, and Dillon and big brother Landon—are alreadywell on their way to growing up to be cowboys and carryingon the family business. Ryan and Tiffany are expecting theirfirst child this November.

“Kelly helps me with every-thing,” said Craig proudly,“whether it is hauling hay orfeeding or splitting cows off;she's right there with us. Kellykeeps up with the books andsends all the paperwork in.Tiffany keeps up the websiteand knows as much about thecows and bloodlines as any ofus.”

Ricochet's sire is Wildlife anddam is Rafter 7r 8, who they

Cross EA Winning Strategy in Black & White

by Susan Bedford

Craig, Myles, Kelly, Mandi, Dillon, Heath, Ryan, Landon and Tiffany

Ricochet

Landon EllisMyles & Dillon

Ellis



purchased at the Page sale and originally came fromRonnie Roach. “We bought her at the Page sale a fewyears ago and Ricochet was already in her belly,” elaborat-ed Heath. “ I believe the Pages got her from Mitch Terrell.”

Their other bloodlines include Panhandle Slim, 301Sports Machine, Backlash, Hotel California, NiteLife,Winchester, Rock-N-Roll and Up N Smoke. BesidesRicochet, some of their current herd sires include K21Skum Bum and Ellis 507 Check Out Time (out of HotelCalifornia and a Larry the Cable Guy daughter). 560 Tango,who is a Spook son, they are also breeding with startingthis season. They purchased some more cows at the mostrecent Page sale and picked up a DiMaggio daughter fromBoyd-Floyd Bull Co.’s recent sale.

“We have some good yearlings coming up, so I think ourfuturity calves next year will be really tough,” said Heath.This year their Futurity bull 705 Octane placed 17th inArdmore and 10th at the Spring Spectacular. Octane is aRock-N-Roll son.

“I think next year we'll be able to compete with every-body,” reflected Heath. “I’ve talked to Brad and Toby quitea bit and they've given me some advice on how to handlethings; they're really good guys. We're just going to getdeeper and deeper into this thing. Our ultimate goal is towin the Classic in Las Vegas someday.” That day may becloser than they think, thanks to a black bull with a whiteface.

“We don’t want to push Ricochet since he's just a 3-year-old, but we’ll take him and try to make another event ortwo with Octane and maybe we'll make it to Vegas,”reflected Craig. Whether or not there are Cross E bullsbucking in Nevada, the Ellis family will be in attendance atthe PBR and ABBI Finals in the Fall.”We never even misswatching a single PBR performance on TV.”

The Ellis family enjoyed meeting new people in Ardmoreand are always happy to talk to people looking to get intothe industry.

“What really excites me is the possibility of new peoplecoming into this business,” said Craig. “There are a lot ofPBR fans who'd love to be involved with the buckingbulls.” Cross E is serious about getting other peopleinvolved, and is open to partnering on bulls with peoplewho are truly passionate about the sport

“My brother was a jockey so I've been around the horsebusiness, said Craig, “A lot of the opportunities in the ABBIremind me of the opportunities that there were in the race-horse business. The ABBI is doing a great job of getting itout there to the people, and I think it has a great future.”

Added Heath, “I hope our win inspires other smallbreeders. In order to win at the ABBI you need to have thebest bull at the event—it doesn't matter the size of yourprogram.”

“One of the best things about being in the business isthe people we’ve met and the friends we’ve made,” con-cluded Craig.“It’s not a cheap thing to get into and it isn’tan easy thing to do. But it is rewarding if you enjoy buckingbulls and it is a great thing for a family to do. If you don’tdo things together, you grow apart. That is true with a fam-ily or a marriage. We’re making great memories and that iswhat life is all about anyway—enjoying life, and giving thegood Lord all the credit!”



http://www.ravenscroftranch.com/


Looking Forwardto Las Vegas

The Classic round will be a very special night in Las Vegas

The First Derby EventArdmore was the first time we've had an

event strictly for 3-year-old bulls in the ABBI.We didn't have any special ground rules.Like all the Classics, we went by ABBI andPBR rules. I was really pleased by the quali-ty of the 3-year-old bulls and surprised byhow good they were. I was also impressedby how well disciplined they were in thechutes.

No FoulsThere really weren't any 'chute fighters' to

speak of and there weren't any fouls frombulls coming out backward that wouldcause rerides. That was a concern of a lot ofbull owners, because some of these bullshad only been bucked a few times with aman on them. I don't think, with 80 bulls,there was one foul.

Tell No TailsA couple of years ago we passed a PBR

rule that the contractors wouldn't beallowed to hold the bull’s tail in the chute.And at the event in Ardmore you could seethat this rule is working. The bulls are get-ting better in the chutes because theflankmen aren't aggravating them bypulling on their tails. (For more on this topicsee Lambert's March/April 2009 column).

Quality Classic BullsThe Classics that we've had at the

Built Ford Tough Series events this yearhave been really good. The Classicbulls have held their own. They havebeen about as good as any group Icould put together for a long go at aBuilt Ford Tough Series event. We canexpect the go-round in Las Vegas at theWorld Finals, where we are using all

Classic bulls, to be a really specialnight.

The Classic round will be either thefirst or third go round and it will be aspecial night in more ways than one.First, it showcases the quality of theABBI bucking bulls—and not just to thecrowd at the Thomas & Mack. The PBRWorld Finals television broadcastreaches a global audience. Second,those stock contractors who haven'thauled their bull enough or had themwell-known enough to get invited tocompete at the PBR World Finals cannow get there by qualifying a Classicbull through the ABBI system. And lastbut not least, you can't forget themoney they are going for. The topClassic bull gets $250,000—proof ofhow far the bucking bull industry hascome and the amount of potential oursport has.


Jack Daniel’s Happy HourSon of Grasshopper + Cordell Breeding

40 + Years in the Bucking Bull Business!

C & C Rodeo Co., IncMrs. Fred Cordell 940-937-3706

812-FM 2530 Childress, TX 79201



http://www.waynehodgestrailers.com/

The next time you’re dipping intosome salsa or crunching down on anonion ring, you might think about wherethat onion’s been.

Chances are that whether it’s from thefertile valleys of the RioGrande, or if it’s beenin cool storage inWashington, that it waspart of one of 3,000loads of onions thatLarry D. Barker ships toprocessing plantsacross the country.

Barker is an onionman. He raises onionsin partnership with vari-ous growers and haspacking sheds through-out America. As a sup-plier to processers likePace, Campbell’sSoups, B&B Onion andMcCain Foods, it’smore than likely thatyou’ve nibbled one ofhis onions. But to getaway from a tear-jerk-ing, hard week at theonion grindstone,Barker’s got bulls.

“I team rope a lot and I’ve beenaround it and I’ve always liked the bullriding,” said Barker.

Hailing from Las Cruces and personal-ly looking after the New Mexico packingsheds, Barker has had a long associationwith the Carrillo brothers who grew up inEl Paso. So when he decided to invest inbulls, he went to someone he knew.

“I’ve watched it for a long time and Iknow some of the bull riders and I decid-ed that I wanted to get in it and invest.I’m not into racehorses, but I’m into thisbull deal where they’ve got the Futuritiesand the Classics and they pay some pret-ty good money if you get that one bullthat’s good.”

Three years ago, Barker called GilbertCarrillo and bought a half-interest in onebull. That bull was Little Bo who made thetrip to Vegas last year for the ABBI ClassicFinals and is now bucking on the tele-vised Built Ford Tough Series.

“He didn’t do real good at the Finals,

but he’s the first one I bought and at leastmade it.”

A businessman through and through,Barker’s goal is to make a little moneyfrom his stock.

“I do it for a hobby, but I want tomake money at it because I see thatthere’s a way you can,” laughed Barker.

With six yearlings, two 2-year-olds, a 3and a 4-year-old, Barker is lining up hisprospects for years to come. He has alsopurchased well-bred heifers including adaughter of Avalanche and two byPlayboy Skoal heifers.

“I’ve got 10 cows that I’m breeding tobulls. They’re down at Gilbert’s and hetakes care of them. I’m busy with farmsand produce out here in New Mexico andhe’s going anyway, so he takes care of allof mine. I do a deal with them that I ownthe cows and they get a half interest inany bulls for taking care of them.”

When he has spare time, Barkerenjoys keeping an eye on the internetauctions.

“When I’m around I watch it. I like tobid on them, but I can’t be watching it allthe time.”

One of his computer-bought success-es is the Bubba Terrell-bred Comanche

Moon. “He came out of Mississippi off the

internet and turned out to be a real good3-year-old. If he can get some size onhim, he’ll be real good for next year.”

Visiting the Carrillo’s4C’s Ranch to selectprospects is part of beingan owner that Barkerloves. “Gilbert and I arepartners on some of thebulls and I own some ofthem outright. I wasdown there in March andhe bucked 38 yearlingsand we picked 12 of the38 to leave down therefor him. That’s the partthat I wanted to beinvolved in all along. Ibought Little Bo becausehe was a 3-year-old andgoing into the Classics,then we bought Balboabecause he was going tobe in this year’s 4-year-oldClassics.”

Barker owns a quar-ter-share in Balboa.Another quarter is owned

by his business associate, Kent Hill, whohas an onion peeling facility, B&B Onion,in Hugo, Okla.

Barker is happy to be an owner fromafar, to sit in the stands or go behind thechutes. “I don’t do anything with thembecause I don’t have time. Gilbert trainsand hauls them and I go watch them alot—that’s what I like is to go and watchthem. When your bull comes out you’reexcited and want it to throw the bull riderand score good. It’s all about getting thebulls that are good enough to go to thePBR or the Finals. Hopefully, someday I’llhave something that’s in the short go.”

While Barker’s son, Brandon, daugh-ter-in-law, Ivory, and grandkids Hayley andBeau support the bulls, he’s enjoyedmeeting new people and having a chanceat winning the big checks.

“I’ve met lots of good friends. I go toa lot of the Futurity and Classic eventsthat they have, I go to the Calcuttas andI’ve bought into the Exclusive Geneticsdeal.”

Larry D. Barker: Passionate about bulls and onions.

The Onion ManBetween Gilbert Carrillo, Exclusive Genetics and

Bubba Terrell, this produce farmer has bulls that are good producers.




2009 Mid-Season Notable Stats

Nowhere to Go but Down?We are coming up on one year from the first time we saw Page’s

Crosswired. He’s been out 13 times now, and only marked under 45points twice. Crosswired is currently ranked 7th out of 7,371 activebulls. If there is a downside to Crosswired’s performance in his firstyear, it’s that he hasn’t left himself much room for improvement.

Have any 22-point Bulls?Interesting stat—in any given year, there will be anywhere from

75 to 150 bulls that average 22 points or better for a whole season.So far in 2009, there are 109. If you own a bull that legitimately aver-ages 22 points or better over the course of a whole year, then yourbull is in the top 2% of all bulls used anywhere that year.

Bull Boom?Every year since I have been keeping stats, many measurable sta-

tistics have stayed pretty constant. I usually process between25,000 and 30,000 outs per year. To give a few examples: in a givenyear, there will be around 1,700 different bull riders recorded, 1% to2% of the bulls will average 22 points or better, and the overallbuckoff % for bulls will hover around 70%. However, the number ofdifferent bulls used in a year has increased each year without fail.

I measure this by calculating the average number of outs record-ed per bull per year. In 2005, there were 6.2 outs per bull on aver-age, and 3 years later in 2008, there were 5.2 outs per bull. So farin 2009, there are 3.3 outs per bull.

So, if a contractor tells me they are having trouble getting outs ondecent bulls, I don’t doubt it.

Ty Likes Good Bulls…The best set of bulls ever to appear at a regular season event with

100+ outs happened in March at the Ty Murray Invitational inAlbuquerque. Almost half the outs at Albuquerque had the poten-tial to be marked 90 points or more. Not surprisingly, the buckoffpercentage was higher than at most BFTS events.

Slade Long is the head honcho at probullstats.com, and just one of thehonchos at the VBBI. He lives in Covington, La. (until the next hurricane).

Top 15 PBR bulls w/5 Minimum Outs from Past 6 Months

Hist. Rank PBR rank PBS ID No. Bull Contr. Avg Mark Avg Sc. Outs

3 1 9370 T11 Troubadour FU 23.298 (46.596) 93.5 6

97 2 10296 05 Bones TBB 23.027 (46.054) 93.5 6

6 3 7693 A147 All In AN 22.914 (45.828) 90.63 10

11 4 7043 CC Chicken on a Chain JRB 22.684 (45.368) 91.19 12

7 5 14696 10-5 Crosswired DHT 22.683 (45.365) 93 5

26 6 7738 309 Spitfire BF 22.671 (45.342) 85.5 9

306 7 7997 X43 Billionaire DB 22.657 (45.313) 86 5

29 8 10713 D13 Ricky Bobby DHT 22.657 (45.313) 90.75 7

24 9 10016 103I Hawaiian Ivory FU 22.646 (45.292) 0 8

27 10 6262 118 Copperhead Slinger BGR 22.587 (45.173) 85 5

13 11 15457 250 Black Pearl RVN 22.547 (45.094) 88.63 5

21 12 13550 404 I'm a Gangster TBB 22.539 (45.078) 90.75 6

341 13 9242 327 Commotion DHT 22.523 (45.045) 0 4

12 14 6506 C21 White Magic DMDG 22.514 (45.028) 91.13 7

95 15 9449 83 Grey Dog DHT 22.513 (45.025) 88.38 4

Big Tex would like to extend agreat discount to all ABBImembers and PBR riders, stockcontractors and bull owners.All you have to do in an e-mailor phone call is mention “ToughAs A Texas Longhorn” for yourspecial discount.


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There are few sights more frustrating forcattle producers than walking out into thepasture and seeing one or more animalslying dead from bloat. While hopefullyinfrequent, we have all experienced thisproblem. The rumen is an extremelydynamic, sophisticated organ. However, itis susceptible to digestive upsets that canrange from extremely minor to conditionsresulting in death. The incidence of bloatcan range across this entire spectrum. Thekey is to prevent it from happening, recog-nize early onsets of bloat, and treat imme-diately when it is discovered.

Fermentation in the rumen createstremendous volumes of different gases.We see this as cattle belch this gas up andremove it from the body. However, whenthe animal is unable or incapable of eruc-tating, the gases accumulate in the rumenand the rumen continues to expand in sizeuntil it puts undue pressure on otherorgans, such as the lungs. In advancedcases of bloat, the pressure will be so greatthat the animal’s ability to breathe isseverely compromised and can result indeath due to asphyxiation.

There are several contributing factors tobloat. The most common factor influenc-ing the incidence of bloat in pasture cattlerelates to quantity, type and quality ofroughages. Legumes, such as alfalfa andLadino or red clover, are notorious forcausing bloat to occur. This is becauseconsumption of the legumes creates afrothy gas that cattle have a hard timeeructating. As the pressure builds, itbecomes more difficult for them to belch,thereby exacerbating the problem. Cattlegrazing wet alfalfa and clovers—followingrain or heavy with dew—are especially sus-ceptible. Grazing alfalfa fields following aheavy frost on alfalfa can also lead to frothybloats.

There are several interventions that oneshould take to minimize the incidence ofbloat. If cattle are going to be grazing for-ages known to contribute to bloat such asalfalfa and clovers, take the following pre-cautions:

1) Plant and manage pastures with nomore than 50% alfalfa and clovers. The restof the pasture blend should be some typeof grass roughage.

2) Don’t turn cattle into a lush legume

pasture when they are hungry. Fill them upwith dry roughage first, to prevent themfrom over consuming the alfalfa and/orclover.

3) Feed some grain to the cows to sup-plement alfalfa consumption. This willdecrease roughage intake and help reducethe production of the frothy gas. This canbe especially helpful in the summer forgrazing cows that are nursing. You can

increase body condition score and betterprepare them for breeding season byincreasing the energy consumption withthe grain.

4) Do not turn cattle onto wet alfalfa orclover pastures.

5) If cattle are starting to bloat,Poloxalene (also used for treatment offrothy bloats) can be used as prevention.Poloxalene is an anti-foaming agent whichwill prevent bloats for about 12 hours.Poloxalene can be included in the supple-mental feed, i.e. grain or molasses-saltblocks. Even better, Poloxalene can beadded to the water to ensure the cattleconsume the product throughout the day.Calculate the water consumption, and addPoloxalene to achieve the desired intakeeach day.

6) While Rumensin does not have labelapproval for bloat prevention, it does helpmoderate intake and many producers findthat feeding Rumensin can help reduce theincidence of bloat.

In addition to seeing cattle bloat whileon pasture, you may also see cattle bloatwhen fed high-energy feeds in a feedlotsituation. This is commonly due to inade-quate roughage, or at least a shortage ofeffective fiber. Further, cattle fed milo tendto exhibit a higher incidence of bloat.Increasing the roughage in the feed,increasing the chop length, use poorerquality roughage (as opposed to high-quality alfalfa), and coarsely rolling thegrain can all be used to reduce the inci-dence of bloat in the feedlot. Further,feeding distillers grains has been benefi-cial in this regard (less starch with somefiber).

Each case of acute bloat should be treat-ed immediately. Severe bloat frequentlyleads to death and prolonging treatmentwill lead to that conclusion. Every cattleproducer should keep an 8-foot long pieceof rubber tubing, ¾” to 1” in diameter onhand in case an animal needs to be treat-ed (round the edges of the tube end).Lubricate the end of the tubing, and slow-ly but firmly feed the tubing down theesophagus. Continue to feed the tubingfor 3-4 feet, and the end of the tubing willpass into the rumen. Once the tubing hitsthe pocket of gas, there will be a massiverelease of gas through the tubing. Keepthe tubing away from your face! You willnotice the bloat reduce dramatically. Youmay need to reposition the tube to reduceeven more gas. At this point you candrench the animal with some defoamingagent and mineral oil.

In the worst cases of bloat, a trochar orsharp knife can be used to puncturethrough the skin and into the rumen.However, this approach should be used asa last resort as the outcome is often unde-sirable.

If you own cattle long enough, you arebound to see a case of bloat. Use the tipslisted above to postpone that day as longas possible. As with many other concernswith cattle, preparation in terms of sup-plies and training will drastically increasethe chances of a positive outcome.

BloatCattle are susceptible to digestive

upsets that can range from extremelyminor to conditions resulting in death.

Nursing cows need grain when grazing.


I'm glad I went to Ardmore because it isthere that I saw the true potential of theABBI.

My daughter Kassidy had a calf entered inthe Junior Futurity and I realized there thatthe future isn't in the Futurity, Classic orDerby systems. It is all about the JuniorFuturities—that is the real future of theABBI. If we do our part in getting the wordout, the big entry numbers in the future willcome from the youth futurities as manyyoung people will use their futurity bulls as4-H and FFA projects.

While in Ardmore it dawned on me howmuch fun not only my 9-year-old daughterwas having, but how much fun my wife andI were having. We all have interests andhobbies outside of bucking bulls. But eventhe first time Kassidy bucked her futurity calfin the practice pen and he fell down anddidn't do so good, it was still better thanbaseball or showing steers or junior rodeoor fishing or any of the things we do outhere in the country. We had grandmas andgrandpas, aunts and uncles, and neighborsall there to support her. Anything people doaround here, this has it beat 10 to 1 in termsof excitement.

And when we get down there to theJunior Futurity in Ardmore, it was even moreexciting. I've been on TV for years now, andthe first time I was on NBC doing the PBR Iwas pretty nervous. And most recently,watching Ty Murray on Dancing with theStars made me real nervous. But I've neverbeen so nervous as I was watching mydaughter's futurity calf buck—that justadded to the excitement.

We had to check in two days early. Wehad to check in on Thursday and the JuniorFuturity wasn't until Saturday. Now we havea million things to do at the ranch, and everyday at home counts when I have to take offdown the road again soon (with the PBR). Ididn't want to check in that early. But itturned out to be a great thing. It gave us achance to catch up with friends of ours andit turned into a little family vacation.

(ABBI President) Russ Gant did a great jobintroducing all the kids and giving everyonea chance to know each other. I'm sure mostof us left Ardmore with new friends.

Russ told me in Ardmore that this is theonly activity all three of his kids do together.Outside of bucking bulls, his children allhave different interests, but bucking bulls is

what brings his family all together. It was soenlightening to me, because this is alsowhat my family loves todo together. It may bethe kids who get prizesat these junior futuri-ties, but the real win-ners are the families.

I really think we canmake the junior eventsbigger and better. I'mhoping we can dosomething special inLas Vegas for the toptwo Junior Futuritybulls from each event.And if we can get thoseJunior Futurity bulls onTV it would be great forour junior membersand for our sport. Wecan all come togetherto find ways to help theJunior Futurities. As weknow, the heifer marketis slow right now. Thereis no reason why morebreeders can't donatea heifer to these juniorbreeders who coulduse one for theirbreeding program. Theinvestment we make in

our kids now will benefit us all in the longrun.

I spoke to Andee (Lamoreaux), J.W.(Hart) and Toby (Floyd) in Ardmore andthey all had some really good ideas andinsights as to how we can grow the youthprogram. I know there are so many otherABBI members who also have good ideasand are also willing to support our kids. Ifyou want to donate, get more involved orhave a great idea please don't hesitate tocall up the ABBI and lend a hand.

Most of the kids in Ardmore came frombucking bull families. But if we can reachout to FFA members and the kids whoshow animals, we can grow our sportimmensely. Every purebred animal associa-tion is driven by the youth association.From the Angus youth on down the line topigs, goat, sheep- that is what drives theseindustries, the kids. The future of the ABBIis also with our kids.

Justin McKee had to hold his daughter Kassidyby her ankles so she could flank her bull

in Ardmore. glanville photo

ABBI Junior Futurities: Family Fun AND The Future of Our Sport



I'm glad I went to Ardmore because it isthere that I saw the true potential of theABBI.

My daughter Kassidy had a calf entered inthe Junior Futurity and I realized there thatthe future isn't in the Futurity, Classic orDerby systems. It is all about the JuniorFuturities—that is the real future of theABBI. If we do our part in getting the wordout, the big entry numbers in the future willcome from the youth futurities as manyyoung people will use their futurity bulls as4-H and FFA projects.

While in Ardmore it dawned on me howmuch fun not only my 9-year-old daughterwas having, but how much fun my wife andI were having. We all have interests andhobbies outside of bucking bulls. But eventhe first time Kassidy bucked her futurity calfin the practice pen and he fell down anddidn't do so good, it was still better thanbaseball or showing steers or junior rodeoor fishing or any of the things we do outhere in the country. We had grandmas andgrandpas, aunts and uncles, and neighborsall there to support her. Anything people doaround here, this has it beat 10 to 1 in termsof excitement.

And when we get down there to theJunior Futurity in Ardmore, it was even moreexciting. I've been on TV for years now, andthe first time I was on NBC doing the PBR Iwas pretty nervous. And most recently,watching Ty Murray on Dancing with theStars made me real nervous. But I've neverbeen so nervous as I was watching mydaughter's futurity calf buck—that justadded to the excitement.

We had to check in two days early. Wehad to check in on Thursday and the JuniorFuturity wasn't until Saturday. Now we havea million things to do at the ranch, and everyday at home counts when I have to take offdown the road again soon (with the PBR). Ididn't want to check in that early. But itturned out to be a great thing. It gave us achance to catch up with friends of ours andit turned into a little family vacation.

(ABBI President) Russ Gant did a great jobintroducing all the kids and giving everyonea chance to know each other. I'm sure mostof us left Ardmore with new friends.

Russ told me in Ardmore that this is theonly activity all three of his kids do together.Outside of bucking bulls, his children allhave different interests, but bucking bulls is

what brings his family all together. It was soenlightening to me, because this is alsowhat my family loves todo together. It may bethe kids who get prizesat these junior futuri-ties, but the real win-ners are the families.

I really think we canmake the junior eventsbigger and better. I'mhoping we can dosomething special inLas Vegas for the toptwo Junior Futuritybulls from each event.And if we can get thoseJunior Futurity bulls onTV it would be great forour junior membersand for our sport. Wecan all come togetherto find ways to help theJunior Futurities. As weknow, the heifer marketis slow right now. Thereis no reason why morebreeders can't donatea heifer to these juniorbreeders who coulduse one for theirbreeding program. Theinvestment we make in

our kids now will benefit us all in the longrun.

I spoke to Andee (Lamoreaux), J.W.(Hart) and Toby (Floyd) in Ardmore andthey all had some really good ideas andinsights as to how we can grow the youthprogram. I know there are so many otherABBI members who also have good ideasand are also willing to support our kids. Ifyou want to donate, get more involved orhave a great idea please don't hesitate tocall up the ABBI and lend a hand.

Most of the kids in Ardmore came frombucking bull families. But if we can reachout to FFA members and the kids whoshow animals, we can grow our sportimmensely. Every purebred animal associa-tion is driven by the youth association.From the Angus youth on down the line topigs, goat, sheep- that is what drives theseindustries, the kids. The future of the ABBIis also with our kids.

Justin McKee had to hold his daughter Kassidyby her ankles so she could flank her bull

in Ardmore. glanville photo

ABBI Junior Futurities: Family Fun AND The Future of Our Sport


209090Q:Bull Pen Mar April working.qxd 6/23/09 3:31 PM Page 49

http://www.bullpenmagazine.com/


In our last article we discussed theapproach to examination of bulls with vari-ous injuries, particularly those related to theback and deeper soft tissue structures. Itwas discussed that sometimes we are verylimited in our abilities to confirm the diag-nosis offered other than the physi-cal evidence the subject presentsto us. Caution must be used whenother diagnostic tools are notavailable as some symptoms canbe misleading and the wrongchoice of treatment for a particularcondition may prove detrimentalto the animal. Many options existfor treating suspected soft tissueinjuries and I hope to cover these in thecoming months. Most of the therapiesto be discussed are readily availableand are convenient to use in the bullprovided proper restraint is available.This article’s focus will be on the use ofShock Wave Therapy.

History of DevelopmentExtracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy

(ESWT) was first used in human medi-cine about 20 years ago for the disinte-gration of kidney stones. Since thattime, other treatments have beendeveloped for use in human practicesuch as the treatment of heel spurs andtennis elbow. In the earlier part of thiscentury, shock wave therapy was intro-duced to equine medicine to treat vari-ous lameness disorders, both bony andsoft tissue. In our practice, it was initial-ly used for the treatment of young hors-es in race training with the common condi-tion known as “shin bucked.” As time hasgone by, different uses have been devel-oped for this treatment modality.

Method of ActionThe primary method of delivery of shock

waves to patients today is generated by anelectromagnet. These systems are charac-terized by energy that is set free by an elec-tromagnetic energy source and is convertedinto shock waves by an acoustic converter.The energy generated by the shockwavegenerator is focused on the area of thebody to be treated through a couplingcushion—this is the focal point. The cou-pling cushion aids in transmission of theshockwave into the body. This is likened to

the waves created when you throw a stoneinto a pond; the resulting ripples in thewater are like the shockwaves produced.Most equipment creates a fairly narrowfocal point of treatment, something like3x5mm, and can have an effective depth of

as much as 50 mm.When the shockwavehits a denser area, or anarea of higher acousticimpedance, such astendon or bone, the

shockwaves slow down markedly and alarge amount of the wave energy is dis-charged to the surrounding injured tissue.Although methods of action at this time arenot completely understood, it is thoughtthat fluid disruption on the cellular levelinduces the release of chemicals thatimprove healing, damaged cells areremoved and improved blood supply to thearea results in faster healing time. Someanalgesia does occur during and after thisprocess as well.

Areas of useThere are many areas of the body that

shockwave therapy may be used. In equinemedicine, such areas as arthritis of the lowerhock “bone spavin,” tendonitis, navicular

syndrome, suspensory ligament injury,stress fractures and non-union of certainlong bone fractures, as well as bony andsoft tissue injuries of the back are treatedwith EWST. Protocols from equine medicineare now being modified for use in the buck-

ing bull. Two areas of keen interest areacute tendon injuries (rear limb tendoninjuries from kicking a gate or fence) andlumbar back injuries. Most often, a diag-nosis is made from physical evaluationand diagnostic ultrasound, particularlywhen dealing with back injuries. Thisrequires a high quality ultrasound diag-nostic unit and a practitioner skilled inthe evaluation of ultrasound images.There are specific protocols for use withdifferent energy levels and treatmenttimes for treating different levels ofback injury. Damage to vertebral bod-ies resulting in arthritis (discospondyli-tis), require a different treatment proto-col from deep muscle injury. More dif-fuse injuries (particularly those alongthe entire lumbar spine), such asstrained or torn musculature, may

require a more prolonged treatmentinterval at a lower power setting.

Other conditions, such as osteoarthritis ofthe lower joints of the hock, may respond totreatment although restraint of the individ-ual must be adequate to focus shock waveenergy on the area. This avenue of therapymay be combined with local treatments toassist in faster healing times. It has beenobserved in equine practice that the addi-tion of shock wave therapy in the treatmentof some long bone fractures has spedrecovery and in some instance where repairhas failed may initiate bone healing.

Lastly, there is some analgesic effect (painrelief) from the use of shock wave therapyon certain areas of the body. Presently, themechanism of action of these properties isnot understood, although there are ongo-ing efforts to better appreciate this phe-nomenon. It is thought that the release ofcertain chemical substances at the treat-ment site plus possible interference withcertain nerve function in the area may be amechanism by which pain is controlled.

I mention this in order that we rememberto give an animal a certain period of restafter treatment and not be tempted to putthem back to performance too quickly aftertreatment.

It’s a Shock!Electromagnetic shock waves are being

used for acute tendon injuries and lumbarback injuries in bucking bulls

Shock waves are applied tothe patellar tendons.

The shock wave machineused at Elgin VeterinaryHospital.

Dr. Warner treats a sore back with ultrasound waves.



About 30 years ago, Wayne Hodgesgot into the trailer business. Nowbased out of Weatherford, Texas,Hodges sells custom trailers with 4Star being his main trailer brand. "Notwo are alike,"stresses Hodges. "Eachone has its own blueprint and can becustomized however the customerneeds it."

Hodges consulted with bull breed-ers to make sure he could meet theneeds of the bucking bull breeder.“You can't get a Mercedes for theprice of a Kia,” he explains, “and aMercedes is twice as much as a Kia.But a 4 Star trailer is just 10 to 20%higher than a cheap trailer. For whatyou get, they are a bargain.”

Hodges is the No. 1 4-Star dealer inthe country. Besides custom bull andequine trailers, Wayne Hodges TrailerSales also sells used trailers.

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One year from now, bucking bull breederMatthew Jack is determined he’ll be pack-ing his boots and heading to college, withhis eyes on the long-term goal of becominga physician for bucking bulls. The educationis extensive, and the list of classes intense athis dream school—Oklahoma StateUniversity’s pre-veterinary program.

However, the 17-year old Oklahoma jun-ior breeder is prepared to take the bull bythe horns, and is not intimidated by thehefty four-year college requirements to pre-pare for the following four years of veteri-nary medicine. Matt has researched thechallenging animal science prerequisites tocarry out his vision. The college coursesinclude organic and inorganic chemistry,biochemistry, animal nutrition, zoology andgenetics rounded-out with physics.

“Yep, it’s estimated at probably eightyears of school,” Matt grinned, noting thatwill not stop him from pursuing his dream toget accepted into the OSU pre-vet programin 2010, eventually specializing in buckingstock.

Meanwhile, the Stringtown, Okla. teen islooking forward to his senior year this fall atnearby Tushka High School in Tushka, locat-ed between two chains of steep hills insoutheast Oklahoma.

Matt is equally excited about his buckingbulls. Returning from the Junior Futurity inArdmore in late May after entering his bull,Jack Attack sired by Wampus Cat, he hadfond memories of the ABBI event. “I

enjoyed the Futurity and peo-ple. We had great supportfrom family and friends there,”Matt said. The Junior Futuritywas also a thrill for Matt’s girl-friend, Chancee, and her firsttime at a bull riding. “I wasglad to share my special daywith her,” he proudly added.

The Jack family owns 150bulls and cows, encompassing450 acres in Stringtown. Matt’sown herd of 10 bucking bullsincludes yearlings, 2-year-oldsand 3-year-olds, but his ranchchores oversee all the family cattle. “Mydad and I feed them, and exercise them ina homemade bull walker.”

Every Sunday they hold practice rodeosfor cowboys who want to train. Matt alsogood-naturedly added, “And, I can neverforget the hayfield which is what my sum-mer is going to revolve around.”

Matt had three favorite bulls, but recentlysold two. He was especially fond ofCallicoat Jack, also known as Sky Hawk CutA Rug, raised by veteran breeders Derreland Jerry Hargis of nearby Coalgate, Okla.Another favorite bull, El Presidente, alsoraised by the Hargises, was the 2007 HighPoint Bull of the Year. Both bulls are 2009Short Round PBR bulls. Matt’s third favorite,Lugnut, is a 3-year-old bull that’ll soon beentered in the Classics. Bloodlines includeGunslinger, Playboy, Outlaw, A6, and

Moody Blues. The family bucking bull busi-

ness got started by Matt’s fatherand mother Kenny and PaulaJack four years ago. “Dadwatched the PBR on TV eachweekend, and talked about rais-ing bucking bulls one day.” Hisfather also participated in teampenning. “Then Dad met Derreland Jerry Hargis. Dad, a heavyequipment salesman, soldDerrel a bulldozer, and Derrelsold him a bull. I got involved

the day my father brought homea bull.”

Derrel Hargis, (www.hargisbulls.com,) wasquick to comment about Matt. “I tell youwhat, that’s the nicest kid in the country. Youwon’t run into a kid any better than Matt,”Derrel told Bull Pen. Matt has two older sis-ters Kendra and Audrey, and a brother,Sammy Carroll. Kendra will enter three bullsin the Classics next year.

Besides bulls, Matt’s other hobby was rac-ing Junior Dragsters, driving a small rail carthat runs on an eighth of a mile track at 85mph. A successful run is less than eight sec-onds.

Interestingly, Country Music Star RebaMcEntire and her former husband, CharlieBattles, lived in the same Stringtown house,right before Matt’s family bought it in 2004.When Matt first moved in, he couldn’t stoptelling people that fun news. Reba’s formerrecording studio at the house is now theJack’s bunkhouse where long-distancebucking bull haulers stay the night.

100 dogs also reside on the Jack ranch,The family breeds Poodles, Maltese,Yorkies, Pugs and Miniature Pinschers intheir three kennels. “So, once I graduate vetschool, I’ll know how to take care of any ani-mal that hits the ground,” Matt noted.

Matt is also animated about hitting theground running at college next year. “Sincethere aren’t many bucking stock veterinari-ans around and we usually have to travelthree hours to Stillwater or plum-down intoTexas, this has always stuck in my head. Soit’s a good business to get into, to know alot of people and help a lot of animals.”

Matt likes to ask questions, but there’s noquestion about his inspiration and aspira-tion.

Matthew Jack will be a senior this fall at Tushka High School.

Matthew Jack Makes a Career Decision

Son of Kenny and Paula Jack aspires to become a Roughstock Veterinarian

Matthew Jack




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It’s not by accident that the west coast-bred635 Mr. Juicey may be one of the biggestgenetic gold mines to shine on the produc-tion scene in quite some time. The currentnarrative of this black, brockle face bovineincludes a coast-to-coast transfer, and asteady stream of his genetics into mostavenues of the bucking industry. Still, nothingmight prepare the big-time producer’s currentowner Gary Blythe for what may be about totake place.

Mr. Juicey, one of only a handful of 20 TooLegit sons, packs nearly 30 years of intent intohis existence. What began as the duo of JohnGrowney and Don Kish in the late ‘70s andearly ‘80s in Red Bluff, Calif. has culminatedinto one of the most sought-after buckingbred lines the industry has ever seen. NorthCarolina’s Gary and Carolyn Blythe of BlytheBucking Bulls have one such program whichsought out the deep-rooted genetics of theKish’s Buckin’ Best program.

If you’ve never been to the Kish domain inNorthern Calif., it is definitely worth theadventure. Don and wife Janelle manage apretty large sea of bucking bovine flesh.

When the eye roams around their expan-sive feedlot of humps and horns, and sees allthose brindle-hided, motley-faced beasts, it iseasy to understand how Kish can pull up to an

event and unload a pot-full of solid, steadybuckers. N.C. Tarheel Gary Blythe can attestto the magnitude of the Kish program.

“When we got there, there was like 450bulls in that feedlot,” he recalled. “We werein a rental car and pulled in there where thefeed truck goes. We shut the gate behind us,got back in the car and a bull fight broke outright in front of us. So I went to back up andthere was another fight behind me. My wifesaid, ‘We’re fixin’ to buy this car, aren’t we?’ “chuckled Blythe before continuing.

“You could stay out there all day and lookand look. There’s bulls everywhere. Every size,every shape and every color,” describedBlythe.

Before looking into the Kish lines, Blythehad been breeding some of his home-grownstuff with Frick genetics that were tied mostlyto the Black 45 line. Although he was makingsome progress, he was not completely satis-fied.

"I just wasn’t getting that crack I needed. Ihad watched on TV and saw Don bring loadsof bulls that all had his brand. He would backin and unload 25 bulls at a PBR event andevery single one was born on his place.Everybody else that backed in and unloaded25 would have 10 different guy’s brands onthose 25 bulls. It was just astounding to me.”

At this point, Blythe decided it was time tointroduce the East Coast to the West Coast.He met Kish at the finals in Las Vegas and ulti-mately bought two-time NFR and PBR Finalsbull 574 Party Hound. With firm intentions ofcontinuing an already budding relationshipwith the Kishes, Blythe arranged their nextmeeting on Kish’s pro rodeo stompinggrounds in Livermore, Calif.

“After meeting him in Vegas and buyingParty Hound, we flew to Oakland, Calif. forthe Livermore Rodeo where it’s only his bulls,and they buck 30 a perf. Man, it was really

something else. When we left there, we justfollowed him home. That’s the place to go ifyou really want to get to know the real DonKish. Where it’s one-on-one, nobody’s hound-ing him to death, and he’s in his own ele-ment,” recommended Blythe.

Just as the Blythes took a liking to theKishes, in turn the Kishes also feel very posi-tive toward the east coast breeder.

"Gary and his wife, Carolyn— they are asnice of people as you’ll ever talk to,”observed Don. “They are just really classypeople. They are the type of people that youwant involved in the ABBI and the PBR. Youknow they just have class. And we need moreof that."

Over time, besides Party Hound, Blythealso bought PBR Finals bull 621 Say La Vee,728 Machine and finally Mr. Juicey. Blythechronicled the events that lead to Mr. Juicey’strek to the East Coast: "I wasn’t really findingthat ‘one’ bull I was looking for while I wasthere the second time. When we got homeand I looked at the video there was this crip-pled, black bull turned out on cows. He wasone of the bigger bulls, with more leg. So, Iasked Don about him. He was a bull that hadbeen stifled when he was real young, but hadbeen to the PBR Finals," recounted Blythe ofMr. Juicey.

That ultimate purchase just might end upbeing life-changing for Blythe Bucking Bulls.

"Every time I turn around, somebody istelling me about some Mr. Juicey son that isexceptional," mused Blythe.

While the best is still to come from Mr.Juicy sons, Blythe already has someCinderella stories. At last year’s ABBI Finals,he hauled Blythe 646 from one coast to theother because the event had not been filled.After the first round, the bull had climbedfrom not even being noticed to 12th. BesidesBlythe’s own success with Mr. Juicey offspring,

Mr. Juicey with herd at Blythe’s N.C. ranch.

635 Mr. Juicey

The Juice is Loose!When Gary Blythe bought a stifled 635 Mr.

Juicey from the Kishes, he may have bought the industry’s next super-sire

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lyth

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Jap, and Matt Austin’s out-standing 2-year old futuritycontender Real Juicey areprime examples of what thissire is capable of. Austin’s RealDeal sports the Juicey line onthe maternal end by way of hismother, a Mr. Juicey daughter.More interesting still is thatReal Juicy’s sire is 514 RealDeal, another Too Legit son,and nobody is a bigger fan ofToo Legit than Kish himself.

“Too Legit has done morefor my program than any other individual bull,” admitted Kish, whomaintains the best proof of Mr. Juicey’s production possibilities in hisown feedlot.

While looking down Mr. Juicey’s registered 2004 calf crop on paper,Don meticulously combed through and sorted his bulls that had justreturned home from this year’s Livermore Pro Rodeo. Without exag-geration, the number of Mr. Juicey sons returning from an out is rela-tively mind-blowing. As a matter of fact, every single bull that was outduring the Saturday night performance at Livermore proudly boastedMr. Juicey as their daddy.

Kish did the mental math of Mr. Juicey’s offspring percentages in hisherd alone. Even he seems impressedwith the results.

“We’ve got 11 out of the 28 bullshere I’d consider exceptional, and 23out of the 28 I’d consider very usable,rodeo-type bulls. Mr. Juicey’s sons areeither dead from hurting themselvesbecause they bucked so hard, or theyare currently on the truck being hauled to rodeos. If 95% of them areusable, and a little less than half are short-go type bulls, there’s notanother bull like that out there walkin’ around. You just don’t find themproducing those type of percentages,” Kish pointed out.

Blythe Bucking Bulls is onto something very special, and if theydon’t already realize it, Kish broadcasts what’s on the horizon for theNorth Carolina breeder.

“I think Mr. Juicey could go down as one of the best herd sires ever.I’ve never seen a set of bulls with so many great bulls in it. Personally,I’ve never had one bull deliver so many short-go type bulls. Ever! Theonly other bulls that I can think of that parallel are Little Oscar, Oscarand Wolfman. Now this bull’s done it, where you raise 20 bulls andthere’s 10 short-go bulls in there and the other 10 are definitely use-able. No bulls do that,” Kish testified.

“I think Gary knows what he’s sitting on— at least I hope he does—and he was always good right from the start as far as trusting every-thing that I ever told him. I think right now this bull will be proof thatyou can trust people, because the bull is going to be everything weever told him. He’s gonna take his breeding program from nothing topossibly a pretty famous program if he does it right. Because he’s rais-ing the right kind. He’s got all the right bulls and he did it from the start.It couldn’t happen to a better guy. We want people to realize if youinvest your money and do it right, it will pay off in the long run,” Donconfirmed.

While good bulls with lengthy and successful breeding programsbehind them may demand higher prices, Kish talks about passing thatinvestment on by way of success in future calf crops.

“Gary paid the money, he didn’t balk. He’s bought four really goodbulls from us now and I’d venture to say it was one of the best thingshe’s ever done. Where before he probably raised a lot of mediocrebulls, now he’s raising legitimate short-round bulls. He’s raising bullsthat people want to buy and I know Jeff Robinson has bought from

him. In time he’s gonna find that thoseoriginal bulls he bought from us actu-ally came cheap, considering.”

In addition to Robinson, Blythe hadbeen busy entertaining other callers.“I had sold two bulls to RobinsonBucking Bulls. One Mr. Juicey son hecalls Smokey that’s owned by Larrythe Cable Guy and one Party Houndson that goes by Jeffrey Scott BuckleMan. Both have been doing very wellon the PBR televised events. We alsojust shipped 13 Mr. Juicey and PartyHound sons to PRCA contractor J-J

Rodeo Company this morning,” Blythe shared.When asked about justification of the value of certain bulls, Don

plainly explained his theory while being fed bulls down the alley of hiswell-kept working facilities. “That’s something that you can’t explain tosome people. Expensive bulls become cheap when you get 40-80%usable stock from them. That’s what we figure we get here; about 80%usable stock. If you can get those percentages then a $50,000 bull or$4,000 cows are actually pretty cheap. They really are. On the flip side,a $4,000 bull or a $4,000 cow is worthless if you’re only getting 10%useable stock. Those percentages will never work,” Don pointed out.

Along with the bucking bull economics class Kish was giving, he alsomentioned one of the main reasonsmany people are involved in the indus-try. “Along with having successful per-centages, you get to enjoy what yourdoing. I know Gary’s having fun with it‘cause you can see the smile on his facenow that he’s bucking them. I see himonce a year and when he walks up, I

know he’s enjoying what he’s doing. That’s what makes it fun. Whenpeople that have bought our cattle come up and say, ‘Man. we raisea lot of good cattle out of that stuff,’ it’s rewarding," Don smiled.

Blythe is having fun and the best seems to still be out there on thehorizon. While Mr. Juicey has gotten up there in age and can no longerbe bred, besides his living legacy around the bucking world there isstill that tank of Mr. Juicey semen that Blythe is sitting on. He has soldsome straws in the past, but if he listens to Kish, semen sales mightunderstandably come to a screeching halt.

“I honestly think Gary is sitting on the best herd sire in the UnitedStates. And if not the best at least the best one in the last 10 years,and I hope he knows it. If I was him, I wouldn’t take $5,000 or even$10,000 a straw for that semen. If that bull was mine, you couldn’t getthose straws away from me,” Don insisted.

In the meantime, Blythe can’t wait for next year to start cracking outsome of these young bulls by Mr. Juicey.

“They are double bred 635 Mr.Juicey top and bottom. Mr. Juiceyhad such good conformation and it definitely carries on into his calves.Everything that I have run him across end up with a lot of leg. They alljust look so good that it’s hard to hold back. I think a lot of the guysare just bucking their calves way too young and I have made myselfjust hold back. I have 3s that haven’t had a man on them yet. I think ithas made a big difference by being patient and that’s one thing thatDonnie told me. He waits ‘til they are 3-and-a-half before he startsthem, and so this calf crop we’ve waited on.”

Mr. Juicey is one of those sires that the industry will definitely bewatching and waiting on to see whether he proves Kish right in his pre-dictions of becoming a super-sire. Who knows—like Blythe, the buck-ing industry just might walk away with a smile if Mr. Juicey ends upbeing everything Kish told us he would be.

Only time will tell if he was right, now that The Juice is Loose!

Three Mr. Juicey sons hauled by Kish stand side-by-side: 447 Wild Bill, 417 Einstein and 441 Walking Thunder

“I think Mr. Juicey could go down as one ofthe best herd sires ever. I’ve never seen a set

of bulls with so many great bulls in it.Personally, I’ve never had one bull deliver so

many short-go type bulls.”— Don Kish

bronte’ phillips photo



Diamond S Bucking Bulls, along withExclusive Genetics, brought together theirEarth Shattering Bucking Genetics Sale held atthe Hilton Garden Inn located in beautiful

Granbury, Texas. This well-planned sale brought many from

outside the bucking bull industry, and they bidwith enthusiasm, making this sale one of themost successful ventures in quite a while.

This sale had something for everyone. Thestaff provided time to shop and relax for thosewho accompanied their husband. Friday night.Diamond S held a BBQ dinner to showcase thecattle in the sale along with a live band, givingeveryone a place to discuss the cattle and enjoythe evening. The food was provided byRoddy’s Q, located in Weatherford, andthe live music was provided by The DirtRoad Gypsies from Mesquite. Saturdaymorning, the attendees were treated to acomplimentary breakfast including cus-tom-made omelets.

The sale was lively and had a greatstanding-room-only turnout, and the bid-ding was lively with many new customers.It was encouraging to see people want-ing to get into the bucking bull business.Auctioneer Joe Don Pogue was keptbusy while ringmen Clint Menchu andJames Gant ran up and down the aislescalling out the bids. Billy Jaynes handledthe pedigrees along with cattle ownersDavid Simpson and Gaylon Childers. The salewas also covered by RFD-TV and Superior

Livestock and the phonelines were kept buzzing withJerry Nelson, JimmyCrowther and Jerome Davisbuying many lots.

THE SALE STATSThis sale generated a whop-ping $409,000 in total sales.The average sales were:Futurity half-interest brought$9,993; pre-futurity bulls $4,955;breeding bulls $3,000; openheifers $2,479; open cows$3,000; semen $539; and livebreeding $892. The top selling lot was bull7115-2 for half-interest. A sonof Panama Red and out of aSky King daughter sold for$18,000.

Blessed Buckers Ranchoffered two half-interest lots,bull 418 and 408 sons of BigBucks and out of NeonNights daughters eachbringing $17,000. Weanlingbull 9W along with donorcow a son of Chicken on aChain out of a Gunslingerdaughter brought $6,600.Top-selling semen went toApollo with four straws

bringing $3,700.David Simpson revealed, “We hand-picked

the cattle sold today that will showcase any-one’s program. We were also honored to haveGaylon Childers as a consigner because hisgenetics are some of the best going and sold

well today. We also wanted to thank all whocame out and bought cattle making this salethe success it was.”

Billy Jaynes of Exclusive Genetics added,.“Wow, it just doesn’t get much better than thissale. The females sold high, the bulls soldextremely high, but the cattle were worth theprice. David and Gaylon are extremely excitedabout the sale, and it exceeded their expecta-tions.”

Auctioneer Joe Don Pogue commented,“This was probably the most exciting and funsale we have done in quite some time. Greatgenetics along with a packed house—andSuperior did a great job with the phone. It wasa great sale.”

Some of the new buyers commented ontheir purchases. Carl Lambert, from the horsereining industry, said, “I am trying to learn aboutthe bucking bull business and David Simpsonand Billy Jaynes have helped a lot. I bought Lot8, the high-selling half-interest futurity bull. I amjust a student and ready to watch this bull per-form.”

Arturo Campos, who hails from Costa Ricaand owns an equipment business in Alvarado,Texas, comented “We bought a ReindeerDippin’ son out of a Whitewater Skoal daughter.We love to watch Reindeer buck and we own aranch in Costa Rica where the bucking bull busi-ness is gaining interest and maybe we can usehis breeding there. We are learning what wecan about all this and take it from there.”

Diamond S ABBI-Sanctioned Earth-Shattering Bucking Genetics SaleMay 2, Granbury, TexasStory and photos by Allen Glanville

Everyone enjoyed the Friday night BBQ.

Joe Don Pogue, Billy Jaynes and David Simpson.


http://www.tombalding.com/

Top 25 Bucking Bull SaleGrapevine, Texas, May 22by Allen Glanville

Camo Cattle Sales held their first Top 25 Bucking Bull BreedersSale at the Austin Ranch Facilities in Grapevine, Texas. This newventure brought together some of the top breeders in the business,giving the buyers a chance to enhance their breeding programs.This sale was probably the most diverse set of cattle ever offered.

One of the breeders offering livestock was the Rafter 7r Ranch,who rarely ever consigns anything to a sale. Brady Roach explainedhis reason. “We just wanted to see what our stock would bring at asale like this, and get to visit with everyone.”

The night before the sale a dinner and social was given for thebreeders to enjoy and a sale was held on semen to benefit theRider Relief Fund.

The sale was live and Live Cattle Sales handled the online salesand their phone lines were kept busy. Each breeder was allottedfive lots, so only top cattle were offered from each ranch. TeagueBucking Bulls put together one of the most successful sections, pro-viding heifers bred to PBR Bull of the Year Bones. Teague alsooffered live breeding to Bones and Deja Blue, breeding not oftenavailable. The top selling lot was provided by Ace of Spades Ranch,their lot 2, a heifer bred by Blenderhead and out of a WranglerRivets daughter that sold for $12,000.

Danny Keller said, “I think it was a good sale. They sure offereda lot of great bloodlines and there were some good deals here. Ibought an Up In Smoke heifer bred to Ground Zero from ScottAccomazzo.”

Vernon Guidry remarked, “I think this sale was a tremendous stepto the future to the betterment of the world of professional bull rid-ing. From the breeding to meeting new people and combining it allinto one, it was great.”

Jerome Davis added, “I think this concept is going to be goodand for their first sale it think it was OK and next year they willimprove and be better.”

Daniel Jennings, promoter of the sale, summed it up. “Welearned a bunch today and know we made mistakes, but a lot ofpeople are telling me we need to have another sale. The customerswere OK with what we accomplished and the overall feeling waspositive.”

Unsanctioned Sales Recaps



http://www.abropes.com/




With the livestock industry going throughsome tough times, everyone was looking tothe D&H Cattle Co. Bred To Buck sale atRed River Livestock to see if peoplewanted cattle or not.

This sale is always head and shouldersover any other bucking stock sale becausemost buyers want the genetics the Pagesare selling. The success of the Page sale hasbeen phenomenal every year, and this yearmay have been off some, but the numbersjust don’t lie—they are still the bestsale.

“This sale was alright,” Dillon Pagesaid, “and there were some disap-pointments, but I expected it. Thesale was probably better that mostthis year. The bulls still sold good andwe picked up some new customers.

He added, “The females are onlyas good as the customer who wantsto buy her, and today you must proveher worth. We put together the bestset of heifers we have ever offeredand still they were down. As long aswe can sell cattle and continue withour plans, I am satisfied.”

H.D. Page remarked “We didn’thave as many people as the past butwe got along pretty well with what wehad. We sure were happy with the

bull’s sales, but sold some cows for a lot lessthan I ever thought we would. We don’tbuck our yearling bulls but the percentage

is such that it is worth the gamble to mostpeople to buy them. We sold half-interest ina yearling for $16,000 but we couldn’t get$4,000 for his mother which didn’t make alot of sense to me. It doesn’t matter if I amhappy or sad, we don’t have the land tokeep them, and what bidders say they areworth are what they are worth. I think downthe road, when those calves buck people

off, they will be tickled with what theybought.”

Last year the Pages and Jirl Buck startedthe D&H Cattle and Buck Incentive Futuritywhere yearling bulls bought at their sale theyear before compete for $30,000. This sea-son, Rafter HB Cattle Co won the $15,000first place incentive.

Dustin Hull, whose bull won this eventremarked, “The Pages have given all us whobelieve in their program a place to show-case our bulls. This was a family project; weall had a part of this win.” I think Hull wasmore proud of his buckle than the money.

What was encouraging at this sale werenew customers coming into the buckingbull business.

D&H CATTLE CO. INCENTIVEFUTURITY WINNERSFirst Place: $15,000 winner Rafter HB Cattle Co.Doug & Dustin Hull’s JA 719 (Hot Shot Son); sec-ond: D&H/ Shel Weber’s PAGE 13T (Mossy OakMudslinger son); third: Terry Hayes’ PAGE 75T(Scream son); fourth: D&H / Margy Haines’ 58TFlyin’ Train (Crazy Train son); Fifth: D&H / PhillipHarrison’s PAGE 68T (Hustler son).

THE SALE STATSTotal Sold: 154 lots for $827,600 Avg. $5,374

Cow Totals: 48 Pairs sold for $281,100 Avg.$5,735

High Selling Pair: Lot 12 Page S55 (HotelCalifornia daughter)Sold for $17,500

Heifer Total: 63 Heifers sold for $232,050.00 Avg.$3683

High Selling Yearling Heifer: Lot 87 844U (HolyMoly daughter)Sold for $13,000

High Selling Yearling Bull: Lot 121 Page U8(Smooth Move)Sold for $32,000 for half-interest

Half-interest yearling bull totals: 10 lots sold for$159,250 Avg: $15,925

Yearling bulls total: 42 yearling bulls sold for$314,550 Avg. $7,489

D&H Cattle Co. ABBI-Sanctioned Bred To Buck SaleMay 31, Ardmore, OklahomaStory and photos by Allen Glanville

Jirl Buck and Dillon Page made the salemore interesting with their commentary.

Page 24U was just one example of the outstanding bulls for sale.

H.D. Page participated in this sale with a micro-phone instead of a saddle.




http://www.superclake.com/


Despite the overall decline in femaleprices this year, Boyd-Floyd Bull Co.decided to have a heifer sale.

When you have a large breeding opera-tion, you are going to end up with plentyof heifers and you must sell them or go outof business. When you are selling cattle,especially females, you must provide qual-ity animals and make them as appealing aspossible. Brad Boyd knew all this, andbetween himself and Toby Floyd theyassembled the best well-bred heifersimaginable, including four heifers fromRavenscroft Bulls.

The first quality was their breeding; thesecond was conformation; then they

bucked them and only kept the best.Their sires or their dam’s sires weretop PBR BFTS level bulls, many whoare still bucking. They made surethat these heifers had beenexposed to two of their topyounger bulls, HeeBee GeeBeeand Pearl Snap, bulls usually notavailable to breed to.

Once they put their herdtogether it was time to roll the diceand see if anyone wanted what they had tooffer. “We felt like we were offering some ofthe best genetics going today in ourheifers,” said Boyd. “They were athleticalong with good conformation and had the

pedigrees to back it all up. After we gath-ered these heifers, we didn’t know if thebuyers would want them or not, but I felt like

if I was just starting out, Is u r e

would.” A good rule of thumb when sell-

ing anything is to ask yourself, “Is it goodenough that under the same circumstancesthat I would want to buy it?” Times have

changed, and creative thinking is what’srequired now.

Boyd & Floyd also decided not to holda live cattle auction. They first went to theABBI and had their sale sanctioned,along with the development of their cat-alog. With the ABBI sanctioning theirsale, it was listed on the ABBI websiteand a PDF file of the catalog was postedto look at.

Next, they hired Joe Don Pogue astheir auctioneer along with J.W. Hart forthe pedigrees, then Superior LivestockProductions for the live TV auction. Manymight think this could never work, butwith the top cattle auctioneer around

and J.W. giving an up-close and personaldescription of the BFTS Finals bulls, it allcame together like a glove.

There were 62 lots that were sold, averag-ing $1,900, and the high-selling heifer, Lot21, was sired by Camo and out of a ShortStack daughter. It sold for $8,000 to TomTeague.

“Almost everyone who pur-chased cattle were either new orwere just starting out in the buck-ing bull industry,” Boyd pointedout, “and we were sure excitedabout the whole thing. Buyers camefrom all over the country. There is aheck of a lot of work putting on asale, but now that it’s over, it wasworth every minute. Joe Don andJ.W. did an excellent job for us. Nowthat we have this sale behind us, it willonly get better and the genetics willbecome deeper. Toby and I are alreadyexcited about next year’s sale.”

Boyd-Floyd really bucked the oddshaving their sale, but they did theirhomework. They offered top breeding,and were well-rewarded for it.

Boyd-Floyd’s ABBI-Sanctioned Babes For Your Bulls Replacement Heifer SaleJune 13, Fort Worth

Story and photos by Allen Glanville

Toby Floyd and Brad Boyd

Lot 21 sold for $8,000 to Teague Bucking Bulls.

THE HEIFER SALE STATS

Total Sold: $117,800

Lots Sold: 62

Avg Lot Price: $1,900

Top Selling Lot: Lot 21, Boyd 875, Camodaughter out of Short Stack cow for $8,000


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903-872-6655

www.rogersanimalhospital.com

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Bull Pen 2009 July/Aug

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