7 minute read
"Bill The Butcher ”
BUCKS THE NAYSAYERS TO PROVE HIS CHAMPIONSHIP POTENTIAL
No one disputes that Bill the Butcher has what it takes to be a champion. The question is when he’ll have his chance to prove it to the world.
The son of Air Time, one of the most athletically-gifted bulls rodeo has ever seen, it’s been a tough road for Bill. Through injuries, infections and a number of other setbacks, he’s emerged as an unlikely hero as he fights for redemption. If it’s true that “Whatever doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger,” one only needs to look to Bill for proof. Today, he’s healthier than ever and kicking like never before.
Others Said He Wasn’t Worth the Time
For owner Cinda Marquis, Bill is a special animal. She and her husband, Ben Marquis of Marquis Metal Works, own other bulls. “But he’s my superstar,”
Knowing he might be tough to turn around, she made the choice to purchase him anyway. At one point before she acquired him, he’d stopped bucking mid-ride. For most bulls, this is a career-ending kiss of death as it’s hard for the rodeo to gamble on a bull that isn’t all but guaranteed to perform.
"Bill The Burcher
But she couldn’t ignore the markers of a true champion. As a big fan of Air Time, Cinda knew he came from a powerful bloodline. She was also drawn to the animal’s larger-than-life stature and distinct white coloring with black spots. Undeniable athleticism and good heart also played a part in the equation. Was he truly a lost cause? Or was there something else hindering this bull’s success?
Contemplating the decision, she and her husband reached out to the rodeo community. Some suggested the bull wasn’t worth the work.
But Jeremy Walker of Paradigm Bull Company, who serves as Bill’s handler and the Marquises’ trusted advisor, had a different opinion.
Though he had an inkling it could be tough to get the animal back into the eyes and hearts of the rodeo community, Walker couldn’t deny the talent. Having watched the bull in the past, he knew the mishaps that slowed him down weren’t from a lack of effort. In fact, it was almost as though Bill had given too much.
The Marquises obtained a video of the fateful ride to piece together what happened.
“He didn’t really stop, he just slowed down and didn’t buck hard,” Cinda says. “And then come to find out — I don’t know if he’d been fighting or what — but he was really sore and they bucked him anyway.”
They spoke to Walker, who has a sixth sense for things related to bulls. Through his company, he’s handled some of the best of the best, including Pearl Harbor and Sky Harbor. Walker assured the Marquises this bull was something special.
“I gotta say, I put my trust in Jeremy Walker more than anything,” Ben says. “I know what he can do with the animals, how he treats them, how he feeds them. Jeremy has eyes for this kind of stuff.”
If there’s one thing the Marquises believe in, it’s redemption.
“We will always pick the underdog,” Cinda says. “If what we have isn’t good enough, we’ll keep working at it until it is. I want to prove his worth to the world. I think that, like a person or anything else out there, when they’re giving their all, when they’re trying every time, that deserves something.”
If others said Bill couldn’t make it, then the Marquises would see to it that he did.
“Me and Cinda sat there and talked about it, and Cinda said, ‘Get him.’” Ben says. “She said, ‘I don’t care if he goes on tour. We’ll market him and his athleticism. We’ll do the videos. Whatever it takes.’”
“And so that’s the quote we put on everything: ‘Cinda said ‘Get him!’”
So, at Cinda’s direction, that’s exactly what they did. Working with Walker, they implemented changes to Bill’s diet and exercise routines. They worked with vets and chiropractors to get the animal in solid shape.
But that alone wouldn’t be enough. Once in full athletic form, the Marquises set out to prove the bull’s value. Cinda sought to make him a name rodeo fans would recognize.
“We want to show the world that these bulls can have fans, too,” she says. “They’re the other 50 percent of bull riding. When you have a bull with the raw power and nimble moves packed into a 2,000-pound animal such as Bill, he deserves a following.”
“But not anyone can ride a bull that rank. So, we had to go after riders with the same skill level and talent. They had to be equally matched.”
She and Ben developed a social media campaign to get him ridden. They were so confident in the bull’s abilities they were willing to put their own money on the line. It started with a $5,000 bounty. The campaign would cement the name Bill the Butcher into the minds of the rodeo fans everywhere.
Money on the Line
At first, few riders wanted to take on Bill. But one person was up for the challenge.
“Ezekiel Mitchell showed a little interest. Ezekiel’s doing really good this year. And so I felt like it was a good matchup. Everybody felt good about it,” Cinda says.
It was the perfect opportunity for the young PBR rider to show up, earn some fanfare and potentially walk away with some cash. So, he set out to ride the bull in a practice pen. The Marquises hired the best videographers in the game to document the experience. If the bull blew up that day, then so would the internet. Bill didn’t disappoint. Though it was an admirable effort on Mitchell’s part, the bull ultimately bucked him off. “We put that video together and it went crazy on the internet,” Cinda says.
Suddenty, Bill had a fan club and a following. “We got invited to do the challenge at the big show with the PBR with the contingency that if Bill wasn’t all we made him out to be and he fouled, the rider would get the bounty regardless,” Ben says. “We increased the bounty to $25,000 to make it fair to the rider. If the animal fouled during a championship ride, the rider would still get paid.”
Comeback Challenges
With $25,000 at stake, Bill remained unridden.
At one point, at an event in Tulsa, he scored 44.25, bucking off PBR rider Derek Kolbaba in 4.59 seconds. Only later would the Marquises and Walker discover the animal had bucked with a ruptured eardrum. They took him off tour for several weeks as the animal recovered.
Once Bill was back into bucking shape, Ezekiel Mitchell stepped up once again for the bounty. The ride was bound to be epic.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go according to plan.
Bill gave an explosive jump out of the chute, but spun too close to the chute gate. At jump three, he bumped the cute with his nose and blew up the other way, tossing Mitchell off as the ref dropped a re-ride flag.
A deal is a deal, and so the Marquises and Walker were true to their word and paid the bounty. Though Mitchell walked away with the cash, he said he wished he’d gotten the bounty the right way.
Ultimately, this means the best is yet to come. And when it does, the Marquises will be there cheering on their superstar.
A Future World Champion
Bill is the remarkable product of a spectacular bloodline, an intense training regimen and an abundance of love and care. He’s a testament to how even subtle changes can improve a bull’s chances for success.
“You gotta try to see around corners and see the potential,” Cinda says.
“He’s just the whole package. He’s got the looks, the size, the build and the athletic ability,” Walker says. “When he bucks, he has so much charisma and ‘wow’ factor to him. He has the talent and ability. He has that little extra whatever it is when he gets high in the air and kicks and bucks.”
Of course, the Marquises would love to see Bill win Bull of the Year at the PBR World Finals in 2020. But there’s something far deeper at play here.
“I really want to show the world a deeper look into the athletic ability and incredible talent these animals have,” Ben says. “They deserve a following!”
“More than anything,” adds Cinda, “I just want him to have the respect he deserves.”
