On the Rodeo Rollercoaster

An Interview with Caleb Bennett

Rodeo Life: With eight Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (WNFR) qualifications, coming up on your ninth qualification, under your belt, how has your previous experiences at the WNFR helped you prepare to hopefully go in and win a World Champion Title this year?

Caleb Bennett: I think overall it's given me a better perspective on what to look forward to, what I can I control and can't control, and what to worry about and not worry about. Vegas can be pretty overwhelming, just the city itself, let alone going there to ride ten of the greatest horses in the world, and be up against 14 of the other best guys in the world; there's a lot that can run through a competitor’s head. I think being there as many times I have in the past and knowing what to expect and not to expect is going to help me mentally and physically.

RL: There are so many uncertainties that come with the professional rodeo territory with so many things that can go wrong and left up to chance, what makes rodeo so rewarding?

CB: Riding bucking horses in general is one of the most rewarding parts of it. It is an experience that you really can't explain to anybody until you feel what it's like to ride a bucking horse, especially inside the Thomas and Mack with the energy that the crowd brings, the environment, the horses, and the competitors – the chills that run down your spine are unlike anything else in this world. It’s not just the first round or the tenth round – it's every round that has chills runnning down your spine. When they start playing that opening, you hear the crowd roar, and you know that all the hard work you put in throughout the year is finally paying off, win, lose or draw.

RL: Would you consider yourself an adrenaline junkie?

CB: Yes and no. I do love that feeling, the rush of the adrenaline that runs through your body. But I've also learned over the years that it's only with certain things. There are certain things that I have done before and I felt the adrenaline and I'm just like, nope, never going to do that again, I don't care what kind of adrenaline rush it gave me.

Rodeo Rollercoaster

An Interview with Caleb Bennett

RL: Is there anything outside of Rodeo that gets that good adrenaline going for you?

CB: I think there are multiple things. I like to ski; going down that hill gets the adrenaline going. Cliff jumping, that's one of those things that'll get the adrenaline going. But I've also learned that I have my limits. All in all, it's hard to get that same adrenaline or that feeling that I get when I ride a bucking horse.

RL: How did COVID-19 change the course of rodeo last year? Are there any lasting effects on the rodeo industry going into it this year?

CB: It hit us hard last year with everything shutting down. The number of rodeos we were able to go to and the payout amounts were drastically cut down. It wasn't the same. We were traveling 12 and 14 hours on way and 12-14 hours back home just for one rodeo that might have added two or three thousand to your earnings. You were going just to try to make the Finals and hope like heck it paid off.

There were a few rodeos that cancelled or still didn't pull through, but this year has been 99.9% on track I've been really impressed with the PRCA and all the committees who have stepped up that we were able to come back, put on their rodeos and do a great job with great contractors and awesome money. A lot of them really put on good events for us this year. The show went on this year almost better than ever.

RL: You’ve earned over 1.5 million dollars in your career earnings, what was it like to break that million-dollar barrier?

CB: That's something I hadn’t really thought about until someone told me and I was like “wow really.” Which at that point I did start wondering where it all went. But it is a huge accomplishment; it's just a stepping stone for where I want to go with my career. I'd like to obviously try to win as much as I can and get up over that $2,000,000 mark before my career is over. To be able to do that in the sport of Rodeo shows you where the sports going and how it is growing. It gives me hope to hit two and a half million before I settle my career down.

RL: You’ve been a PRCA member for over a decade, how has rodeo evolved in the past ten or so years? What do you foresee the next decade of rodeo looking like?

CB: It's constantly changing. Some people are afraid to change, but we've started making changes in the right direction: we've started bringing back the bigger rodeos that we lost there for a while; the committees are starting to see that and they're stepping up to the plate; the added money at the majority of the rodeos is starting to go up; and you're starting to see more young contestants make the WNFR. When I first started in Bareback Riding, it took me a few years to kind of get the ball rolling. I think there are a lot of guys starting to lend a helping hand and teach the newcomers how to enter, what to go to and what not to go to when they start out so that they don't just burn themselves out. I know when I teach schools, I try to emphasize on where to go or not to go, so the new guys are not butting heads with the top-end guys all of the time and going broke. Because that is a huge thing and you see a lot of great young talent fade quickly that way. I also think we're doing a better job at promoting the circuit systems and trying to get the circuit system setup for guys that are up and coming or after working nine to five jobs. The overall contestants and committees are pulling together, and we're seeing better outcome because of it.

As far as evolving, it's really the contestants that have evolved more from a beer garden drinking standpoint to they are more athletes; everybody is working out taking it seriously. It's more of a business. And the same with the animal athletes. Since I've been a PRCA member, there have been more good ones to get on to be 80-plus points. You're not going to be able to scrape the bottom of the barrel and score 75 and maybe catch a check anymore – you might score 84 points and not even place. This year has been one of those years with personal and arena records being broken and world records being tied. Stock contractors and producers have started raising more outstanding animal athletes, and the contestants have seen that. The contestants have become more athletes themselves by taking better care of themselves and Bareback Riders especially are going to have longer, stronger careers because of it. It'll just continue to grow and it is only going to get better. g

RL: How do you think the televised exposure of rodeo through the Cowboy Channel and shows like Yellowstone and How To Be A Cowboy have affected the rodeo industry?

CB: It's only helped us grow. Shows like Yellowstone put a different perspective and outlook on the Western ways and rodeo in general. What the Cowboy Channel has done for us has been incredible. People in the rodeo world and everyone I've talked to absolutely love it; they love what it's done for the sport. I think it's going to help us grow with sponsors. It has gotten people more involved, whether they're actually showing up to rodeos or they're just paying for the Cowboy Channel app or watching it at home on their TV. It's really put rodeo back on the map.

RL: What is the like a professional cowboy and Bareback Rider really like?

CB: It's good for the most part, but can be exhausting. There's a lot of time spent stretching. Physical fitness has always been a passion of mine anyway, but Bareback Riding is obviously hard on the body. You have to take care of your body and that's always been my number one priority. I take full advantage of that and spend hours a day stretching and doing anything physically that I can do to improve myself as an athlete. Other than that, it's all a mental game and I take each day one at a time.

RL: How has your degree in marketing helped your rodeo career? Do you have any other plans for your degree in the future?

CB: I think it has helped with being more approachable when it comes to talking with sponsors or anything rodeo related. There are a lot that people don't see what goes on in the rodeo world, and there can be a lot of public speaking. When you get to a certain level, especially now with the cowboy channel and with as many rodeos that they cover, there are always interviews. I took a lot of public speaking classes while pursuing my marketing degree and had to learn to talk in front of people – I usually don't like to and still shy away from it from time to time, but it has been a huge attribute to helping me get through that aspect of rodeoing.

RL: What advice do you have for someone who wants to be a professional cowboy and pursue a career as a Bareback Rider?

CB: You might not work 9:00 to 5:00 but you're going to be working constantly. That's the biggest thing I could tell someone is it takes dedication and work. You have to put all your eggs in one basket. You have to give it everything you have every time you nod your head, every time you go up and down the road and leave home, and every day you wake up. Whether you're on the road or at home, you need to be working to better yourself inside and outside of the arena.

RL: With your mom having rodeo roots as a Barrel Racer, how did she help influence your passion for rodeo and the western lifestyle?

CB: My mom, dad, brother, and sister – we all grew up around horses, so I have always been around them. Having that early influence to get on horseback is what started my interest in it. Me and my brother are the only two in the family that ever took it to the roughstock end. But it was a huge impact on me and from the minute I sat horseback, I just knew I wanted to be some kind of cowboy; I don't know if I could call it a cowboy, because I feel like the Cowboys are the hard workers and ranchers, but a rodeo athlete.

RL: What attributes must a cowboy have to be successful in the rodeo industry?

CB: Two of the biggest things that you need are determination and the discipline. Rodeo can be a rollercoaster ride. It definitely has its ups and downs. You see a lot of people come and go, and the reason they go isn’t because they lack talent or the ability, they just get too frustrated with the down part of it and can't push through that. You have to stay focused to get better and push through those down times. Because there's always hard times that come and you have to get through those to enjoy the good.