P+P | Professional Bull Rider by Porch + Prairie Magazine

MAGAZINE

FALL: THE GREAT OUTDOORS

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Volume 2 • 3

Product and Production: Life On The Road With The PBR

ith Summer in the rearview and an eye already toward the holidays, it means that the hot, dusty days across the plains and mountains are over and that the PBR World Finals are right around the corner. An entire season’s worth of blood, sweat, and tears descends upon Las Vegas again to crown a new champion.

In our second installment featuring Life of the PBR, we take a look at two more critical pieces to each week’s events. Without them, the show simply cannot go on. Jeremy Walker, Owner of Paradigm Cattle Company, is a former bull rider himself, having transitioned to stock contractor and now the proud owner of two of the top five ranked bulls on Tour, “Marquis Metal Works Red Clark” and “Marquis Metal Works Coriolos Effect,” two bulls that have earned their place on the leaderboard this season. The former boasts a 90% buck off rate with only 1 qualified ride, whole the latter is still undefeated. On the other side of the show is the man who puts the show on… literally. Jim White is the PBR’s Senior Tour Production Manager and is responsible for keeping order in the chaotic world of balancing riders, bulls, product, and production staff as they go from town to town each week. The former youth mission director in the Pentecostal Church, he has been a mainstay with he PBR for almost 20 years and in that time, he just about seen it all. Each man, critical to the success of the PBR, in their own words.

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PBR STOCK CONTRACTOR Jeremy Walker & Paradigm Cattle Company

PHOTOS: Courtesy of Paradigm Cattle Company P+P: You’ve reached the pinnacle of the bucking bull world--can you tell us a bit about the process to get your bulls noticed? JW: It’s pretty much just keeping those bulls in shape. Good nutrition, making sure they feel good, mentally, and physically, so they feel confident and ready. If I do that, I feel like everything else will fall into place. P+P: This breed is wired differently than other bulls that makes them prime for rodeo, but are there bulls that just don’t behave the way you need them to in order for them to get to this level? JW: They are definitely bred for it, but not all of them make it to the top level. The ones at the PBR level are kind of like the Michael Jordan and LeBron James’, they have a strong will to win and they have the athletic ability to back it up. They are mentally tough. There is a reason why a lot of people play basketball and football in high school and few make it to the pros, only a few have what it takes to set themselves apart. P+P: How much influence can you personally put into making a bull buck hard enough to compete? JW: Not really a whole lot other than just keeping their energy levels up through good nutrition and exercise. You can’t make a bull buck, you can take a bull that’s a beef bull out of a pasture and bring him in, and you can not make that bull do anything they want to do. First and foremost, they have to want to do it. Then they have to have the ability to do it at the highest level. Then we have to manage their well-being, and keep them ready to go, and compete at the highest level. No aches and pains, their feet are good, and they are healthy. The flank rope is there to give them something to kick off the back end, it is a distraction so the rider can stay on, it gives the bull something to kick off. The stressful part is the bulls don’t talk to us, but we keep a close eye on them and keep them in tip top shape. When we get there and the gate opens, it is out of my hands. The great ones make it easy as long as you pay attention to them.

P+P: Are there particular nuances to the bulls that you wish the fans would notice, or something that they can pick up on that they usually overlook each week? JW: Their personalities when they are at the events -- they are pretty well just in business mode. But behind the scenes when you see them at the feed pens and turn outs at the house, they all have their own personalities. Some try to talk to you, some are grouchy all the time, and some like to be loved on and scratched. They all kind of like to play around in sand piles. They are all docile and peaceful animals. But they know their jobs, and when the fans are there and the energy is up, the bulls are getting their game faces on, just like the rider. But when you see they outside of the event, you see how they really are. They are totally different than beef cattle, we don’t raise them to eat them. Their personality, athletic ability, and strong will to win is bred into these animals, the opposite of beef cattle. And this really shows when you get to hang around them behind the scenes. P+P: These bull riders are great athletes and one of the hallmarks of great athletes is their ability to adapt--- have you ever been surprised by how fast these guys can learn a bull’s tendencies and react accordingly? JW: These guys are the best in the business. They pay attention to everything and there are some bulls that guys can pick up deals and learn how to manipulate to turn a certain way because of how they feel. People that have been around cattle understand they swat flies off their back, the way their eyes are made they don’t have to turn their head to look at the guys, their eyes are on the side of their head, they can see two directions. And the great bulls are ones that guys try to pick up certain ways, but sometimes if they go to try and set a trap in on a higher end bull, that guy might have fallen into his own trap. The bull will go the other way. It’s a chess match, and when you break down what it takes for a great rider to make a qualified ride on a great bull, it is a pretty special thing. The guys can adapt, but these bulls can adapt as well. P+P: So take us through this a little bit--- you bred a bull, watched it grow up, watched it be what you deem to be a champion bull that is virtually “unrideable” and then on Saturday night, someone makes the eight on him--- does your heart sink a little bit? JW: I am good with any result as long as that bull performs to the best of his ability. I have no problem with anyone riding any bull I have as long as that bull did the best he can do, and they have the chance to win and put a big score up. I am good with whatever result, as long as the bull was to the best of his ability. Sometimes I like to see the bulls get rode who have been bucking riders off. You want to see one get tested, and see how he handles it after. That’s how you can see if he is a true champion, how does he come back from so called defeat. As long as the bull performs to 100% of his ability, I am good if he gets rode, and they both walk out of the arena healthy. P+P: The million dollar question--- whose side are you on? The bull? Or the rider? JW: The bull.

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P+P: You hail from deep in the heart of Texas with rodeo in your blood--- producing world-class bucking bulls has to be a dream come true at some at level, yes? JW: Yes. P+P At what point do you personally consider a bull to be championship ready? JW: I try to test them out as much as I can behind the scenes. I try to get the best riders I can to get on them. And if I can get a good bull rider like Jess Lockwood or Jose Leme to go into the practice pen, or a guy of that caliber. If I can test him with a guy like that, I will feel confident. I do respect these guys are competing for a world title and $1 million, and I won’t ask them to get on anything they shouldn’t be, these aren’t practice bulls. I push the bulls as hard as I can behind the scenes and when they show me that I believe they have the talent that a guy can be 90+ points and they can take it, then I go out on a limb and I send videos into the Livestock Director of what I’ve got done. And when I think they are ready, and he thinks they are, I will try them. And all eyes are on them in the big show. Until you get them onto the UTB level you don’t know if they have the tools because the guys there getting on do 3000 sit-ups in the morning, pop a basketball between their knees. They pull a tight rope, slide up and nod. When a guy gets up and matches a hold of them, and doesn’t move, and he has to figure out how he is going to handle the situation, some don’t take it, and the great ones figure out how to get the job done. When you get them to that level you know they are ready. P+P: You’ve partnered with country star Parker McCollum, giving even more publicity to your brand as his music career has continued to soar--- what makes that relationship such a great fit for Paradigm? JW: It’s kind of a fun twist. We got some stuff coming up in the future that we’re going to try out that I don’t feel like has even been done in the bull business. It is a fun way to bring an outlook to the sport from a different people that maybe never heard of it, or misconceptions. Its been kind of a fun deal. Parker enjoys PBR and the bull riding and all that. And we enjoy his music. So hopefully here in the future we’ll get everything lined up and release what we’ve been up to for the last year. A bull he partners on hurt his foot, and we’ve nursed him back to health, Young Man’s Blues, and he’s going to come back in Cheyenne. But we’re going to release what we’ve been working on and it should be pretty fun. 86 - FALL 2021 | PORCH + PRAIRIE Magazine

PBR SENIOR TOUR PRODUCTION MANAGER

Jim White

PHOTOS: Courtesy Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media P+P: How did you get into rodeo and the PBR? WHITE: I used to be an international youth missions director for the Pentecostal Church of God and I knew how to do audio. A friend of mine, Clayton Cullen, hired me to work my first PBR World Finals in 2004 to help with audio and he like my work ethic so much that two months later they hired me full time. Then for the first three years I was a Production Hand and an A2 and then I was promoted to Assistant Production Manager. I was the Assistant Production Manager for five years and then when Clayton Cullen left I became the Production Manager. P+P: You’ve been doing this for nearly 20 years--- tell us a little bit about the journey. WHITE: Before PBR I used to travel all over Texas and the United States doing youth events for the PCG. I travelled all over the world, Africa, Europe, and was headed for Asia, but never made it, and was doing youth missions and leadership development for the PCG. I did that for almost seven years and then I went to work for the Professional Bull Riders. When I started in 2004 with the PBR I was an A2 and travelled week-to-week, and then within three years I became the Assistant Production Manager. And within seven years I was the Production Manager. I have been around the world with PBR. I have been to Canada, Mexico, Australia, Brazil. And then I still do humanitarian work in Africa in my spare time. I haven’t been over there in a while, but I still support several missionaries on my own over there, and I talk to them on a weekly/monthly basis. P+P: Coming into the PBR, what surprised you most about the week to week grind on the tour? WHITE: How much I have fallen in love with it, and working with the people that have the same love. I could never go back to an 8-5 job again. P+P: Production is the most visible element to the whole puzzle, but yet most fans don’t know quite what goes into putting on an event every week--- can you brag on your team a little for us and give us some insight into what all goes into making the magic, the number of people, and those behind the scenes? WHITE: I have the greatest crew in the industry. You’re only as strong as your weakest link, so my crew, Jack, Keith, Kevin, Chuck, Reggie, Heather, the arena crew, the dirt crew, we all do a little bit of everything and we watch out for each other. It is a team effort. There is no one bright shining star. Everybody together is the star. One person’s strength compliments another person’s weakness, and vice a versa, and that’s how we make a great team. PORCH + PRAIRIE magazine | FALL 2021 - 87

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P+P: You’re a natural entertainer and gatherer of people as evidenced by your ministry background--- what is it about your role with the PBR that parallels your ministry work? WHITE: The only difference is the title. I still work with people. I am still helping them become better than what they were when they got there by the time they leave. People are people no matter where you go, it is just the avenue in which you are allowed to influence them and pour into their lives. Without people you would have no one to drive the trucks, build the stuff, take it all down and put it on another truck. P+P: In two decades, you’ve seen a lot of bulls and a lot of riders--what has changed with each of them over the years? WHITE: Each decade has had its own heroes and superstars and I have noticed that the superstars are the guys that are willing to pay the price, take the risk and rise to the top. P+P: The sport has grown exponentially in popularity—can you point to one or two things in particular that helped jumpstart that growth? WHITE: There is nothing more American than cowboys and the Western lifestyle, and the ability of the league management teams to have a vision for that, and take it to the next level. P+P: One of the great things about sports in general is that you just never know what might happen--- are there any particular moments that stand out to you where “I can’t believe I just saw that” ran across your mind? WHITE: When Rob Smets broke his neck. When we did our first event in AT&T Stadium, home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys. When I was able to be a part of PBR Australia on a global level, and Brazil and Canada and Mexico. P+P: Are there some favorite moments from your time with the PBR you’d share? WHITE: One of my favorite moments was at World Finals Las Vegas when Adriano Moraes was getting on his very last bull. He asked me before he got on his bull whether he rides it or bucks off, to please protect him from the cameras because he will be extremely emotional for the first five minutes after the ride. Because it will be his very last bull he ever rides, and it will be emotional. When he went to ride that bull at got to 6.8 seconds and bucked off, and came running off, he came over to me and grabbed me and asked me to remember our deal, so he could get himself together. And I did, and he said that was the greatest thing anyone had ever done for him, and he thanked me as a friend. That is one of my best moments ever with the PBR. P+P PORCH + PRAIRIE magazine | FALL 2021 - 89