I was still living in Concord, NC, yet I do not know why; maybe it was because I could ride bulls just outside of town, plus, I could practice riding in a town down the road in Dallas, NC.  Oddly enough, I was able to get entered in a bull riding in Creedmore, NC once again, and Creedmore is outside of Raleigh which was an hour from my parents house in Mebane.  So, I thought I could knock out this little trip of bull riding and visiting my parents at the same time, and that is what I did.

I was excited!  I was on the road to Creedmore with Chris LeDoux songs playing from the car speakers, and I did not even mind that I was by myself.  No one in my family wanted to come watch, though Chad had come to watch me one time; I suppose they did not exactly support my decision to ride bulls, but I had to keep going to try and make it to the Professional Rodeo Cowboy’s Association, as that was my long term goal, though I wanted to get there in a short amount of time.

I loved riding in Creedmore because it was a nice setup, and they had some rank bulls.  This time I was not entered in the amateur round; I was riding with the big boys.  I got there early to pay my entry fee and to find out which bull I had drawn; I had drawn a bull called Danny Boy.  I was a bit surprised when I saw Danny Boy because he was a huge Brahma bull, and Brahma bulls can be mean.

I was behind the chutes putting on my black chaps with the red trim and white stars, strapping my spurs to my boots, putting rosin on my blue bull rope, and finally, putting on my black protective vest.  My nerves were a little stirred up since I had never seen such a specimen in Danny Boy, and let alone have I ridden such a monster.  I asked the owner of the bull riding what Danny Boys pattern was once he left the chute, and he just held up his index finger and did a circular motion; he was a man of few words, but words could not have said it any better: Danny Boy spins to the left.

Well, it was about time for me to straddle the giant Brahma bulls back, and I come to find out that my bull rope has to be undone to be made longer just to fit Danny Boy which ticked off the chute boss; I forgot!  I had a mouth piece in my mouth and I was listening to the announcer as they got my rope ready; he said that Danny Boy had not been ridden 8 seconds this season, and about that time my mouth piece fell out of my mouth and into the mud below.  I also heard the announcer comment on my chaps and how pretty they were, and I was just like, really?!

The cowboys helping out had fixed my bull rope, so I step on Danny Boys back to let him know I am coming, and then I slowly straddle him.  Quickly, a cowboy holds up my bull rope so I can warm up the rosin I had put on earlier, and then the cowboy pulls my rope as tight as possible cutting off the blood circulation in my hand; I pull the rope over toward my left hand which is in the rigging and wrap the rope around the back of my hand and take a hold of it.  Danny Boy is standing ready in the chute, and I sit ready on his back that was only a couple of inches from the top of the chute-gate because he was so big.  I take a deep breath and nod my head and yell okay!

Danny Boy came out of the chute like an explosion and spinning to the left and I stuck with him.  I could feel my right leg spurring him with each jump, and man did he spin fast.  I hung with Danny Boy for about 6 seconds before I lost my footing, and my whole body was extended over his while he was spinning, so I decided to let go and I went down in the well.  The well is when a cowboy falls on the same side the bull is spinning toward, and that is not a place a cowboy wants to be.

I was on the ground beneath Danny Boy while he was still spinning: he stomped on my  lower, middle back, the side of my left knee, and even grazed the back of my head.  At this point I was crawling away in the mud with all my might, and when I saw the bull fighters finally got Danny Boy out of the arena I just rolled over on my back struggling to breathe.  It was chaos because a couple of cowboys and a paramedic were talking to me while the announcer was talking in the background.  One cowboy was telling me to breathe while the paramedic was asking me if I wanted to go to the hospital.

For a second I considered going to the hospital because I knew I was hurt, but then my breath came back to me, and I held out my hand and they helped me up.  I could barely walk, but I managed to climb over the fence to get back behind the chutes and to my tack bag and gear.  My vest and chaps were covered in mud, but this nice cowboy had cleaned them up for me.  I limped to the concession stand and got me a drink, and them I got in my car and drove to my parents house where I spent the night, and my parents did not know a thing about my injuries until a couple days later.

It may sound crazy, but I had the time of my life that night in Creedmore.  My back and knee still hurt from Danny Boy, but I will always have that memory and a moment of courage that broke me, but I made it through because I know Jesus was watching over me or I probably would not have lived to tell this story.

Stay safe and God bless!

Chris