Wild Thing closes with a pair of 90-plus rides

CHURCH ROCK, N.M.

The finale of 32nd Annual Wild Thing Championship Bullriding was one to remember.

Though some fans had left Red Rock Park a little too early on Saturday night, the remaining Wild Thing enthusiasts were treated to a pair of 90-plus rides.

Texas bull rider Lane Nobles produced a 92-point score aboard Firebrand #03, a 4B Bucking Bulls product as the second to last rider out.

As this year’s final act, Chinle cowboy Robbie Taylor topped that score with a mind-blowing 94-point ride on Owen Washburn’s Shogun, which tied a Wild Thing and arena record.

“It’s unreal,” Wild Thing promotor Larry Peterson said. “Those two rides would win any show in the entire country. I mean, they were that good and they would win any PRCA and any PBR show in the country.

“Those were the two best bull rides that I’ve ever seen in my whole life,” he added. “They were fantastic.”

Taylor, who earned the top prize of $10,000, earned his first 8-second ride at the annual event after two previous tries.

“This is the one that I wanted to win,” Taylor said. “I grew up watching from the stands, and it felt cool to spur one here.”

As for his score, the 21-year-old bull rider says this was his first time breaking the 90-point barrier.

“Shoot, I didn’t know that I was going to be that high,” Taylor said. “I’m glad that I did. It’s something to remember every time I come back here. It’s my first 90 and now I (share) the arena record.”

According to Peterson, Shane Thurston was the first to make 94 points when Thurston won the event in 1997.

Before a capacity crowd, Taylor was able to replicate that score on a bull he’s familiar with. The two athletes faced each other at the Valley Center Stampede Center in late May when Taylor scored an 87-point ride on Shogun to win the PRCA rodeo in California.

“I just wanted to spur him,” Taylor said. “As long as I do my job, I’m happy (of the results) at the end of the day.”

As a two-time winner, Nobles was seeking to capture his third Wild Thing crown after winning the event in back-to-back years in 2014 and 2015. After making his ride count, it seemed like the 34-year-old cowboy had secured this year’s crown with Taylor being the last rider out.

“I did what I was supposed to do and I’m proud of that,” Nobles said. “You know, we all come here hoping to show up, and making the whistle is just a big part of it.

“I’m happy with what I did,” he added. “The other guy, he spurred his bull a bit and he made a pretty bull ride. That’s just the way it works out sometimes, but like I said I’m proud of what I did.”

A lot of his peers showed their appreciation by throwing their hats after he covered his ride.

“It’s always a good feeling, being 90 or more,” Nobles said. “It’s way better 82 or 85. It means you made a good bull ride, and everybody remembers you when you ride 90. They mean well and it just means you did something good.

“It’s just cherry on top when you have guys throwing their hats,” he added. “They’re happy and proud of what you did.”

For his efforts, Nobles collected $5,371.

“When I first came here, I was 92 and I won the bull riding,” Nobles said. “It paid a boatload of money. It’s one of the loudest and best bull riding we go to each year. My wife loves it here, and she tells everyone that we know about the bull riding here.

“I’m grateful that Larry puts on a great show all these years,” he added. “This is a big bull riding to hit during the summer and if you do your job, they pay you good.”

Another bull rider that showed up included 2024 winner Odey Tom, who posted an 87-point ride on Saturday night.

“He did hell of a ride and I thought he was going to win it,” Peterson said. “He ended up third, but that young man made a hell of a ride.”

Tom, who collected the third-place prize of $4,505, made the best of Owen Washburn’s 2-year-old bull in Saturday’s performance.

“I didn’t draw too good,” Tom said. “He didn’t have the cooler look like the bigger bulls. He didn’t have the jump or the kick, but he was pretty quick.

“He was more like trying to control a little firecracker underneath you,” he added. “He was quick, and he was kind of hard to keep up with. But I kept my hands closed, kept pumping, and kept moving my feet and I eventually got it done.”

Friday night’s leader Eddie Sam dropped to fourth place with the 85-point effort he scored on Ezra the Great.

“Once I felt him on the corner, I felt like I could ride him all day,” the Diné bull rider said of his ride. “Towards the end, I knew he was getting harder to ride so there was no day off. But I had to keep sticking to my plan and having faith in my Lord.”

The 17-year-old, who is slated to start his senior year at Rio Rancho’s Cleveland High next month, says placing at Wild Thing bodes well for his future.

“I want to continue to ride, and this gives me a lot of confidence,” Sam said. “It gives me a boost that I need. I just have to keep going, keep pressing and just have faith in the Lord.”

Marana, Arizona bull rider Caelen Reynolds placed fifth with an 85-point ride, which paid him $2,232 while Brazilian cowboy Patrick Sova Jr., rounded out the money winners with an 82-point score that earned him $1,732.

“Last year we covered eight and this year we covered six,” Peterson said. “We had a couple of guys that made the time, but they slapped their bulls and they got disqualified.”

The Wild Thing promoter credited the stocks of 4B Bucking Bulls, Owen Washburn, and Flying S of Texas for making it tough for the riders to make the 8-second ride.

“This is some of the best bucking bulls in the world here,” Peterson said. “They all live in hot country and when they bring them here, we cool off night and all my stock contractors say they buck a lot harder here than they buck anywhere else.

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