RL: Did you always want to be a professional cowboy
CS: Yes, for as long as I can remember, but I also wanted to play
football in college. I had a hard me deciding between the two
in high school. I had two or three rodeos in a weekend and I
had to miss football pracce to go to them. It was kind of rough
playing a football game Friday night then having to leave early
Saturday morning to go rodeo, but I’m glad I stuck it out.
RL: How long do eight seconds really feel when you’re
bucking on some of the industry’s strongest bulls
CS: If you do it right, it doesn’t feel that long at all. You’re not
thinking a whole lot, you’re ust moving. I think when you’ve
done it so many mes you can feel when eight seconds
rolls around.
RL: How important is physical tness to success in your career
CS: Prey important. If you’re not healthy, you won’t be able to
do your best.
RL: What is the last thing that goes through your mind
right before they open the chute
CS: Usually, I try not to have too much going through my mind.
If you’re thinking too much, you’ll psych yourself out. I ust keep
telling myself, wide open, wide open, wide open. I think: move,
go at it, wide open.
RL: Do you have any rituals that you do before you
go out to compete
CS: I have a roune I follow. The way I hang my rope up and
so on and so forth.
RL: How does it feel to share the win for your “hometown”
rodeo at the All-Florida Championship Rodeo
CS: It felt amazing. I went down there to win it and that’s what I
did. There’s no beer feeling than that.
RL: Is there any parcular bull that you haven’t
conquered yet that you hope to this season
CS: Yeah, I had a couple of them I didn’t overcome last year, but
I’m condent that I will this year.
RL: You received a degree in Ag Science, what do you
hope to do with your degree one day
CS: I hope I never have to use it, to be honest. I hope I never have
to pull that thing out of my pocket. I want to ride bulls and do
well enough at it to make a living. But, it’s good to have.
Photo by illiam Keirce
36 Rodeo LIFE