Never has eight seconds felt so long. Bucking, head butting, jumping and spinning circles are all packed into eight seconds of work for a bull rider.
For Robert Aldredge, a senior in wildlife management, it is a thrill, a challenge, a competition between man and bull. If he hangs on for eight seconds, he defeats the bull. If he gets bucked off, it is a victory for the bull.
Aldredge has been involved in the sport of bull riding since July 4, 2001. His stats: Aldredge 10, bull 30.
“The first time I rode a bull, I was so fired up. It was the greatest feeling ever,” Aldredge said.
That feeling did not last long; he was bucked off after 2.3 seconds.
“Most people start out on a barrel, but Rob started out on the real thing,” said his father, Joe Aldredge.
As with most sports, injuries are expected; Aldredge has fought through a few of his own.
In March, he was fighting to stay on a bull named “Way-10”. He persevered, but when he tried to get off, he was in such an awkward position that his hand got caught in the rope and he was drug around. When his hand came loose, the bull smashed him against the gates.
Aldredge was knocked unconscious and went into convulsions. Amazingly, he walked out of the arena under his own power.
“Most injuries occur when a rider is trying too hard to make eight seconds, like I was. Sometimes, it is best to allow yourself to get bucked off. If not, you are at the bull’s mercy,” Aldredge said.
On Sept. 7, Aldredge was hit several times by a bull. This time he woke up in the emergency room with fractured bones around the eye and sinus cavity. These injuries kept him out of the arena for two months.
Aldredge was welcomed back to the arena on Nov. 9 by a bull named “Custard.” “Custard” came out of the shoot, bucked twice, spun three circles and stopped.
“I did feel him stop momentarily, but the bull fighter got him going again,” he said.
Aldredge did stay on for eight seconds and the judges gave him a score of 72.
The bull fighter is in the arena to keep the rider safe. Once the rider is off the bull, the fighter is supposed to keep himself between the bull and the rider, and funnel the bull out of the arena.
The second responsibility of the fighter is to keep the bull bucking by moving quickly around the bull. Rarely do bulls need to be enticed to buck; rodeo bulls are trained to do this.
A few riders wear helmets, but despite breaking bones in his face the last time he rode, Aldredge did not wear a helmet. His father said if he wants to keep riding, he is getting one for Christmas.
“When I climb that shoot and down onto the bull, I am a bull rider. I do not wear a helmet,” Aldredge said.
In 2001, Aldredge was working in a Boy Scout camp in New Mexico. He and two of his friends decided to enter in an open bull ride just to find out how it felt to be bucked around by a bull.
Aldredge enrolled in a bull riding class in October 2001.
Aldredge said he gained a lot of knowledge and appreciation for the sport of bull riding from the class.
“It is more mental strategy than people believe,” Aldredge said. “Knowing when to adjust your weight and being able to anticipate a bull’s move is what keeps riders from getting bucked off and possibly hurt.”
On Dec. 8, 2001, he rode for the first time after attending the class, but did not make the eight seconds until Jan. 8 on a bull named “Uh-Oh.”
A bull rider must stay on for eight seconds to receive a score. Scores are calculated on a 50-point scale by two judges. Each judge can award up to 50 points, 25 for the rider’s techniques and performance, and 25 for the aggressiveness of the bull.
A rider who stays on a high bucking bull receives more points than a rider who stays on a less aggressive bull. The scores from the judges are added together to get the riders final score.
Aldredge’s highest score is a 72, which he has achieved five times. In the semi-pro bull riding circuit, a 72 is competitive. He has won $247 for one ride, and just missed jackpot winnings a few other times.
Aldredge rides in the Central Ohio Professional Bull Riders Association. He said the circuit is regionally recognized as professional, but on a national scale it is only semi-pro competition.
“In this level of competition, we ride for a hobby. On a good night half will score and the top five will win money. For the rest of us, we ride again another day,” Aldredge said.
Aldredge handles pre-ride anticipation by looking the bull he is about to ride in the eyes and repeating the Bible verses he has printed on his chaps.
“I feel I get an internal perspective with the bull and that relaxes me,” he said.
Before Aldredge started riding bulls, he was a decathlete on the OSU track team for three years. He said competing in Big Ten sports gave him a competitive edge over other bull riders.
“Aldredge was a walk-on and was able to earn two varsity letters in the most difficult track sport,” said Jack Warner, OSU track coach.
When Aldredge said he wanted to concentrate more on bull riding, Warner said he respected his decision.
Aldredge still sees himself as more of an athlete than a bull rider.
“Bulls are tremendous athletes,” he said. “When I ride a bull I am an athlete going up against another athlete. With other riders, it is a bull rider versus an athlete.”
