COLUMBUS, Ohio (October 9, 2010) - It is not easy to be one of the Top 40 professional bull riders on the Built Ford Tough Series.
And it’s even harder to become a World Champion.
“I put my body in a bad situation,” said Austin Meier, who knew the importance of making the whistle Saturday in the opening round of the Cooper Tires Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.
“I knew that bull was really mean, and he ended up hooking me, but sometimes you (have) to put your body aside and do what it takes. That’s what you (have) to do to win a world title.”
Meier hung on as long as he could, before finally giving way and taking a shot to the right side of his hips and buttocks. Super Dude followed by running over the top of him, but Meier was initially more disappointed in looking up at the time clock that said 7.3 seconds.
Officials called for a judge’s review, and after several anxious moments inside Nationwide Arena, the crowd roared with approval as Clint Adkins announced Meier had indeed ridden Super Dude 8 seconds.
The No. 1 rider in the world was given 78.75 points for his effort, which was important on two fronts.
First, his three closest competitors in the world standings – J.B. Mauney, Renato Nunes and Valdiron de Oliveira – all came down early Saturday night. Second, Meier posted one of only 14 qualified rides Saturday, and in spite of having the lowest score of the round, he’s still in a position to place in the average Sunday afternoon.
“I definitely had to do a lot of work,” Meier said, “and, you know, those are times when you’re putting out a lot of work – like you’re trying to make a 98-point ride, and the bull ain’t doing enough to get you past 80.”
He later added, “If you ride all three, you’re going to win a heck of a check – even if you are 78 points the first round – and a heck of a check means a heck of a lot of points.”
Listen to the full post-event interview with Meier here.
Meier now leads Mauney, who is second in the standings, by 785.5 points.
The 23-year-old Oklahoma cowboy was looking forward to his matchup with Super Dude. However, the trip was anything but what he expected after watching video of his earlier outs.
Instead, what Meier got was a bull that continued changing speeds. “He would slow down, speed up and slow down,” as well as push him to the outside, before trying to bring Meier back down in the well, which is what finally got him in trouble.
But after the review, the replay judge ruled that Meier did, in fact, have the tail of his rope still in his hand when the whistle blew.
“Shoot, I hung off the side of that bull for a long time trying to make the whistle,” said Meier, who added that it was one bull he definitely needed to take advantage of if he plans to win a title in 2010.
“We’ll find out at the end of the year whether that was the moment that went my way, or whether it was last week on Loaded Gun,” said Meier, who is nine bulls away from knowing the answer.
“Anytime you can put another score on the board – whether it’s 78 or 93 – it helps and counts for a lot.”
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