Lerwill brings many hats to Sandhills Stock Show and Rodeo

By Ted Harbin
Posted Monday, December 29, 2008

ODESSA, Texas - The oversized, yellow, foam cowboy hat might be the first thing you see when he walks into the Ector County Coliseum for the SandHill Stock Show and Rodeo.

It's Troy Lerwill: funnyman, daredevil, bullfighter and all cowboy. He's been selected as the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association's comedy act of the year, the Coors Man in the Can and the barrelman for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

The kudos are great and are a reflection of the respect those with close ties to the sport of rodeo have for the Payson, Utah, man, who makes his living traveling the country, showing off his athletic talents and making people laugh. If you haven't seen Lerwill in action, you've missed the mark; and a lot of giggle time.

But there's so much more to Troy Lerwill. He began his career in rodeo as a bullfighter in 1994 and turned pro in 1997. Years spent on the motocross circles "and hills and leaps and all that goes with dirt-bike racing led him to create his "Wild Child" persona, which not only brings crowds to their feet but also sits them on their pockets with laughter.

"I told myself that somehow it had to be possible to jump a Dodge pickup truck and a Bloomer trailer with my dirt bike," Lerwill wrote on his Web site. "In 1998, "the Wild Child" was born, and since then, I am performing one of the most spectacular acts in professional rodeo."

Although his motocross talents are well described, there's a passion for rodeo that’s the cornerstone for every performance Lerwill makes. Born and raised in Payson, his parents gave him his first horse when he was 4 years old. His father, Lynn, is a team roper; mother, Penny, is a former rodeo queen. A life of extreme sports was sure to follow.

"By the age of 10, I started riding motorcycles. Within two years, I entered my first race," he said. "Six years later, I was No. 1 in the state of Utah in professional motor cross. In 1992, I stared the business of Downhill Cyclery, a mountain-bike retail and service shop in Payson."

Now he carries all of his passions - including those for his author wife, Rebecca - everywhere he goes, including the next couple of weeks in the Permian Basin.

CONTACTING TROY LERWILL: Would you like to know more about the fascinating life of Troy Lerwill? Contact Ted Harbin, the media consultant for the SandHills Stock Show and Rodeo, at sandhillsmedia@cableone.net “with the subject line WILD CHILD“ or at (660) 254-1900.