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The Extreme Bullriding Tour stop in Atlantic, Iowa, has a reputation - a
very good reputation. With a capacity of close to 5000 the stands
are traditionally full so it was no wonder that at 4:30 PM, three hours
before the event started, there were already 200 people in the
stands. By starting time it was hard to find even a place to
stand! The bullriders of the National Federation of Professional
Bullriders (NFPB) and the Bullriders of America (BOA), the two sanctioning
bodies of the event, felt the electricity in the crowd and gave them their
best. Even the bulls seemed to understand it was "show
time" and put forth that extra effort to give the riders an extra
challenge. In the end two men Josh Ehlers and Travis Van Larr tied
for first with 87 points and checks for $927.16.
At each event a bull is selected as the
Bull of the Event. 50 Smart Mouth earned this honor when he made
fast work of putting his rider on the arena floor. The bulls of the
Double S Bull Company "Attack Pack" owned by Shad and Vicki
Smith of Sidney, Iowa, continue to do their best to convince their
audiences that they are the real "stars" of the show.
One of the much anticipated portions of
each year's events is the "Wild Cow Ride" and fans were not
disappointed with this year's version. With local talent showing off
their skills the fans cheered and applauded their efforts.
Two other highlights of the night were the
Junior Bullriding won by John Young and the Midwest Bullfighting
competition won by Cory Griebel.
Earlier in the day Extreme Bullriding Tour
marketing director, Jennifer McDonald, was injured in a car accident and
the entire Extreme Team wishes her a speedy recovery. Jennifer is
also the mother of Extreme Princess, Abby McDonald, who also missed this
event because of her mother's accident. Abby normally does a 50/50
drawing for the benefit of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. In her
absence the drawing was conducted by Miss NFPB 2009, Rachel Burton, and
Miss Extreme Bullriding, Anna Hillsback, in honor of Abby and her commitment
to this cause.
The combination of announcer, Chris Pyle
and funnyman Allan Dessel was once again an explosive combination that
mixed with great bullriding had filled the night with explosive excitement
and entertainment that will last in fans memories for a long time.
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