Bull Pen January/February 2010 by FanCorp Publishing

bullpenmagazine.com

Features 14 2010 Preview 18 SNP Genotyping 22 Straight Talk Seminar 26 Paul and Gail Sparks 30 Breeders of the Year:

34 On The Cover:

•

Steve and Julie Ravenscroft are ABBI’s 2009 Breeders of the Year. (photo courtesy of ravenscroft family)

•

Scott Accomazzo is ABBI’s 2009 Horizon Breeder of the Year. (photo courtesy of fancorp)

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Rafter HB’s Ice T&D is ABBI’s $10,000 Cowtown Classic Winner. (photo by allen glanville)

Christopher Burkhardt Publisher # ED1C24

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Susan Bedford VP of Publications

Steve and Julie Ravenscroft Horizon Breeder of the Year: Scott Accomazzo

Columns 36 Who’s Your Daddy? The Frick Factor 38 Allen Glanville’s Hot Shot 39 Dr. Jonathon Beckett’s Nutritional News 40 Amy Gardner’s ABBI Jr. Breeders 42 Bull Biz with Cody Lambert 44 Ask. Dr. Warner

Responsible Livestock Management

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Jeannie Kaiser Director of Operations Cody Lambert, Justin McKee, Dr. Gary Warner, Bridget Cook, Amy Gardner, Sugar Kuhn, Allen Glanville, Cindy Gotoski, Dr. Jonathon Beckett Contributing Writers Cedric Maniquiz Graphics Wrangler Allen Glanville, Andy Watson, Bronte Phillips Photographers ABBI’s Bull Pen is published bi-monthly by FanfCorp Western Lifestyle Publishing 714-434-2579 • bullpenmagazine.com fancorp@fancorp.net ©2010 All rights reserved. Printing by AA1-Litho.

Next Bull Pen: March/April 2010

Annual Breeders Guide

Deadline: February 1 Call or email us to reserve your spot today! (800) 664-5617 • sales@fancorp.net

www.americanbuckingbull.com Bull Pen, FanCorp and the ABBI are not responsible for opinions or claims made in this issue.

4 January/February 2010

ATTENTION: BREEDERS & OWNERS OF TOP TRIPLE BUckING BULLS HORN

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We are proud to announce that 4C’s Bucking Bulls, owned by Gilbert and Julie Carrillo, have agreed to host the first horn of the Triple Horn Futurity Series.

Anyone can nominate any bull to be eligible for these Bonus Bucks. The one-time nomination fee is $300 and must be paid by december 31, 2009. nominations after december 31, 2009 will pay a nomination fee of $1,000 to be eligible for THE EXCLUSIVE GENETICS BONUS BUCKS.

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Welcome to 2010 and the start of the seventh season of the ABBI. There are a lot of things I’m excited about as we start a new season. One is the Super Classic events that will be starting this year. PBR is presenting us with two rounds at these Built Ford Tough Series events. This will be an opportunity to showcase even more of our great 3 and 4-year-old bulls to a national audience. Futurity season will also be starting soon and based upon the calves at the World Finals, this year I can’t wait to see the 2-year-olds in action. Last year was record-setting for us. The ABBI had 25,624 new animal registrations in 2009, up from 24,453 in 2008. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish this year for registrations. I was glad to be able to be ring in the New Year by promoting the first ABBI Classic event of the season. Congratulations to Duston Hull and Rafter HB for winning the Cowtown Classic with their bull Ice T&D. I’d also like to thank everyone who worked so hard to make this event held at the Ft.Worth Stockyards a reality. A big “thank you” to all the ABBI members who came out to participate or watch the event. We were able to get 80 bulls bucked in 2 hours. The fans that packed the house to see the event got what they wanted to see—a lot of bull riding! I was very proud of what we were able to accomplish and hope we’ll be able to do it again next year. An important thing that all ABBI members need to be aware of is a change in the DNA registration. As of January 1, you will only be able to submit the same number of cows as the number of offspring that you are registering. For example, if you are registering 8 calves you can submit 8 dams for us to run them against. You will also need to list your breeding sires. This means everyone needs to keep the best breeding records possible. Better records means more accurate information is submitted, which in turn gets you better results. This will also ensure that we are only testing against current breeding stock, which helps us to keep registration costs down. If you haven’t checked out www.pbr.tv yet, it is a great place to watch bull riding. And in 2010, videos of Classic events will be available on PBR-TV’s ABBI Bull Channel throughout the year, as well as some historic footage of past ABBI events. 2010 is bringing a lot of exciting and positive changes to the industry. I hope to see each and every one of you at an event this year. Thank you for being a part of the ABBI and please feel free to call the office or visit americanbuckingbull.com for more information.

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6 January/February 2010

Rodeo Palm

Springs

March 12-14, 2010

Jo in u s at the familyfrien dly Palm Spring s Wild WestFest an d Professional Ro deo Cowboy Assn. event, de dicate d to the late Cowboy Mayor Frank M. Bogert.

Rodeo Tickets

(The Wild WestFest is free to the public!)

a Adults $20 ($25 at gate) a Youths 12 & under $10 ($15 at gate) a 3-Day Pass $47.50 (Save $12.50) a 3-Day Pass Youths 12 & under $20 (Save $10)

a Daily Family Package for 2 Adults & 2 Youths $49 (add $8 per Youth)

a Preferred Seating close to the chutes $40 a VIP Club Seating $250 (all inclusive at

tables arenaside—open bar, buffet dinner plus access to contestant area)

a VIP tables of 10 available - while they last) 800-664-5617

With twang ing guitars, fier y fo o ds an d exciting ro deo un der the stars, Palm Spring s’ fame d desert heat takes on a whole new meaning.

Honorable Frank M. Bogert

Frank Bogert Memorial

PRcA Rodeo

Palm Springs Wild

We s t a Fe s t presented by

M usic F estival

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West

Cowboy Ball & Dance Hall To benefit Palm Springs Mounted Police Search & Rescue

productions

Tickets on Sale : Now at

Fiesta del Charro a Mutton Bustin’

Mounted Shooting Competition

Cowboy Carnival a Golf & Poker Tournaments Located near Palm Springs Convention Center

Vendor and Sponsor info: 800-664-5617 Official Hotels include the Riviera, the Renaissance and the Travelodge in Palm Springs

w w w . palmspringswestfest . c o m

NEWS, NOTES

NODS allen glanville photos

Happy 2010 I hope you and yours had a safe and happy holiday season. I was lucky to get to see so many friends— new and old—at the seminar in Denton right before Christmas. I didn’t get to ring in the New Year at the Cowtown Classic due to hand surgery and a subsequent cast on my left arm. My big joke was “at least it’s not my writing hand!” Writing/riding, get it? Ok, maybe I need new material! Anyway, I wish I got to spend more holiday time with my ABBI family but I want everyone to know belatedly that I feel blessed to work in such an amazing industry with such fantastic people. It looks like the economy may finally be turning the corner and I really think this is going to be a great year for the bucking bull industry. I wish every ABBI member success, health and happiness for 2010.

Former ABBI Champs Set to Play Cowboy Stadium If everything works out between now and Feb. 20, you can expect to see Black Pearl (2009 ABBI Classic Champion) and Crosswired (2008 ABBI Classic Champion) take center stage at the Dickies Iron Cowboy Invitational Presented by WinStar World Casino. This event is a new and unique Black Pearl format for the PBR. There will be brackets and when it gets down to the top cowboys, they will face off headto-head by riding the same bull. The last two cowboys standing will both face Code Blue. “Black Pearl and Crosswired will be in one of the brackets,” confirmed PBR Livestock Director Cody Lambert. “This will be really good exposure for the ABBI to have two past champions in this event at Cowboy Stadium.” Crosswired

8 January/February 2010

Let’s just make sure there’s no cows to distract our superstars …remember what happened to Romo last season?!?!

Mauney Makes it to the Whistle on Code Blue “All the greats eventually get ridden.” That is a Cody Lambert quote that I’ve heard over the years time and time again. And as much as some stock contractors would like to disprove it, Lambert speaks the truth. Code Blue’s winning streak came to an end in Madison Square Garden on January 10. The Walton & Wagoner / Berger & Struve bull faced off against J.B. Mauney in the short go. I was lucky enough to be in NYC at the event and at first I didn’t think Mauney had made eight. But he did—although it wasn’t a very pretty ride! The last two seconds of the ride, the Carolina cowboy was on the side of the great bull. Mauney earned just a 76.25 on the 2010 World Champion Bucking Bull. Mauney only pocketed $468 for that ride, but his pride in finally riding a bull many thought was unrideable was priceless. It also helped him secure the third place spot in the overall and he left the Big Apple with over $9,000. Not a bad birthday gift for the cowboy who had turned 23 the day before.

Heavy Hitters in NYC And speaking of New York…between Berger, Teague and Robinson there were some insanely great bulls in the Big Apple for the second PBR Built Ford Tough Series event of the year. The crowd for the three-day event was one of the most enthusiastic I’ve ever heard anywhere—with cheers and boos! With a 91.25 on Bones in round one, event winner Shane Proctor had the Hi-Marked Ride of the event. 2008 World Champion Bones dumped Valdiron de Oliviera in the short go. Besides Bones and Code Blue, the short go included: RFD-TV, RMEF Bugle, Smack Down, Yellow Jacket Jr., Chicken on a Chain, Big Tex, Lone Star, Voodoo Child, Chance, Major Payne, Uncle Buck, Show Stopper and Pinball Wizard.

ABBI Sponsored Events SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Please see americanbuckingbull.com for latest updates and information.

Cowtown Classic New Year's Eve Cowtown - Ft. Worth,TX 12/31/2009 to 12/31/2009

Closed

Amarillo Battle of the Bulls - Amarillo, TX 1/22/2010 to 1/23/2010

Closed

OKC BFT Oklahoma City, OK 2/12/2010 to 2/12/2010

Opens: 1/18/2010 8 AM Closes: 2/1/2010 5 PM

Kansas City BFT Kansas City 3/5/2010 to 3/5/2010

Opens: 2/8/2010 8 AM Closes: 2/22/2010 5 PM

Spring Fling Classic Stephenville, TX 4/3/2010 to 4/3/2010

Opens: 3/8/2010 8 AM Closes: 3/22/2010 5 PM

Spring Fling Futurity Stephenville, TX 4/3/2010 to 4/3/2010

Opens: 3/8/2010 8 AM Closes: 3/22/2010 5 PM

Pueblo BFT Pueblo Event Center 5/14/2010 to 5/14/2010

Opens: 4/19/2010 8 AM Closes: 5/3/2010 5 PM

Tulsa Super Classic Tulsa, OK 7/16/2010 to 7/17/2010

Opens: 6/21/2010 8 AM Closes: 7/5/2010 5 PM

Springfield Super Classic Springfield, MO 9/17/2010 to 9/18/2010

Opens: 8/23/2010 8 AM Closes: 9/6/2010 5 PM

Ooops! Our apologies for misidentifying Jewell Creigh in the Reno Recap last issue. We would also like to clarify from Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Your Daddy? that Alvin Jones raised Code Blue. Please note that in every story all information pertaining to original breeders, ownership and individuals involved in raising bulls mentioned are accurate to the best of our ability and the resource material we have available to us.

Palace Station Express Passes

by Allen Glanville photo by Andy Watson

alace Station Express passed away this December, he was sixteen years old. He was the last known surviving son of CP 100 Charlie from the Charlie Plummer line. Palace Station Express was bred and raised by Dale Lyons, Big L Rodeo of Rubottom, Oklahoma. Lyons remarked about raising this bull, “He was sired by CP 100 Charlie and out of a Lyons cow. Until he was six or so they rode him like a Shetland pony, all of a sudden he woke up and became a good bucking bull. Mike Lee at 15 rode him and Tommy Mataska rode him once and waved at me while doing it. The bull just kicked it up a notch or two and from then on was a great bucking bull. I don’t know what changed him but I will take credit for it. We sold him to Terry Williams who took him to the PBR and his legacy went from there.” Terry Williams said, “I can always count on Dale Lyons for good bulls, he is old school and knows what bucks. When I first got PSE I named him Doctor X because I was bucking another bull called Palace Station. When we retired him we named Dr X Palace Station Express. He was good every time and when they did ride him it was for a bunch of points. I kept the bull

Palace Station Express bucks with fire under his feet PBR event ST Louis, MO. 2001 rider: Chris Shivers.

for many years and bred him to some good producers because I really liked him.” Palace Station Express was bucked many times in the PBR and was picked for the short go round in most events. He bucked three times at the PBR finals (99, 2000 and 2001) and was included in the famous rank pen during the 1999 finals. During his career he scored 44 points some nine times, marked 45 four times and 46 points twice, not bad for starting his career at seven. Chris Shivers rode Palace Station Express for a score of 94.5 during the PBR event in Ft.Worth, Texas. Palace Station Express also had a bad hip his entire career. Just imagine how good this bull would have been if he was healthy. Palace Station Express was last owned by John McKee and Russ Gant.

X101 Rampage Dies

101 Rampage passed away during a snowstorm in Oklahoma just before Christmas. Rampage left a huge legacy during his career in the PBR. X101 was in the running for the PBR Bull of the Year each year he was bucked. He was runner-up once and was feared by many riders because of his rankness. X101 was born in North Carolina in 1995 and was bred and raised by Charlie Oldham, known for raising good bucking bulls. Oldham bucked X101 at many open events and after showing his greatness started bucking him at the PBR level. During the PBR event held in Richmond, Virginia

10 January/February 2010

Story and Photo by Allen Glanville

in 1998 James Harper bought X101 after watching him buck off Troy Dunn. Harper campaigned X101 until he sold him to Herrington Cattle Company for the then unheard of sum of $50,000. Herrington continued to buck him at the PBR level until 2002 finals, where he was retired. Rampage left the bucking bull industry with a phenomenal record. His buck off rate was 90.2%, average bull score was 44.11 and a rating of 22.13. Troy Dunn rode X101 for 95.5 in 1998. X101 was marked 47 points twice in his career and 46 four times. It should be noted bull scores were not recorded his first two years of competition and he was only ridden twice during that time. X101 made five trips to the PBR finals and that alone speaks volumes. Rampage was sold after the 2002 finals to Milt Bradford who later sold him to TYJ Ranch where he was the herd sire for five years. X101 was sold to Boyd West and Mike Young in 2008 and they owned him until the end. Breeder Dale Lyons summed up ole Rampage when he said, “I’m willing to bet that the cowboys in Heaven weren’t smiling when Ole Rampage showed up.”

ABBI Member Benefits From your official sponsors: Members receive 6 colorful, educational issues of Bull Pen magazine each year. In addition, members qualify for the special Member Rate when they advertise in Bull Pen, the ABBI Breeders Guide or the ABBI Las Vegas Finals program. Bull Pen is the Authority on Breeding, Buying and Bucking Bulls. www.bullpenmagazine.com. # ED1C24

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Big Tex would like to extend a great discount to all ABBI members and PBR riders, stock contractors and bull owners. All you have to do in an e-mail or phone call is mention Big Tex Trailers slogan “Tough As A Texas Longhorn” or “Big Tex 13” for your special discount. Big Tex Trailers has a large selection of new and used trailers available. Horse, stock, utility, cargo, and many other trailers are available at all times, as well as truck beds. Big Tex Trailers takes any type of trailer in on trade and offers financing and a large selection of parts. Mt. Pleasant, Texas. (903) 577-7418 or mitzil@bigtextrailers.com. www.trailersdirect.com or www.bigtextrailers.com.

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Makers of the Original Blue Bucking Dummy and the “Ultra” Blue Dummy, now the PREFERRED Dummy of the ABBI. Check out the “Little” Blue Dummy, only 14 pounds, for weanlings and yearlings. Little Blue donated three Ultra Blue dummies to benefit the Jr. Futurity at auction. 325-643-5270

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Cooper Tires is the official tire sponsor of both the ABBI and the PBR. A fraction of a second really counts in bull riding, and when a fraction of a second is on the line, you can count on Cooper Tires to make a difference. Visit coopertire.com. ABBI Contact: 101 West Riverwalk Pueblo, CO 81003 Cody Lambert Bob Diedrich Tony Sharp Phone: Shawn McDermott & Jason Diedrich & Craig Zaunbrecher 719-242-2747 Ty Murray Brad Boyd & Toby Floyd Kaycee Simpson Fax: Russell Gant Bob & Kristen Tallman Lyndal Hurst Thomas Taylor 719-242-2746 ABBI Shareholders

yspace.com/pbr_bfts 2010 ABBI BOARD OF DIRECTORS Andee Lamoreaux

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Scott Accomazzo & Moody-Rice Cattle Co. David M. Allen Berger Bucking Bulls Diamond S Bucking Bulls & Scott Pickens Dillon & H.D. Page Jerome & Tiffany Davis

Doug & Stephanie Joseph Don & Janelle Kish Tino/Edward Martinez Julio Moreno, Cindy Rosser & Cotton Rosser Jim Bob & Diana Nall Paradise Farms Monty Samford

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Preview:

April 10, 2010

Rafter G Rodeo’s Complete Mature Cow Herd Dispersal Sale

by Sugar Kuhn

hen building a solid bucking bred program the value of the industry’s deepest and largest programs can’t be denied. Rafter G Rodeo and breeder Jim Gay represent a program that’s been carefully cultivated since the early ‘60s. With lineages that stem from colossal buckers of the ‘80s and ‘90s the April 10 sale provides an opportunity to purchase a piece of foundational reproductive bull history. Gay will be offering a once in a lifetime chance to obtain some of the most elusive genetic lines in the industry. Because Rafter G Rodeo no longer produces the Mesquite Championship Rodeo the program no longer needs to maintain such a large herd to produce

Rocker cows, the oldest being 1995 models. These rare and highly sought after females are being offered for the first time and are the foundational females that Rafter G Rodeo has depended on to produce an unlimited number of top-drawer buckers. Rafter G Rodeo’s first bounty bull GL10 Dodge Dakota will be showcased through only a handful of existing daughters. While these females are few, they are known to be excellent producers. A young sire which Gay has high hopes for in the future is Bell Rocker, a son of Western Rodeos’ Pacific Bell out of famous producing cow Lady Rocker who gained notoriety after producing the bucking wonder-trio of Shanghai, Panama Red and Gigolo.

Rafter G Rodeo and breeders Neal & Jim Gay represent a program that’s been carefully cultivated since the early ‘60s. such vast numbers of bucking bulls. Gay will be selling everything but heifers as he gets ready to take a few years off and change the programs size and scale. Among the mature cows included in the sale are daughters, granddaughters and great-grand-daughters of some of rodeos most accomplished sires. The list of heavy hitters whose genetics are history include bulls like Red Rocker, Dodge Dakota, Speck, Dodge Durango and Twilight Zone, as well as some of their well-known sons like Klassic Rocker, Spectacular, Speck So, Johnny Rotten and Purgatory. Cows that are up for grabs range from 2006 models all the way back to original Red

Another prolific bucker and sire in Gay’s genetic arsenal is NFR bull G21 Dodge Durango who produced sons Big D, Smart Bomb and King Herod. One of the rankest bulls Rafter G ever owned, G21 was purchased from Dwight Frick through a sale in Texarkana. The notorious bucker just recently died at age 19 but remains the 6th-ranked historical bucker on probullstats. His lengthy and accomplished career lives on through offspring offered on April 10. These G21 daughters out of Twilight Zone females are one of the most anticipated and possibly among the hottest offerings of the sale.

Stay tuned for a full program profile in the next issue of Bull Pen.

2010 A look into the future of the bucking bull industry.

by Susan Bedford

Historians will tell you that the past will often predict the future. To see what 2010

may bring for the bucking bull industry, we’ll start with a brief look back at the big news and headlines from December that will impact the industry in 2010. ABBI REACHES REGISTRATION MILESTONE

Just

seventeen days before we turned the last page of our 2009 calendars, ABBI made history. It came in the form of an embryo cow from Mt. Airy, N.C. Jimmy Chandler’s 952 became number 100,000 in the animal registry. The first animal registered was in 1994 when Bob Tallman started the Rodeo Stock Registry. That first animal registered was Sammy Andrew’s legendary bull Bodacious. When RSR became American Bucking Bull Inc. in 2004, there were just over 10,000 animals registered. “The foresight of Bob to understand what the registry could do for the bucking bull industry has flourished as the value of the animals included in the registry continue to increase,” stated Andee Lamoreaux, General Manager of the ABBI, in a press release about the momentous occasion. “The bucking bull events that support the registry are a true testament to the progression of treating bulls as athletes and developing the training methods, health, nutrition and cutting edge veterinarian

14 January/February 2010

treatments available to bucking bull breeders. We are proud to be the training grounds for the next generation of bulls for the Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR).” As the registration numbers continue to grow in 2010, each and every ABBI member can be proud of being a part of the largest and most extensive bucking cattle DNA registry in the world. “This first base of 100,000 core DNAd animals is truly the foundation for the heritage and documented ancestry of future generations of bucking bulls and elite females to come,” stated ABBI President Brad Boyd. “Congratulations to everyone who has bred or owned an animal in the registry. Being a part of the registry and this great business at such a monumental time is really something to be excited about.” Cody Lambert, Livestock Director of the PBR, echoed Boyd’s sentiment. “100,000 is quite a milestone, but what I am most proud of is the quality of the bucking bulls these days. There are more good bulls out there than ever before and the ABBI is one of the main reasons for that. Before the ABBI when someone bought a calf and bucked him they could never be 100% sure of that calf’s pedigree, but now every registered animal in the

ABBI is backed up with DNA, so you know exactly how your animals are bred.” With over 25,000 of those registrations coming from last year alone, the growth in 2010 should continue to soar.

ABBI WELCOMES MINI BULL BREEDERS

the “Success in the Bull Industry” bucking bull seminar held in December in Denton, Texas, Lamoreaux took the opportunity to talk to the large crowd of breeders assembled. She discussed some of the exciting changes in store for the new season. One of her announcements was that in 2010 the registry would be officially opened up to miniature cattle. Miniature cattle may sound cute, but these miniature bucking bulls are serious athletes—not a novelty. “I’ve heard from PBR cowboys how much better it is for young bull riders to get to learn, practice and compete on bucking cattle rather than steers,” shared Lamoreaux. Now the little bulls that help prepare young cowboys to become professional bull riders will be a part

PREVIEW REGISTRATION PRICES DROP

For

2008 and older animals, 2010 will bring a big price drop. “The board recently discussed the members’ issues about the cost of registering their 1 and 2-year-old animals and decided that the $250 and $500 were too high, especially in this economy,” shared Lamoreaux. The ABBI board decided to drop those prices to $120. Birth-year animals will be $60 to register. New breeder prices will be a flat $60 for the first 12 months of membership, but the breeder cannot have applied for an individual or partnership membership prior to this time. This should help to get even more breeders involved in our industry, despite the economy. Even as prices drop, ABBI contin-

ues to improve member services and the accuracy and efficiency of the registration process. ABBI has plans in place to implement new animal registration technology in the future. “As we prepare to move to the new technology, we are attempting to clean the registry up and to streamline the process of registering and testing newly submitted animals. This will be better for everyone involved, as better information into the system will allow us to produce better and more accurate results the first time,” explained Lamoreaux.

FUTURE SUPERSTARS

you can predict the next World Champion Classic or Futurity bull at this point in the season, you probably have super powers and can probably get a lucrative job at a Vegas casino sports book. At this

point of the game, there are too many variables and too few events to draw any truly meaningful analysis from. As we’ve seen time and time again, a bull’s Futurity record isn’t a solid indicator of his ability to excel in the Classics. Many breeders keep their Futurity bulls out for some or all of their 3-year-old competition year due to size, maturity level or other factors. And some great Futurity bulls don’t do squat as Classic bulls as the past has proven, just as some lackluster Futurity bulls really came into their own once they became Classic bulls. Classic bulls are a little bit easier to predict—once they start their second year of competition! When a 3-year-old has a stellar Classic season, you can probably safely bet that he may be able to shine as a 4-year-old as well. The best examples are Black Pearl and Crosswired. Both bulls were in the spotlight by Las Vegas 2008, with Crosswired taking home $250,000 and Pearl winning the reserve Classic title.

allen glanville photo

of the ABBI. Welcome aboard mini bull breeders!

Clancy Hart rides a miniature bull while dad Cody Hart gives him encouragement. Decatur, Texas.

bullpenmagazine.com

201 0 W P RE VI E

continued

It wasn’t a surprise when these superstars came back for their 4-year-old season and shattered records. Pearl was the 2009 Classic champion and both bulls were in the running to be PBR World Champion Bucking Bull—the first time any ABBI bull had earned that distinction. If you must pick Classic favorites this early in the year, look back to the 3-year-olds who did well in Vegas in the Fall. If they have already proven they have talent, if they have the right conformation and are being hauled, feed, cared for and managed well—then you just might be looking at the next quarter-million dollar baby. One thing you can predict—there are many future superstars among the class of 2010. We’ll just have to wait and see which brands rise to the top.

NEW FRONTIERS

Anytime

our sport gets media coverage, it helps it to grow which in turn helps breeders and the ABBI. The PBR is having a high-profile event in February that will make a whole lot of people look at our sport in a whole new way—and hopefully bring us even more fans. The PBR event will feature the top 24 PBR riders and be held at Cowboy Stadium in Arlington and will feature a unique head-to-head competition. The top 16 riders who advance will be getting on the same bull. “Eight of the toughest bulls in the PBR will be in that round,” confirmed Livestock Director Cody Lambert. When it is four guys left, it will be the No. 2 and No. 3 bulls from last year. The final two guys will each get on the No. 1 bull.” The cowboy with the lowest score will ride first. The bulls who will face-off against the top 8 will include such superstars as Bones, Major Payne, Black Pearl, Uncle Buck, Spitfire, RFD-TV (formerly Sasquatch) , Chicken on a Chain, Big Tex and Voodoo Child. The final two cowboys will each ride World Champion bull Code Blue—who was unridden until January 10 of this year. If neither man makes it to 8 on Code Blue, the winner will be the man who lasts the longest. It’ll be interesting to see if the greats get stronger by the second back-to-back ride, or how much of an advantage (or disadvantage) the format is for the second cowboy who rides.

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This photo shows a Sequenom SpectroCHIP®, which MMI’s lab uses for SNP analysis. A single DNA chip can hold up to 384 different samples and thousands of SNPs can be analyzed from it. Photo by Bronte Phillips.

by Sugar Kuhn with Dr. Dennis Fantin MMI Genomics CEO & Eric Johnston MMI Senior Manager of Operations

SNP Genotyping: ABBI Pushes toward Enhanced Genotyping Technology

It’s often said, “everything changes”-and nothing bears that truth more than genetic technologies, especially genotyping technologies. As the only bucking bred cattle registry, ABBI is making the move toward the latest and greatest technology available for genotyping. Staying true to its original goal of serving the industry and the bucking bull breeder through accurate preservation of bucking bull lineages and DNA parentage verification, the switch to SNP technology is under way. Above, this photo shows a 384 well reaction plate containing DNA samples from 384 individual cattle. On the right of the photo is a Sequenom SpectroCHIP®, which the lab uses for SNP parentage and trait testing. Photo by Bronte Phillips.

What is a SNP? In order for a cell to replicate, it first copies its own DNA. This original cell then divides into two cells each with the DNA that was copied. This copied and carried over DNA provides a complete set of genetic instructions. During this process of copying and dividing, mistakes are often made. These mistakes are similar to making a “typo (s)”. Luckily, cells are fairly “sophisticated” and are capable of “proofreading” and correcting most of these typos. But occasionally, some typos are not corrected and eventually lead to stable, non-lethal variations in the DNA sequence at particular locations in the DNA chain. These mistakes are called single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNPs (pronounced “snips”) and are passed on from generation to generation.

The Role of SNPs These SNPs often generate biological variation between individuals in a population or species by causing differences in the instructions for proteins that are written in genes. Traits such as color, disease susceptibility and other physical characteristics can be influenced by these SNPs, however many SNPs often lead to no observable differences between individuals at all. Nonetheless, they are present, identifiable and can be used to distinguish differences and congruencies among animals.

SNP Frequency & Variation On average, an SNP will occur once every 100-300 nucleotides. Nucleotides are the proteins which are specified in the genetic code. There are a total of four nucleotides each with a corresponding letter. The four different nucleotides are; A (adenine), C (cytosine), T (thymine), and G (guanine). SNP variation occurs when a single nucleotide, such as an A, replaces one of the other three nucleotide letters-C, G, or T. An example of a SNP is the alteration of the DNA segment AATTGGC to ACTTGGC, where the second “A” in the first snippet is replaced with a “C”. Interestingly, SNPs may not only be substituted, but can also be removed (deletions), or added (insertions) to a polynucleotide sequence.

18 January/February 2010

After undergoing several important biological reactions, the cattle DNA is spotted onto a solid matrix for SNP analysis. In this picture of a Sequenom SpectroCHIP®, the matrix corresponds to the 384 tiny white dots arranged in a 16 by 24 pattern. Since each tiny white dot is smaller than the head of a pin, robotic tools are used to deposit DNA from 384 samples onto the chip. This chip is then loaded into a Sequenom MassARRAY® Spectrometer (MS) which determines the composition of DNA markers that contain SNPs. The resulting SNP profile for each cattle is used to verify their parental records and protect the integrity of ABBI’s studbook records. Photo by Bronte Phillips.

How SNP Technology Benefits the Bucking Bull Industry Because DNA is passed from parent to offspring, SNPs versions are inherited by an offspring from its sire and dam. An individual will match siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins at many of these SNPs. However, an offspring will have far fewer matches with animals they are more distantly related to. The number of SNPs where an individual will match another animal can therefore be used to distinguish how closely related two individuals are. Dr. Dennis Fantin, Executive Vice President and Chief of Operations at MMI Genomics explained why SNPs can serve as an excellent genotyping tool. “Because SNPs occur frequently throughout the genome and tend to be relatively stable genetically they serve as excellent biological markers; we are starting to gain a greater understanding of how these SNP variations relate to physical and biological traits,” said Fantin. When discussing how all this relates to our industry, Toby Pollock Registry Manager at ABBI discussed common and

useful industry practices, and how they have made parentage verification difficult. “The bucking bull industry has relied greatly on the benefits of line-breeding. By implementing line-breeding, the bucking bull breeder has been able to multiply the positive traits found in animals that exhibit the characteristics which influence bucking behavior. Unfortunately parentage verification among heavily line-bred animals becomes very difficult among individuals that are genetically similar,” explained Pollock. Eric Johnston, Senior Manager of Operations elaborated on the value of SNP Technology when dealing with genetically similar animals and closed with a final thought. “The use of SNPs in other species which are heavily linebred has proved useful. When used as a genotyping tool, SNPs have been proven to streamline the parentage verification process and minimizes multiple possible matches when dealing with genetically similar animals. SNP technology should complement the parentage verification system ABBI already has in place and ultimately improve the accuracy of the information it strives to preserve.”

“The study of SNPs is very important to our industry and many other crop and livestock programs because of its role in genotyping. SNP genotyping is an important technology for assessing sources of genetic variation and utilizing that knowledge to make considerable genetic improvement in animal breeding programs,” —explained ABBI’s General Manager, Andee Lamoreaux.

20 January/February 2010

Straight Talk Seminar Story and Photos by Allen Glanville

asey Cox and Lisa Johnston of Swinging C Cattle Co. hosted the

“Straight Talk, Success in the Bucking Bull Business” seminar at the Diamond T Arena located in Denton, Texas on December 12. This idea of a seminar was brought about from a conversation Cox had with a friend. This friend told Cox about having hard times, but he and his wife had done something that had turned around his feelings about things. The friend reminded Cox to “be positive” and things would start to work out for him. Cox started thinking about what his friend had told him and decided to put together a seminar about the positive things going on in the bucking bull industry. He also decided it should be free. His first call was to Dale Lyons who had mentored him when he was getting into the cattle business. Once Cox had convinced Lyons to be involved, he called Monty Samford who had also become a friend and helped Cox with industry advice. After Cox had convinced both men about his seminar idea and had enlisted them to be the main speakers, he had to locate an arena that would help bring his idea to reality. The Diamond T facility was the perfect place, not only because it was indoors but because it was first class in every way. The next obstacle was getting

22 January/February 2010

sponsorship for his idea. When Casey approached this writer with the idea, I got excited and jumped on board. Aaron Custer of Mannsville Ag Center was the next person to step up and beMonty Samford amazes the crowd come the main with his “broom technique” sponsor of the event. Dr. Joe Able with based pregnancy test (BioPRYN) was Vitrogen USA, Twisted G Ranch, Hard also explained. Eight Bucking Bulls, Diamond T Arena, Also discussed were competitions D&L Farm & Home, Integrity Signs & for futurity, derby and classic bulls. Shirt Co., ABBI and Bull Pen Magazine Culling cattle and how to purchase soon followed as seminar sponsors. cattle were also examined. After an The seminar was designed for hour lunch break, where lunch was all types of breeders looking for new provided by The Hard Eight Bar BQ, ideas and the agenda was designed door prizes were drawn. The semiaround being educational and infornar was then turned over to Andee mative for both new and established Lamoreaux, General Manager of the breeders of bucking cattle. PRCA ABBI, who gave a presentation on rodeo announcer Wes Ward acted as what the ABBI was all about and how the moderator and kept everything to register cattle. Brad Boyd, President moving smoothly. Topics discussed of the ABBI, informed the group about included: having a business plan, mis- the competition side of the ABBI and takes that the speakers have made in discussed some of the changes in the past, the future of the industry, store for next season. selecting cows and competition bulls, The seminar then moved from the selecting breeding bulls, AIing and stands into the arena and became flushing, weaning and vaccinations a hands-on show. Attendees were and feeding programs. A new bloodshown how to chute break and flank a

bull, handle a bull in the chute, attach a bucking dummy and prepare for competition. The crowd was invited to do all of these tasks hands-on. Many female breeders attended and were as eager as their male counterparts to get hands-on experience in the arena. Something that amazed most of the attendees was Samford’s technique to settle a young bull once in the chute. Samford demonstrated his ‘broom technique’ where he takes a broom and sweeps the back of the bull to calm him down. Someone in the audience after seeing this was overheard remarking, “I’ll bet there will be a run at the hardware store on brooms next week!” Once the arena portion of the seminar was completed, everyone returned to the bleachers where the “question and answer” portion of the seminar got underway. There was also time allotted for anecdotes and stories from the speakers and those in the audience. Many were interesting and some were really funny. One from Brian Agnew was about his experience of breeding and raising PBR superstar bull Big Tex, an experience many breeders would like first-hand knowledge of themselves. After the event, many new friendships were formed and more people were able to add faces to familiar names. Everyone enjoyed the experience they had while at this seminar. Not a negative remark was heard except for the chilly weather which the crowd of about 200 endured for over 8 hours in exchange for the invaluable information learned. “This was a well planned seminar and I was glad to see the great turnout with people wanting to learn more about the bucking bull industry,” Lamoreaux remarked about the seminar. “Many people are looking

Brian Agnew talks about his experience with Big Tex.

24 January/February 2010

into getting into the bull business and we invited them to talk with us so we could help them. We are always looking for more people to become involved in our industry. We hope we helped some today by giving them our breeders guide.” Boyd added, “It was fantastic and really informative to all who attended. Many drove a long way to get here. There was a lot of knowledge shared from different perspectives. It was good for everybody. This seminar was good for the ABBI also, with so many

The seminar was designed for all types of breeders looking for new ideas and the agenda was designed around being educational and informative for both new and established breeders of bucking cattle. new breeders in attendance. I rate the seminar an A-plus and hope they will do more like this one.” “I really enjoyed doing this seminar,” remarked Samford. “I always enjoy being with cattle people. Many were curious about this industry and I hope we shed some light that there are some good people in our industry

who will take care of them and help them along the way.” Lyons added, “I was real happy with everything and I think the attendees got a lot out of it. I had many comments regarding how much they learned and many things they were not aware of before the seminar. I was surprised some of the large breeders attended. You could not tell them from the beginners sitting in the bleachers because they all sat there and paid attention. There were also some great questions that showed me they wanted to learn all they could from us.” Justin Bilby from Nebraska remarked, “Just having the chance to listen to men who have so many years experience in the industry got me here. I have so much respect for these men just from what I have heard about them. I am excited about what I have learned and will leave here with lots of new tricks and ideas.” “I have been doing this for a long time and I learned four or five things today that I just didn’t know,” shared Kansan Chad Scott, “and I sure am going to put this into my program.” Another attendee, Larry Richardson from Texas, said, “This was a big boost for the bull industry and no question was left unanswered.” Mannsville Ag Center’s Custer explained, “This was an excellent seminar with real good information for every level. I met some great people and you just can’t buy advertising like I received here today. If they have another seminar I will be there”. It was remarks like these that made many people realize just how needed this type of seminar was for the bucking bull industry. “Without all the combined help we could have never pulled this event off,” shared Cox as the seminar wound down, “not only the sponsors but all the extra help and those who donated the door prizes. Many helped in the back pens and with the demonstrations. Others took seminar registrations and cleaned up afterwards. It just all came together and I can’t thank them enough. I can now say we had a good positive seminar, thanks to all who came out and supported our event.”

Dillon and Paul Sparks, Errol Klein and Cody Whitfield.

Tiffany and Clifton feeding cows.

Paul and Gail Sparks

Building a Big Reputation, One Bucker at a Time by Cindy Gotoski

Oka Lusa Rodeo Stock

may be a small, family-run operation on a tight budget, but they’re building a big reputation. Paul and Gail Sparks don’t necessarily want to be one of the “big boys”—they just want to play in the same arena. Paul Sparks has spent most of his life around rodeo. He first started in the industry when he was 13 and came up fighting bulls on the circuit. He met Gail, his wife of 42 years, at a rodeo and married her five months later. Sparks started raising bulls back in the ‘70s but had to sell out and go to work in the oil fields. “The bull business wasn’t very good then and it was all my wife and I could do to make ends meet,” remembers Paul. “But an old stock contractor that I was fighting bulls for told me that raising bulls would be the thing of the future, and I never forgot that.” Working in the oil fields paid the bills, but Paul had a passion for rodeo and wanted to get involved in the industry again. One day he and Gail talked it over and together they decided the time was right to start breeding

26 January/February 2010

and raising bucking bulls again. Thus, Oka Lusa Rodeo Stock was created. In the beginning, Paul concentrated mostly on acquiring females, and in 2000 he partnered with the Klein Bros. on some breeding stock. “I had bought some cows from Derrel Hargis, Benny Beutler and a few others and Errol (Klein) had bought Wardance as a 4-year-old from Tyler Fowler,” stated Sparks. “We started breeding and then we brought in more breeding stock, and started culling to get what we wanted in a bucking bull. “We breed our cows to the best of Klein Bros. bucking bulls and when the bull calves are 3 we sell them to Klein Bros. Pro Rodeo and they start bucking them. This works out well for us because we can use the best of Klein’s bulls to breed our cows.” Utilizing the best Klein bulls to breed to their cows has worked out very well for Oka Lusa. “I would say our greatest accomplishment to date has been breeding to Smokeless Wardance who was PRCA Bull of the Year and runner-up PBR Bull of the Year. He is now being

hauled by Broken Arrow Rodeo Co.,” shared Paul. “Two of Wardance’s sons, K50 War Paint and K53 War Chief, which we raised and are now owned by Klein Brothers, were short round bulls at Cheyenne this year along with their sire. It was like a bucking bull family reunion at Cheyenne.” The following week, both War Chief and War Paint were chosen for the short round in Dodge City. “To raise bulls of this caliber took a lot of hard work but it sure paid off,” admitted Paul. Although Oka Lusa continues to build its breeding program primarily on the bloodlines of proven producer Smokeless Wardance (previously owned by Klein Bros.), the Sparks now have decided to mix things up a bit. “We are outcrossing to K586 Air Choctaw who is a son of 54 Up In Smoke, a grandson of Gunslinger,” acknowledged Paul. “Some of the other outcross bulls are K514 Mud Bone, a Mossy Oak Mudslinger son who is another Cheyenne short round bull, and K35 who is a A13 Trick or Treat son.” Oka Lusa, located near Cushing,

Texas in Nacogdoches County, has now grown into a family business. “Our youngest daughter Tiffany became interested so I gave her a set of heifers off Wardance and now she and her son Clifton are involved,” shared Paul. “We also have another grandson, Dillon, who is 11 years old and getting interested. He made the trip with us to Cheyenne and Dodge City and helped feed and work stock in the back pens.” Having their entire family involved in the business keeps the Sparks close and gives them a common goal to work toward. The Sparks have started out small. “At present we are running 25 mother cows with calves and about 25 bulls from 1 to 3 years old, plus we’ve got some breeding bulls,” stated Paul. But they continue to outcross to various bloodlines and expand their herd. The goal is to keep working on and improving the quality of the their bulls and eventually have one of the grandsons take over. “We don’t have a lot of money and don’t aspire to be one of the “big boys,” reiterated Paul. “We just want our reputation to be that we raise buckers and good ones at that. We’d also like to make a little money at the sport that I have been involved with since I was 13 years old.” With solid buckers like War Chief and War Paint, it’s clear that, despite their small size, Oka Lusa has already built a big reputation for themselves—one bucker at a time.

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I B B A 2009 s r e d Bree 2009 Classic Champion BLACK PEARL

r a e y e h t f o by Sugar Kuhn

Nothing is more important to any breeder than having their program recognized for its accomplishments. For Hyannis, Nebraska’s Steve and Julie Ravenscroft 2009, was their year—again. Although Ravenscroft Bucking Bulls won the first-ever Breeder of the Year title in 2000, winning it again nine years later carries a greater sense of achievement—and an even larger thrill. When Black Pearl was crowned the World Champion Classic Bull, the sense of achievement was unmistakeable on the faces of Steve and Julie Ravenscroft. Watching a bull win that they bred was exhilarating, but the win also produced their second Breeder of the Year award. One of the first registered breeders, Ravenscroft Bucking Bulls has realized its share of accomplishments in the bucking bull industry since the program began in 1998. Being Breeder of the Year has always been one of their main objectives. Although their program is regarded as one of the industry’s premiere breeding programs, its owners remain open and genuine while discussing where they started, what they’ve accomplished and how they’ve done it.

30 January/February 2010

photo by allen glanville

re the... a t f o r c s n e v e Ra Steve & Juli

“Winning in 2000 was great, but to win the award this year means a lot more to us,” Julie began. “Mostly,” added Steve, “because the competition is so much stronger now. Back in 2000 there would be only a handful of bulls that turned back. Now they all turn back. A bull has to bring something really special to the table now. We are competing against so many really great breeding programs and so many really great bulls compared to when we first won. This achievement is definitely on a much larger scale and something we are really, really proud of.” At first glance, it might seem that the Ravenscrofts have been lucky and that everything has always rolled their way. However, further delving reveals over a decade of hard work, motivated decisions and a love for breeding and raising champions. “Along the way,” explained Steve, “we have had our share of bad luck and learned from making decisions that were not the best thing for our program at the time. But sometimes those decisions make the biggest impact on your program—because you learn what not to do and correcting those things can end up really making an impact on your success.” In an attempt to examine the secrets to their success, the duo was asked about decisions that were influential to their success and also about those that had to be adjusted. “One of the mistakes we made initially was trying to compete with our bulls from here in Nebraska and hauling them ourselves to events. We weren’t having the success we should have. Making the decision to send our bulls

“Back in 2000 there would be only a handful of bulls that turned back. Now they all turn back. A bull has to bring something really special to the table now. We are competing against so many really great breeding programs and so many really great bulls compared to when we first won. This achievement is definitely on a much larger scale and something we are really, really proud of.” —Steve Ravenscroft down south was a decision we made after not seeing the results we knew our bulls were capable of. Getting those bulls used to the heat, and not having to haul them so far when they are young made a huge difference in their performance,” shared Steve. “We are constantly learning, daily,” added Julie. “We’ve used bulls that didn’t work on our type of cattle; made decisions that didn’t work, but its all part of the process. Each day you have to make decisions that affect your program. And winning Breeder of the Year is confirmation that we have made a lot of good decisions.” Among their good decisions was to hold back Black Pearl during his 3-year-old season. Although he was among the top 5 as a 2-year-old, not entering him until the Wild Card event in 2008 laid the foundation for his Reserve World Champion Classic title as a 3-year-old. It also was the launch pad for an incredible 2009 season which culminated with both the year-end and World Champion titles. Steve and Julie are quick to pinpoint one pivotal breeding decision as that which has had the most impact on their program and its success. “The best breeding decision we made was by far that of using Whitewater Skoal on our commercial females,” said Steve.

“From that cross came our female base which has been the foundation for our success,” emphasized Julie. “It has also helped living next to the third largest Angus breeder in the U.S. We have spent a lot of time talking to Marty and Jerry Connealy at Connealy Angus of Whitman (Nebraska) about their successes and experiences, about flushing and AI, and selection and genetics.” The Ravenscrofts put a lot of emphasis on selection by conformation. With Steve’s commercial cattle knowledge and Julie’s race horse industry background, the pair’s knowledge has complimented each other. “We are real big on selection and conformation. These bulls are athletes and have to be able to perform. They can’t perform without good conformation,” explained Julie. “You also have to understand genetics and breeding. If you don’t understand genetics it’s hard to understand selection. With conformation you have to understand balance. Both Steve and I can look at cattle and tell you if their conformation lends itself to being athletic and to performance-and that is something we’ve learned from experience.” Of course selecting, breeding and getting a superstar is just the beginning of the battle toward this type of achievement. The newly crowned Breeder of the Year dis-

The Ravenscroft family and friends came together to celebrate their success.

250 Black Pearl Ravenscroft/Boyd-Floyd 2009 ABBI Classic Champion.

cussed the challenging area of hauling and getting exposure for bucking bulls. “Getting a bull to a place where he has what it takes to compete is only half the battle. After you have done your selection and breeding and getting bulls started, you have to find somebody to get them out there. Finding the right contractor to do that for you isn’t as easy as you might think. It’s a working relationship and both parties goals have to be on the same page. There are some really great people out there and it takes time to find one that fits with your program and goals. We wouldn’t be accepting the Breeder of the Year award without Brad Boyd and Toby Floyd,” affirmed Steve. “They have really done a super job for us and putting our bulls with them has proved to be a really great decision. Without them we couldn’t have done it,” added Julie. Sticking with her always-present theme of encouragement, Julie offered advice to people new to the business and to the small breeder. “When we first started, we didn’t know anything about the bull riding industry. We knew about ranching and raising cattle though and that was helpful, but we had to learn as we went along. If you’re a small breeder, don’t be frustrated or discouraged. Although we now have about 100 registered females we started out with around 30 cows. At the time Black Pearl was born we only had around 50-60 head of registered females. So we still consider ourselves to be a small breeder. We are a testament that a small breeder can be successful in this industry. Winning Breeder of the Year is great, but winning it and being a small breeder makes the award that much more of an achievement for us,” beamed Julie. Quick to support and encourage others, especially

32 January/February 2010

photo by allen glanville

: r of the Year ABBI Breedecking Bulls (cont.) Bu Ravenscroft

those facing geographical challenges, both Steve and Julie talked about the positive aspects of raising cattle in the north and other cold climates. “I really want the breeders from the north and other cold climates to not get discouraged. There are a lot of really great things about raising cattle up here. You can do it cheaper and better in a lot of ways,” Julie stated. “Raising cattle in this climate produces bulls that are big and in many cases tougher,” added Steve. “They have to really eat to stay warm and being raised in this type of climate can make them hearty.” Many small breeders either don’t have the opportunity or understand the importance of going to events. Julie talked about this area of the business and its role in a program’s success. “Getting out and going to events makes a huge difference. You have to be willing to get out there and meet other breeders. There are so many great people in this industry and networking is a big part of being successful,” Julie pointed out. When asked to give final thoughts about what it takes to be a Breeder of the Year, luck and chance don’t seem to be a factor. “Success takes a lot of time and hard work. We’ve been working toward this goal for 11 years now,” said Julie. “We’ve never wanted to be contractors. We’ve always wanted to be breeders. Ranching and being breeders is what we are good at and what we love doing. It takes making lots of good decisions and reaching this goal really validates all those decisions along the way. It’s confirmation that you are doing things right and knowing that is a big reward in itself.”

Horizon Breeder Ace of Spades Ranch—Scott Accomazzo

by Sugar Kuhn

When the latch cracked for U-7042 Pure Smoke in Las Vegas, the wave of adrenaline reached every spectator. The mating between Hargis’ 54 Up in Smoke and a Monsoon daughter produced perhaps the most dynamic futurity contender to date. Pure Smoke cracked both rounds wide open on his way to the Futurity World Championship, demonstrating moves that would melt most bull’s minds. The spectacular performance left more than fans feeling a rush. U-7042’s breeder Scott Accomazzo felt an exhilaration in Las Vegas like nothing before. “The adrenaline rush you get from watching those bulls buck is equal to nothing. To win among the best set of futurity calves we’ve ever seen at a futurity finals was a major accomplishment for the ranch and for my family. Winning among guys like Dillon Page, Monty Samford and Trevor Walker was an honor,” beamed Accomazzo. Las Vegas was not Accomazzo’s first ride on the adrenaline train. In the early ‘90s he was a competitive calf roper and trained and hauled calf horses, often making money mounting other competitors. “I got a bigger high off of watching guys ride horses that I owned and trained than I did from winning myself. It was a similar feeling watching Cody and his partners win in Las Vegas.” During his calf roping days, Accomazzo focused on having the best horses in the industry, but a broken hip in early 2000 put a damper on his riding and training. He and wife Tiffany shifted focus to the world of Quarter Horse racing ultimately having several stakes winners and the New Mexico Horse of the Year. However Accomazzo eventually felt stifled in an industry where top-notch dams demand hundreds of thousands of dollars. “It was a blast but I could see the future. There was no way I could be a part of the horse racing industry like I wanted. I could never have the productivity I desired in the horse industry,” said Accomazzo. Around 2002 Accomazzo started to study the bucking bull industry. “I saw a young, new business starting to form and felt it would be a great place to use my rodeo and racing expertise and knowledge. I’d also be able to afford to play at any level,” shared Accomazzo. The owner and operator of the Ace of Spades ranch in Stephenville, Texas had always felt females were a major factor in any breeding equation. “I learned about the importance of females through rodeo and big-time in horse

34 January/February 2010

racing,” explained the Horizon Breeder of the Year. This knowledge guided Accomazzo to put together one of the most proven cow herds in the business. He explained how he approached building a breeding program stocked with top-quality cows. “I could buy one of the greatest females in the industry for anywhere from $5000 to $75,000. There was a lot bigger window for me to get in and buy the type of females it would take. My original intention was to go to the best breeders and purchase their best producing cows.” Rather than focusing on quantity and young, un-proven heifers, Accomazzo went to many of these programs, acquired their best females and flushed them with the intent to build a female base. He ultimately purchased the dams of many big-time buckers including those of Fender Bender, Big Bucks, Belle’s Blue, Walk This Way, Biloxi Blues, Wild Onion, Tigger Too and the dam of Nightlife and Wildlife-MS 0. Everybody starts somewhere and the Ace of Spades program is no exception. With their ‘07 calf crop being the first of any size, Accomazzo talked about the steam his program is building. “In ‘05 we only had one bull, Ground Zero. In ‘06 we only had four, but during this time I was putting together a set of embryos for ‘07. I think we had around 60-70 registered bulls in that crop,” shared Accomazzo. With all of Accomazzo’s careful planning, the manner

of the year in which Pure Smoke found the spotlight is a surprise. “I went to Bob Tallman’s to buy Walk This Way’s mom. While we were looking around there was a little white cow always standing off in the back. She was real catty and athletic and caught my eye. We purchased her and Walk This Way’s dam, but didn’t know until later she had a world champion in her background,” said Accomazzo. The story of Pure Smoke’s dam proves champions can come from unexpected places. From the beginning the bull had to have heart and perseverance. “His mother doesn’t give a whole lot of milk and her calves are always the littlest weaned. Pure Smoke is a testament to those that want to give up on a calf too soon. He was a little scrawny, pot-bellied rat. There was nothing pretty about him,” shared Accomazzo. The under-dog spent his first six months running behind his wild mother sucking between her back legs from a bag with only two functioning teets. The bull’s mom refused to stand still for him to feed and most of his meals were served on the run. “Every time I was out there he was working at trying to get some milk-Which there wasn’t much of. He was determined to survive and had to get his balance and athleticism at a very young age,” explained Accomazzo. Accomazzo’s original intention of buying the greatest producing cows to produce champion bulls seems to have been trumped by Pure Smoke’s story. The cow had no performance record at the time she was purchased. “I picked her straight off of conformation. She was a cheaper cow and I bred her to Up in Smoke, which anybody could have done. A champion can come from anywhere and he’s proof. The bottom line is any single person could have done this,” said Accomazzo in an encouraging tone. Accomazzo believes that anybody can come into the ABBI and have success. He thinks being active in the industry is crucial. “Go to events, shake some hands, ask questions-all of this can be made possible. Drive around and go to some ranches. I don’t know many people who won’t throw you in the truck and drive you around. Everybody loves their bulls and there’s a lot of great guys in this business. Don’t think you can’t come to my ranch and buy that next super star because you can.” As with any champion, the mating is only half of the equation. “Cody (Ohl) deserves a huge amount of credit. He spent hours upon hours settling that bull down. I never dreamed he’d be a futurity world champion. We knew he was special, but the things that Cody had to go through with that bull was above and beyond what most would have done. Cody’s effort is what took Pure Smoke from special to a World Champion,” explained the breeder before continuing. “I really encourage other breeders to spend a lot of time with their bulls. Having the proper

hands on them is really important. Put the time into the difficult bulls. The wild, crazy ones that jump through their skin and try to kill themselves often wind up at the top.” The females in Accomazzo’s program are not the only factor. Breeding to bulls that were proven instead of young genetically superior bulls was another pivotal decision he made. Among the super-sires implemented were; Pan Handle Slim, Up in Smoke, Blenderhead and Skat Kat. He has also since bought Shyster. “I really focused on bulls that impressed me when I saw them. I searched out their sire and tried to get breeding access. My respect for Derrel Hargis and his breeding program really influenced me. I figured I better be willing to breed to a bull that he was willing to use. If you watch what the bigger guys are doing it really helps. They’ve been there done that. If an accomplished breeder uses the same bull more than once it’s because there’s something about him they really like.” When it comes to building breeding programs, Accomazzo recommends being patient and not getting in a hurry. “Don’t buy females just to have more. Invest in buying the best rather than just buying numbers. Looking back I think I flushed too much. I got too many cows too fast so take your time, be patient and don’t get in over your head. The bills from flushing add up,” said Accomazzo. For those involved in the horse industry, Accomazzo has some encouragement if they are not sure about getting involved in the bull business. He feels all his bull industry knowledge stemmed from the horse industry and notes, “There’s much that is the same. Working with the bulls is the same as working with the horses-Aside from the fear factor, but with that comes the adrenaline rush. It’s more exhilarating and the training part is the same. You make the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy. They learn just like horses.” When asked to share final thoughts about raising a World Champion, Accomazzo is quick to express the role of faith, family and friends. “I want to give all the glory to God. In my opinion Champions are picked from above,” said the breeder. “I also have to thank my wife and son Colton along with people that have helped me. If you want to be the best, you have to surround yourself with the best and I couldn’t have done this without guys like Toby Floyd, Monty Samford, Derrell Hargis, Jimmy Crowthers and all of my great partners. This is a great industry and part of the glory of this deal is the comradery and the friendships. Those are life experiences that you can’t buy so get out there, get involved and meet people—that’s the true joy of this deal.”

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The Frick Factor Dwight Frick’s F & F Rodeo Company Today’s arena superstars have genetic stories that are multi-generational. These stories are key when trying to understanding today’s buckers, their ability, genetic heritage and the performance of their subsequent generations. These deep-rooted histories and the long-standing programs that have forged the path now being walked, are more than details. They are factors in our industry’s progression to greatness and tell us a great deal about where our superstars come from.

photo courtesy of dwight frick

arlow, Oklahoma breeder Dwight Frick and his breeding contributions spatter the pages of our registry. It’s not difficult to find a historical bucker, rising ABBI super-star, or great producing

36 January/February 2010

dam with the “Frick Factor.” Frick has been at it a long time. In fact, the first time he produced a rodeo he was barely 15. Although he spent some time trying to compete, his real talent seemed to be producing spectacular rodeos and breeding influential bucking stock. Frick always ran a lot of cows and began his program with big, cross-bred type females. His real immersion into breeding came with 39 original cows from Charlie Plummer’s daughter Carol, after her father’s death. Traditionally for females to be considered original Plummer cows, only one thing can make them genuine: The stand up CP brand like that on the cows Frick purchased. At the time of purchase, one of these cows was bred. Her calf was raised by Frick and eventually became PBR super-star F22 Jim Jam. With Frick’s breeding influence F22’s mother went on to produce 599 Three Alarm(eventually purchased and hauled by Jerry Nelson) and 221 Jim Dandy raised by Monty Samford. Frick’s next historical accomplishment came by way of his Black 45 bull also called Black Sabbath during a closely watched bucking career. Frick intended to use the bull for out-crossing on some of the original Plummer females. Ronnie

Dwight Frick ABBI breeder and Joe Henderson Duncan, Okla. Noon Lions Rodeo Organizer.

photo courtesy of duncan banner

Marlow, Oklahoma

Roach also noted Black 45’s superior kick and saw his out-cross potential. Eventually Roach used the bull on some of his Plummer females too. From Roach’s use of Black 45 sprang well-known bulls like 237 Cadillac, 235 Superstitious and two bulls that would later play a breeding role in the Rafter 7r program-224 Spook and 231 Wild Thing. 231 was hauled by Bad Co. Rodeo and went on to sire F83 Doo Dad of Bob Wilfong’s, who later produced Lufkin Ranch’s super-bull Zorro. Some other notable bulls that Black 45 sired over time were Red 45, also hauled under the name Red Dog and believed to be the sire of Dodge Durango, 15 Mushroom hauled by Terry Walls and later purchased by Bob Wilfong, Bailey’s Guns N Roses and likely many others which may never be truly identified. The short-list of bulls that Frick bred, raised or owned at some point is not short at all. One such historical bull with “Frick Factor” is G21 Dodge Durango an extremely rank, multi-time NFR and PBR Finals bull who was one of the original bounty bulls of Rafter G Rodeos. The bull was purchased from Frick at a sale in Texarkana. Besides being rank, the bull had longevity in and out of the arena. He only recently died at the hearty age of 19 and remains

This list of course does not even begin to acknowledge the important bulls with “Frick Factor” that Black 45’s son Spook sired. A few wellknown Spook sons are:588 Sharp Dressed Man, 819 Roll the Dice, 532 Raspberry Wine, 497 Automatic, 805 Kung Fu Kid, 553 Hobo, 469 Maniac, 114 Fear Factor, 413 Roughstock, 448 Voodoo, 826 Midnight Spookster, 539 Neat Freak, 798 Electric Avenue, 301 Excess Energy and 210 Brawl Boss. Because Frick often sells his bulls when they are still young he sometimes doesn’t know they’ve become “somebody” until he gets a phone call later down the line. It often takes looking back several generations to

photo courtesy of natalie jones

uncover the “Frick Factor”in some of today’s ABBI stars like the 2008 American Heritage Futurity Champion and Reserve Champion. Jerome and Tiffany Davis’ AHF Champion 691 Super Freak won nearly $100,000 and is sired by Frick’s 658 Frogy originally bred by Rafter 7r then sold a couple times before ending up with Frick. Frogy has continued to play a large role in Frick’s program for several years now. Lightning C Cattle Company’s AHF Reserve Champion 65 Achey-Hu won over $54,000 and also boasts “Frick Factor.” It takes several generations to realize how much “Frick Factor” the bull really has. To start, 65 is a son of Jerry Copp’s FB10 Blue Chip which Frick raised and Blue Chip is a son of 98 Fowl Play-a Rooster son Frick owns. Fowl Play was once called Star until Roach started hauling him for Frick. The friends changed his name to “Fowl Play” an intentional play on words to promote his sire, Rooster. The “Frick Factor” goes beyond breeding and compliments one of Frick’s strongest abilities. Frick is well-known as being a premier open rodeo producer and his F & F Rodeo Company is synonymous with a wellrun professional show. Frick has been producing Duncan, Oklahoma’s Annual Noon Lion’s Club Rodeo for over 30 years. The event’s rodeo organizer Joe Henderson talked about how Frick began producing the event and what makes the “Frick Factor” extra special. “I knew his reputation long before we started working together,” said Henderson who’s been around rodeo since he was a child. “When the Lion’s Club went to an open rodeo, they tried someone else for a year. Then several people on the rodeo committee went to one of Dwight’s rodeos. After watching how well run and put together the show was they realized he was not a typical contractor and doesn’t produce a typical rodeo,” explained Henderson. Once the committee had a taste of “Frick Factor” they didn’t turn loose and this coming year will be year 32 of

Frick 19 a son of 121 (bred by Bob Wilfong) recently purchased by Tino & Edward Martinez from Frick.

Frick producing the event. Henderson assured that Frick is nothing like many other open rodeo stock contractors who are only interested in what they can get out of something. “Dwight puts on a proshow with an open format. He hustles from start to finish. Even when the rodeo is going well, you won’t find him in front of the chutes. He’s in the back hustling bulls like the rest of his hands,” explained Henderson. Many industry insiders describe Frick as “one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet” and “someone who a guy can count on and trust.” Henderson who has worked with Frick for 27 years putting on the Noon Lion’s event began helping Frick put on his finals in Duncan four years ago because of the same “Frick Factor” others have come to know. “You’ll never get Dwight to pat himself on the back,” said Henderson, “even though he’s so good at what he does, it’s just not his style. Dwight makes you want to be a part of his show-and when you are a part of it, you’re glad to be included.”

photo courtesy of dwight frick

High noon - Son of Red 45

photo courtesy of dwight frick

among the Top 6 historical buckers listed on probullstats. Other bulls with some form of “Frick Factor” are: PBR sensation F12 Scene of the Crash (a.k.a. Rocketman), Frontier Rodeo bad-boys 599 Three Alarm, 306F Hangar 8, 208 Shock the Monkey, 802 Juice Monkey, Time on My Hands and Jigger, as well as the first ever 4-year-old Champion at Ft. Worth 690 Mardi Gras. Also 450 Sugar Ray, Red 45 son Jam-a-lot, 452 Bois D’Arc (sire of Bullard’s Buckers World Derby Champ-40 Boris the Blade and grandsire of 120 Range War), Monty Branum’s 454 Big Mamou (sire of I’ll Make Ya Famous) and Bart Futrell’s impressive bull 82 Hi Noon.

Frogy 658

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November 1, 2009. ABBI Futurity Finals. Las Vegas, Nevada.

I like this shot because it shows the intensity and buck of the bull U7042Â Pure Smoke in the short go of the ABBI Futurity Finals. It also shows the excitement of breeder of the bull Scott Accomazzo and owner Cody Ohl as the bull bucks. Their faces tell the story of just how good this really is.

38 January/February 2010

Fetal

Programming By now, we all recognize the importance of maintaining cows in adequate body condition score as they approach calving season. Targeting a body condition score of 6 at calving will enhance reproductive function in the cow, reduce the postpartum interval, enhance conception rates and condense the calving season. However, can the growth of the unborn calf be impacted by how the mother is fed during gestation? Results from recent research trials indicate that offspring performance can be enhanced simply by providing a higher plane of nutrition to the cow. While this seems elementary, the effects are not confined to the offspring while it is a calf; instead, the impacts can be detected well into the animalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mature growth. A recent hypothesis regarding the impact of maternal nutrition on offspring postnatal growth and development has been termed â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fetal Programming.â&#x20AC;? It has long been recognized that inadequate nutrition during gestation leads to compromised fetal development and survival. Several studies verify that larger birth weights contribute to greater offspring survival, and maternal nutrition can significantly impact fetal growth patterns. What is less understood, but is now garnering a fair bit of interest, is how improved maternal nutrition can enhance not only fetal growth, but offspring growth and development beyond the perinatal stages. In a recent study by the University of Nebraska (Larson et al., 2009), crossbred cows were supplemented during the winter with 1 lb per head daily with a pellet containing 28% crude protein. While this seems to be a minimal supplementation program, offspring performance was improved. Cows were heavier at calving when supplemented, and calves tended to be heavier at birth. The real interesting result was the improvement in gain prior to weaning. Calves tended to be heavier at weaning when cows were supplemented with protein during pregnancy. Additionally, calves from supplemented cows continued to outperform their mates from cows not supplemented. Calves from supplemented cows performed better in the feedlot, and even demonstrated a greater marbling ability than calves from cows not supplemented. All this evidence suggests that offspring, regardless of what you do with them (retain heifers, sell bulls, etc.), and their chances of becoming top performing individuals increase substantially when the mother is fed properly during gestation.

How do you utilize this information? Analyze the forages that you feed during gestation, particularly during the last trimester. Make sure that the forages have adequate protein and energy to support the increased demands on the cow due to fetal development. If either protein or energy is compromised, supplement with a pellet or cake to make up the deficiencies. If you have questions, contact a nutritionist, your local extension agent, or the feedmill that supplies your feed. Ensuring that the cows are properly fed will result in higher body condition scores at breeding time, but also will result in higher performing offspring. As with many aspects of cattle production, there are many unanswered questions. The impacts of genetic differences on nutrition requirements needs further study, as does the impact of environment (hot and dry versus cold and wet) on how much supplementation is necessary. The thresholds for energy and protein to elicit an impact on offspring growth and physiology will need to be determined. But for now, the good work by Larson and coworkers is strongly supportive of paying closer attention to the needs of gestating cows. If you have nutritional questions, please email them to jbeckett@beefconsulting.com.

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New Year New Yearlings New Yearnings

hat better way to kick off this New Year then by having a bullish new perspective on the industry, through the joyous eyes of a junior bucking bull breeder. For Jody Spears, it’s all about heart and the pure love of his bulls. The 10-year-old has an admirable approach for handling his young buckers; do it with passion and enjoy what you’re doing. Jody and his family have 40 head of cattle, including seven bulls spread, across four pastures in Lenoir, North Carolina. They are 70-miles from Charlotte and enjoy their bucking bulls immensely, but they treat it more like a hobby than a business. “We don’t do it for the money. We just like watching our cows. We don’t brand ‘em. We treat them and all our pets like family,” the fifth-grader explained. “We know our bulls inside and out, and can tell if one is sick or something is wrong by the way they walk and act,” Jody added. Jody’s father Chris is a Lenoir firefighter. He is used to putting out fires on the job and in life. “I don’t ever get mad about things. If you’re going to be stupid – you better be tough. Everyday’s a challenge, but if you ever get a flat tire, just remember there are people who don’t even have a car,” Chris observed. “Just like the bulls—they count on me here. I just never think about the paycheck.” He and his son do, however, both think about bull—and often. “We love these animals. We’d like to turn it into a business someday, to put money back into it, but our goal

photos courtesy of spears family

Jody Spears with a member of his herd.

40 January/February 2010

Junior Breeder Jody Spears

isn’t so much money. Our goal is to see one of our bulls on TV one day,” Chris said. The Spears started their breeding program in 2005. “We watched bull riding on TV and thought it’d be cool to own some bulls,” Jody said. They got advice from North Carolina breeders Doug and Chad Brinkley, who know the ropes. “They made me, and especially Jody, feel like family,” Chris shared. The Spears’ bloodlines include Panhandle Slim, Playboy Skoal, Rooster, Mr. T and Skat Kat. Jody’s favorite cow is Big Girl. The Spears believe their 2-year-olds and 3-year-olds have great potential. So does Jody. A student at Oak Hill Elementary School in Lenoir, Jody studies bloodlines and bulls in his free time. He also studies bull riders like fellow North Carolinian J.B. Mauney, who finished second in the 2009 PBR standings. Jody got to chat with Mauney in August at a Futurity in Archdale, N.C. When the Spears go on bull buying trips, sometimes Jody’s mom Melissa and his new baby sister Kara go along for the ride to make it a family outing. Jody is chomping at the bit to enter their bulls in futurities, but geography is a factor. “There aren’t many events on these coasts, especially the Carolinas,” Chris admitted. Meanwhile, they’re excited about what they can do. “We take stock over to the Brinkley’s Double B Arena,” Jody said. He likes de-flanking, loading, and feeding his livestock. The Spears also handle most of the bulls’ medical needs, including vaccinations and de-worming. Jody has ridden sheep, but his mom and grandma overrode that decision. “To keep my dad and me from sleeping with the cows, we follow their instructions!” Jody, a straight-A student, also plays baseball and basketball. However, bull breeding is paramount. “We jumped in with both feet and never looked back,” admitted Chris. Although a rugged cowboy, Jody’s dad encourages everyone to truly live and feel what’s in their hearts. “When one of your herd dies, it’s ok for the little ones to cry as well as the adults,” offered Chris. “Jody has shed tears for this sport but never gives up. He’s just 10 but he’s my hero.”

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New Year, New Rules We have two rule changes in the PBR that people may be interested in. One has to do with the standardization of the spur rowels and the other with rerides. These rules went into effect at the first PBR Built Ford Tough Series event of the year in Baltimore.

Spur Rowels We are only going to allow two types of spur rowels. A lot of guys were using these types of spurs already, but they are kind of a thicker rowel that stays dull. Occasionally a spur rowel would be too sharp, but that wasn’t the real problem anymore and we could fix that pretty easy. We’d just tell the rider his rowel was too sharp and he had to fix it. Too sharp was anything that could cut a bull. The real problem was it got to the point where you’d see a guy almost once a week hung up and dragged around the arena by his spur. Those of us who have been around this sport were used to seeing a guy dragged around like that once every 10 year, then it become where we saw it once a week. So we talked and tried to figure out what it was, and part of the issue was the tail of a lot of the bull ropes was braided real loose. But every single guy that got drug around by his spurs had spur rowels that flared out at the ends. Over the last 7 or 8 years they started using some pretty freaky rowels. So we standardized that and hopefully you won’t see any more guys drug around by their spurs—and we haven’t so far since we changed the rule.

Rerides The other new rule is we won’t give a reride anymore if a guy can’t get out on his bull. If you pick him in the draft or draw him, you are responsible for being able to get out on him. Over the years we’ve always had a rule where, depending on the year, it was two or three honest attempts. But it was such a judgment call as if to someone was making an honest attempt or not, that we took that out of the judges’ hands with this new rule. A judge can rule a bull out of the draw if he considers the bull impossible to get out of the chute on. If a bull comes in and flips over and won’t get up, a judge can rule a bull out. And if a bull is injured— of course he’ll come

42 January/February 2010

out. A judge can disqualify a bull and that bull may not be put back into the draw for that event, or even any event. If a cowboy says a bull is squatting or leaning in the chute, the judge will have the option to tell the cowboy he has 30 seconds, and if he doesn’t take him in 30 seconds he’s disqualified. The bull riders accepted that rule pretty well. We didn’t get a lot of feedback from them on it and they’ve moved past it. We should have done that 5 years ago! I rode for 17 years professionally and there was only one time when a bull got down and got his legs out the side and I couldn’t pull my rope. Only one time in 17 years that I couldn’t get out on a bull. In his entire career, Jerome Robinson never got a reride for not nodding his head. A cowboy is responsible for being able to get out of the chute on his bull.

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Responsible Livestock Management

lthough bucking stock are not raised primarily as meat for human consumption, there are certainly bulls and older cows that end up in the human food chain at the end of their career. In this issue of Bull Pen we will shift from our usual perspective of bucking stock as performance animal and shift to bucking stock as a member of a food animal species. Elite PBR bulls have personality, talent, and devoted owners that do not see their investment as a food animal species. However, in the eyes of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) these bulls are just that, food animals. As such these animals, as with all bucking stock, are subject to the rules of proper medication use and withdrawal times as set forth by the FDA in order to protect potential human consumers. All veterinarians that work on bucking stock should be aware of the regulations concerning appropriate drug use and be able to educate the bull owner on proper route of administration, withdrawal time, and caution against the use of illegal drugs in these animals. In addition many drugs that work well on species such as horses or dogs are either illegal or have no therapeutic

44 January/February 2010

effect in bovines. Your veterinarian has a responsibility to educate you, as bull owner, on these issues. Should an animal end up at a federal slaughter facility and test positive for a drug residue both the owner and the veterinarian are subject to disciplinary action. Furthermore, governmental organizations are always threatening to take away or further restrict the use of drugs in food animal species due to ongoing misuse of important categories of drugs such as antibiotics. ABBI members should take time to educate themselves on these very important issues in order to keep the bucking bull industry moving forward in an ethical manner. Bull breeders and owners should think of themselves as cattlemen first and performance animal caretakers second. The FDA has published a list of prohibited and restricted drugs for use in food animal species. The list grows slowly over time and is updated as data showing a perceived threat to human health from drug exposure is generated. The list is available online at www.farad.org. FARAD is a government subsidized organization staffed by scientists and veterinarians that are dedicated to food safety. If a food animal has been exposed to a drug, either intentionally or by accident, FARAD will give any veterinarian confidential information regarding appropriate

withholding times for that animal. This organization occasionally loses its governmental funding and is shutdown. As the ABBI continues to grow in membership and revenue, lobbying for such an organization as FARAD should become a topic for ABBI directors to discuss. As to the list there are two drugs, clenbuterol and Baytril® or enrofloxacin, that are 100% illegal to use in mature bucking bulls (or cows). Baytril® has a labeled use for pneumonia in beef and dairy calves. Clenbuterol is prohibited from use in ANY bovine regardless of age or sex. Other drugs on the FDA list are prohibited in subsets of the bovine world. For example most sulfa drugs and phenylbutazone are prohibited in lactating dairy cows. Chloramphenicol is also 100% illegal to use in any food animal species. Aside from the prohibited list, certain drugs are labeled for specific administration in cattle. The popular antibiotic Excede® is labeled for injection at the base of the ear. This is due to the long half life of the drug and long residue time at the injection site. The proper site of administration is trimmed at slaughter and poses no risk for the consumer. Should Excede® be given at any other site in a bull or cow, for example the neck, then the drug will persist at that site for weeks. The outcome of this error, should the animal go to slaughter, is a trim lesion generating suspicion for drug residue in the animal and subsequent carcass holding, testing, possible condemnation, and potential fines and disciplinary action. A further cause for concern is the use of drugs that are not illegal to use in cattle but carry a prolonged withdrawal time. Gentamicin sulphate or Gentocin® is perhaps the best example of this category of drug. Although not labeled for use in cattle there is an accepted meat withdrawal time of 18 months. The difficulty comes in tracking an animal for 18 months. Perhaps the initial illness responded to gentamicin but 7 months later the cow or bull suffers a career ending injury. If the animal is still ambulatory and in good flesh then slaughter becomes an economic means of disposal and potential recap of lost income. However, that animal is STILL INELIGIBLE for slaughter due to the prolonged meat withdrawal time from an antibiotic given months earlier. Drugs such as gentamicin must not be used without careful veterinary client communication as set forth by a document known as AMDUCA. Included in this discussion is the establishment of the need for this unlabeled drug to save the animal’s life as well as the agreement by the owner to abide by the prolonged withdrawal time. Finally some drugs are not only illegal to use in bovines but ineffective as well. Tucoprim, trimethoprim sulfa, TMS, or SMZ pills and powder are commonly used, effective, antibiotics for horses. Unfortunately once the rumen gets a hold of the trimethoprim component of these preparations it is chemically destroyed and therefore unavailable for absorption in the small intestine and distribution to the problem site of infection, such as the horn. Finally, be careful when medicating bovines. Enough drug residues can be licked from an empty food bucket by a pen mate to result in positive drug testing for that animal. Clean syringe guns thoroughly between use or use new syringes for each animal. And remember that drugs such as Micotil are usually lethal for human beings, should accidental injection occur.

ABBI members should take time to educate themselves on these very important issues in order to keep the bucking bull industry moving forward in an ethical manner.

Elgin Veterinary Hospital Gary D. Warner, DVM 600 Highway 290E, Elgin, TX 512-285-3375 elginbullvet@yahoo.com

Special interest in bucking stock. We have available digital radiography, ultrasonography, arthroscopy, hydraulic chutes and tables, and hospital facilities with special bucking pens. We are located 20 miles east of Austin Texas. bullpenmagazine.com

ABBI Classic by Allen Glanville

rad Boyd and Toby Floyd transformed the aging Cowtown Coliseum located in the Stockyards in Ft. Worth to a place where all who attended enjoyed ringing in the New Year. The facility has a history like no other, many rodeo firsts were captured there. The arena was built in 1917 and held the first indoor rodeo by 1918. One can only imagine how genuinely deep the history and rich culture surrounding the facility truly is. “We wanted to bring the PBR and the ABBI back to Ft. Worth, where much of this industry got its start,” Boyd explained his reason for holding the event. “We also wanted to bring some excitement back to the Stockyards. “Many of the business owners were excited about this event and want us back next year,” shared Boyd. “Having

46 January/February 2010

Owner

Rafter HB Cattle Company Julio Moreno / Richard Oliveria Kevin Pool - Rippy Creek 3M Cattle Co. Fred McAfee Boyd-Floyd-Hill XS Ranch / Mike Lane Walker Bucking Stock Breeders Martinez Bucking Bulls D&H Cattle Co / Buck Cattle 3M Cattle Co. Fred McAfee Walker Bucking Stock Breeders Walker Bucking Stock Breeders

Score

PAYOUT

88.75 88.50 88.50 88.50 88.25 88.25 88.00 88.00 87.50 87.50 87.25 87.25

$10,436 $4,081 $4,081 $4,081 $2,107 $2,107 $1,706 $1,706 $1,305 $1,305 $1,054 $1,054

win. I have a bull I am really proud of. This is exciting, I just hope he is able to buck well at such a large event.” When the last bull score was tallied, Rafter HB Cattle Co’s 610 Ice T & D’s score of 88.75 had placed first. 610 bucked his way past 80 bulls to claim the first win of the young season and picked up a check for $10,500. 610 was exciting to watch with his powerful moves. The crowd was on it’s feet cheering. One of 610’s owners Duston Hull excitedly remarked, “My dad rolled the dice a couple of years ago on a little calf that bellowed the first time we bucked him. We had just bought him from Danny Cathy. Here he is tonight winning the Ft. Worth event. 610 just beat 80 of the best bulls in the world after coming off a leg injury last season at Weatherford, Texas.

610 Ice T&D

the event at the Stockyards makes sense because everything is right there: hotels, food, housing for the bulls and the arena are all within walking distance.” This Boyd-Floyd team was amazing. Not only did they put on a first-class event, but they bucked 81 bulls in just over two hours. That is just short of being unbelievable! With the economy where it is today, it was rewarding to see so many bull owners ready to start the new season with this first ABBI event of the 2010 season. For many, this was their first ABBI Classic ever. Two of the newcomers were Fred McAfee and Dale Lyons. Lyons remarked in advance of his first Classic, “I said I would never enter one of these until I felt like I could

Bull

Ice T&D Bushwhacker Tomahawk 615 Jelly Bean Lil Red Cat Pop Knot Evil Repeat Mad Max Hot Seat Do Wah Diddy Double Clutch Canadian Cadillac

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Ft. Worth, Texas December 31, 2009

Rank

1 2 2 2 5 5 7 7 9 9 11 11

Andee Lamoreaux, Duston Hull, Brad Boyd, Toby Floyd, Wanda Bean, Ronda & H.D. Hull.

“He sure fired tonight and we are certainly proud of him. He was sired by Wasp Stinger and out of a Super Dave daughter who came out of the same calf crop as Western Wishes. 610 has the genetics behind him, and we are fortunate to own him,” Hull concluded. Second place was knotted up between three bulls, 13/6 Bushwhacker of Julio Moreno/Richard Oliveria, 615 Tomahawk of Kevin Pool/Rippy Creek and 3M 64 Jelly Bean of 3M Cattle Co./Fred McAfee—all with 88.5. 13/6 Bushwhacker is picking up right where he left off last season after earning third place in the 2009 ABBI classic championship. Julio Moreno, part owner of Bushwhacker, added, “I sure am proud of the way 13/6 bucks

and with all the bulls entered, he has proven he is going to be a contender this season.” Fifth and sixth were split between 68 Lil Red Cat of Boyd-Floyd, Hill and XS 687 Pop Knot of XS Ranch/Mike Lane each with 88.25. Seventh and eighth were bulls 613 Evil Repeat of Walker Bucking Stock Breeders and 63 Mad Max of Martinez Bucking Bulls each with 88.0. Ninth and tenth were between ST 59 Hot Seat of D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle and 3M 6 Do Wah Diddy of 3M Cattle Co/Fred McAfee both with 87.5. 3M Cattle Co. brought their bulls down from Missouri. One placed second and the other tied for ninth. McAfee was overheard asking when the next ABBI event was so he could enter before it was full. McAfee added, “Wow, what an event. The bulls were awesome. I had to wait the whole event to buck my bulls. I bet I went to the restroom ten times, I was so nervous. I sure was happy with how my bulls performed tonight. Can’t wait for the next event.” After the Classic., there was a 12-bull challenge between Bob Wilfong and Scott Accomazzo. It was Wilfong’s natural-bred bulls against Accomazzo’s cloned bulls. Each entered six bulls. They promoted it like a boxing match, even bringing down boxing gloves from the rafters. In the end, Wilfong’s bulls outscored Accomazzo’s clones adding fuel to many people’s opinions that clones can’t beat the

real thing. This first Classic event for the ABBI in 2010 was everything they hoped for by having so many bulls entered. The quality of bulls got everyone excited about the selection we have to look forward to this season. Boyd and Floyd made the right decision returning the PBR and ABBI to Ft. Worth. The packed house and all the sponsors were excited about the event and want to do it again next year. If you missed this year’s event, better mark your calendar for next year’s New Year’s Eve and plan on being in Texas.

ns on a Congratulatio ne! do l el w b jo

Boyd-Floyd crew from the Ft. Worth Event bucked 81 bulls in just over two hours.

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Best of the West Sale Ft. Worth, Texas November 28, 2009

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by Allen Glanville

Barney Bremer, Doug Dugan and Chad Beaver.

Busy phone lines.

he Best of the West Sale was held at the Superior Livestock Studio, located in the Historic Livestock Exchange Building in the famous Fort Worth Stockyards, on November 28, 2009. Four groups of breeders— each a pioneer of the rodeo industry—came together for this big sale. Cindy Rosser , Dan and Linda Russell, Vernon Guidry and Sammy Andrews came together for this unprecedented offering of genetics. Rosser explained their goal, “What we are offering is a chance to own foundation champion bucking bull bloodlines from the past that many today have never heard of. These great bucking bulls, many who are in the hall of fame are going to enhance anyone’s program and we are going to let buyers have a once in a lifetime opportunity to purchase these genetics.” Genetics like Pacific Bell, Grasshopper, Copenhagen Light, Whitewater Skoal, Bodacious, Red Wasp and Werewolf along with newcomers Troubadour, Reindeer Dippin’ and Comet’s Gold were some of the bloodlines offered. This was a chance to bring the “who’s who” of the bucking bull industry into your breeding program. Joe Don Pogue was the auctioneer and Rosser, Linda Russell and Guidry described their lots. They gave the background on their cattle’s bloodlines and performance history. The sale also featured Bob Tallman and Pam Minick describing the pedigrees of the cattle. Just having the hall of fame announcer Tallman working the sale was huge. One classic Tallman description was, “I don’t care if this cow was bred to a Dodge pick-up. It will produce what you are looking for.” On another lot Tallman had this tidbit to offer: “Guys, it will only cost you the price of a carton of cigarettes to get this great cow and have clean lungs to enjoy her.” Tallman entertained the crowd the whole time he was there. With the sale being held in Superior Livestock’s office, the phone lines were kept busy the entire sale with Cindy Rosser and Linda Russell being pressed into action. At times some 12 phone lines were taking bids, especially when the semen lots were being offered. There were 64 lots offered at this sale and there were 110 registered buyers from 24 different states along with

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Cindy Rosser and Linda Russell watch as Auctioneer Joe Don Pogue takes bids.

two from Canadian Provinces. The sale grossed $177,500 and included: 13 bred cows ($1,850 average), 10 three-inones ($1,605), 19 heifers ($2,405), seven cows ($1,586), three young bulls ($2,700), two breeding bulls ($4,000), nine semen lots ($5,895), five recip cows ($4,760) and four weanling heifers ($1,850). The highest selling lot was lot 42, a recip cow with Whitewater as the sire out of a Naccarato- bred Oscar Velvet cow which sold for $8,500. The high selling semen was lot 35 when a straw of Whitewater brought $8,500. The buyer opted for two straws bringing the tab to $17,000. Auctioneer Pogue remarked, “When you provide something the buyer is interested in he will bid even in today’s market and I thought the sale went really well.” “This sale was my first on my own and I thought it went well,” said Rosser. “It did start slower than I liked but once it got rolling did quite well. Everybody thinks you need to offer PBR bulls, but ours all came from the rodeo industry. It will be interesting to see these bloodlines develop in the ABBI Futurity and Classic events. We had a time getting some of our bloodlines done. We had a Bluegrass daughter it took four years to get confirmed, but it sure paid off today.” Linda Russell shared, “This is the first time buyers could get into our genetics and it’s going to be interesting to see the results. We have sold bulls for years but have only sold our cows to select customers. But we are happy to get started with new customers and see where it goes from here. “We can’t thank Freddy and Wartie Cordell enough for all they have done for our program over the years.” “This was an exceptional sale for this time of the year and the state of the market, and I am real pleased,” added Guidry. “Proven bloodlines will always sell and today was no different. There were some outstanding purchases today.” What this sale provided were bloodlines from the proven genetics of the rodeo industry, many which had never before been offered outside their owner’s programs. Like the consigners remarked, it will be interesting to see the success this new breeding will add to our industry.

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Walker Bucking Stock Breeders Sale 4C’s Arena Stephenville, Texas November 14, 2009

by Allen Glanville

Crowd at the Walker Bucking Stock Sale.

alker Bucking Stock Breeders held their First Annual Bucking Stock Sale at the 4C’s Arena in Stephenville, Texas on November 14, 2009. “Make no mistake, this is not a second cut sale,” Trevor Walker remarked of the outstanding sale he and girlfriend Joy Hawks produced. “We are offering the best bulls and stock the Walker Breeding program has to offer.” Walker and his outfit have been breeding bucking stock for over 20 years and this was the first time they were offering their genetics to the general public. “Here is a chance to own proven cattle with longevity that have been evaluated and re- evaluated to ensure you receive only the highest quality cattle today,” said Walker at the sale. “Our bulls are in top condition and we are offering half-interest in a handful of these bulls and these are the ones we are planning on hauling this season. This is not a clean-out sale.” If you have ever met Trevor you will know he means what he says. The buyers must have believed what Walker said because Lot 1(selling 100% of the bull) brought $23,000 and with today’s market that was exciting. Many of the buyers were interested in the Walker breeding program because of the success they have achieved in the bucking bull industry and the opportunity to purchase genetics never before offered got the buyers’ attention. Born in Mankota, Saskatchewan, Canada, Walker grew up in the rodeo business and competed until 2000. Walker began his breeding program in 1989 with bloodlines from bulls raised by the Burton Ranch and cows with Larson breeding. Walker was honored with the first ABBI Breeder of the Year award in 2004. Walker bloodlines can be traced to many PBR bulls and in 2006 Walker had eight bulls in the

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Cody Ohl and ABBI’s Zach Gunter

finals. It will be interesting watching these genetics added to the many different programs who bought into these interesting bloodlines. There were 89 lots sold with a gross sale of $314,750. Auctioneer Ralph Wade handled the gavel while Walker and Bryan Davis described the pedigrees giving the bidders a history lesson about Canadian genetics. Top selling lots were: two half-interest 2-year-old bulls averaging $14,750, five additional half-interest 2-year-old bulls averaging $9,770 and ten 3 to 4-year-olds averaging $7,780. Other sale averages were: 17 full-interest 2-year-old bulls averaging $2,473, six yearling bulls averaging $3,583, 16 half-interest weanling bulls averaging $2,796 and 33 cows averaging $1,525. Those buying cattle at this sale were looking for something to buck or breed with. Buyer Tom Peterson remarked, “I wanted some bulls to compete with and having Trevor haul them is exactly what I wanted. I also bought a couple I am taking home and will see what I can do with them. Just having the Walker Bucking Stock team hauling a bull for me got me excited because of all the success they have had in this business.” “We were happy with the sale and it really met all our expectations with the bull industry where it is today,” shared Walker. “It was nerve-wracking just getting everything started but once it got rolling, it was fine. We are already planning next year’s sale and it will be held around the same time of the year. We hope buyers will realize what we are offering and want to be here. We also were excited with the success of our open 2-year-old derby. Cody Ohl and Dustin Hull’s bulls split the win. We had many enter this event and are looking forward to next season.”

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his sale had been anticipated all year and the turn out was phenomenal. This sale became a reality when Billy Jaynes, David Simpson and Jerry Nelson formed the Exclusive Genetics group with a Million Dollar Futurity. The dream of this group was to put together top bulls and use donor cows to produce the next generation of top-notch genetics. In 2008, Exclusive Genetics created approximately 150 pregnancies and guaranteed bull calves. Each of these embryos had a sire with top PBR genetics and 100 percent ownership was sold to the 2011 participants during the 2008 PBR World Finals. At each year’s sale there is an opportunity for the owner to consign their bull and cash in on their investment. It also gives buyers a final chance to get in on these proven genetics. This concept makes it so everybody is starting with virtually the same level of cattle and an even playing field. Getting the very best bulls are the luck of the draw. After your bull is born you have three options. 1) Own your bull and take him home, 2) Send the bull to a trainer or 3) Consign him to the sale. There were three levels of draft for the 2012 season. Level one costs $12,500 and guarantees one of the first 50 bulls drawn. Level two costs $10,000 and gets to pick 51 thru 100 in the draw. Level three costs $ 9,000 and comes with a pick from draws 101 thru 300. In the first Million Dollar Futurity (2011) there will be 128 bulls entered. After all the drafting was completed for this futurity and consignments added, there were 52 bulls remaining. The sale at South Point was for these undrafted or consigned bulls—giving the bidders a last chance to still get into the 2011 Million Dollar Futurity. Once the auction began, it became clear the people wanted to own these remaining bulls with the chance to buck them for the $500,000 dollar first-place win. To not only win that large sum of money but to buck your bull at the Thomas& Mack Arena in front of all in attendance is many people’s dreams. Auctioneer Joe Don Pogue handled the gavel, while Billy Jaynes described the pedigrees and ring men Steven Kahia, Brandon Cutrer and Bob Rick took the floor bids. Exclusive Genetics sponsored PBR bull riders Mike Lee, L.J. Jenkins, Mike White, McKennon Wimberly, Josh Koschel, Kasey Hayes, Luke Snyder and Ryan McConnel manned

52 January/February 2010

by Allen Glanville

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Exclusive Genetics Million Dollar Bull Calf Sale

Las Vegas, Nevada November 7, 2009

the phone lines. People calling in bids were excited being able to talk with the bull riders. Unofficial results of this sale were $574,750 for 52 lots averaging $11,052. This is something unheard of in today’s market, but with the incentives people were willing to invest in these bulls. High selling bulls were lots 9, 10 and 12, which were bulls sired by PBR Bull of the Year Big Bucks and out of an Exodus/Jungle Fever cow, each selling for $20,000. Some are skeptical about this program, but when you see people from all walks of life purchasing the bulls— people who never thought about owing a bull or having a place to raise them—you get excited for them. Exclusive Genetics for a fee also will provide full care and training for your bull. Their motto is “no truck, no trailer, no ranch necessary.” In other words, they will do all the work so you can have all the fun. Exclusive Genetics makes it where everyone involved has fun. They plan events around their draws and have cookouts where plenty of “meet and greets” are provided. They hold a big gathering at the home office in Orchard, Texas and hold a futurity for the owners to buck their bull and add to their fun. New friendships have become common place and the owners look forward to these events. Exclusive Genetics looks like they have come up with a great concept, giving owners a way to be a part of this awesome sport and get involved in the bucking bull industry and the new owners are excited about the whole experience. Thinking outside the box, Exclusive Genetics went to the bucking bull industry and devised a plan where any bull (not just the Million Dollar futurity bulls) can compete in a three event series called the Triple Horn Series. In this series a bull could earn $1,030,000. The events will be designed where if you win one event, or horn, you will receive a $10,000 dollar bonus. Win two back-to-back horns and get $20,000 or win all three horns and claim the $1,030,000—all for a nomination fee of $300. You can bet this series will attract plenty of interest in the bucking bull industry. With all the new concepts Exclusive Genetics has developed, it looks like the bucking bull industry will be exciting and the future only looks brighter.

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54 January/February 2010