Marcus Mast - Running Down A Dream

By Kelly B. Robbins

Marcus Mast is an Indiana cowboy. Marcus is one of the talented young bull riders who has worked hard to steadily climb up through the ranks to the PBR Unleash the Beast Series. He lives in the little Amish town of Middlebury, Indiana with his wife, Jamie, six-year-old son Carson, and two-yearold daughter Macey. His early years were spent on his Amish family’s dairy farm in Middlebury. Growing up, he never even thought about riding bulls.

His older brother, Nate, started sneaking away from the Amish culture, and started riding bulls at a venue in Van Wert, Ohio, about 1-1/2 hours from the farm. “When he did it, I wanted to do it,” Marcus revealed. “When I turned 16 years old, I decided to give it a try. My brother-in-law offered to take me to a local practice pen where they used 400-500 lb. steers for novice riders. On the way, he told me that we were going to an event where they were riding bucking bulls, not the steers at the practice pen. I told him that was fine with me. He later told me that he didn’t think I would actually get on a bull.”

“Well, I borrowed some gear and got on that first bull. I actually stayed on him for four or five seconds. When he bucked me off, I fell under him and he stepped all over me. He nearly broke my wrist and he stepped on my leg. I was in quite a bit of pain. When I got home, my dad knew what had happened, and he sure didn’t cut me any slack about doing my chores.”

“I was 17 years old when my cousin and I entered the Van Wert event in the novice class,” Marcus continued. “You had to be 18 years old to ride or have a signed permission slip from your parents. We just told them we were 18, and they let us ride. We rode for two weekends, but when I called to enter on the third weekend, the owner of the venue asked me several times how old I was. He then told me that Nate had called to inform him that we were not 18 years old. I apologized to the owner, and he told us to come back when we turned 18.”

“After turning 18, I went back to Van Wert and entered the jackpot bulls instead of the novice. The first week, I won the event. The second week I came in second. The third week I won it again. I won a gold buckle for that series. I was feeling pretty good about my bull riding, because there were PBR Touring Pro bull riders that came to Van Wert! But after winning that buckle, I didn’t ride a single bull to the buzzer the rest of the season.”

Marcus was in a bad slump after that. He moved to Kansas for a year. “I guess it was a different place, a different atmosphere, different bulls, and I started winning again,” Marcus said. “I spent that year working construction and riding bulls.”

“I became a father at age 19,” Marcus shared. “That helped me to grow up mentally, and somehow that helped me to understand bull riding better. In 2014 I went to Gary Leffew’s Bull Riding School, and that made the most difference for me in riding bulls. I learned the basic fundamentals of bull riding and I learned how to set goals. I had never heard about setting goals.”

At that time, Marcus was ranked 50th in the Southern Extreme Bull Riding Association (SEBRA) standings. He set a goal to be a top ten rider in SEBRA. “I just knew bull riding was for me and I loved to do it,” Marcus said. “A month later I was in the top ten. I knew then that this goal stuff really worked! I set another goal to be in the top five. I ended the season in second place. If you set goals, focus on those goals, and want to achieve those goals, you will find a way to make it to your goals.”

Marcus went into another bull riding slump the next year. When he is not riding bulls, Marcus works in the RV industry. He was sent out west for a three-month tour repairing RV’s. While on that tour, he stopped in to spend a couple of days with Gary Leffew. “When I walked into Gary’s, I didn’t feel like I could ride a stick horse. When I left Gary’s, I felt like I could ride D&H Cattle Company’s Long John,” Marcus exclaimed.

Marcus started competing in some PBR Touring Pro events. Then Gary talked him into getting his CBR card. “I’m glad I did that,” Marcus explained. “I made a pile of money!” He eventually made it to the Built Ford Tough Series (now the Unleash the Beast Series).

Marcus ended last season 45th in the standings. He was chosen as an alternate for the PBR World Finals in Arlington and was able to ride because five bull riders were not allowed to participate due to testing positive for Covid-19. “It was exciting to get the call for the first alternate,” Marcus divulged. “It really didn’t settle in until the night when I was sitting in the locker room and then it hit me. My wife had put up a FaceBook post and I started getting all kinds of congratulatory FaceBook messages from folks. You know, your main goal is to make it on the Tour. But I got to ride at the World Finals!”

As we talked, Marcus shared that he doesn’t like to wear a helmet. “I tried a helmet, but it just never felt right,” Marcus confessed. “I watched video of me riding with and without the helmet, and I noticed that I looked like two different people riding. My riding was negatively affected when I rode with a helmet on, so I took it off.”

His worst injury was when he suffered a broken jaw at a little $500 added money event. “That was my worst injury, but I was really fortunate that it didn’t require surgery. I was only out for five weeks!”

Marcus’ favorite event is what he calls the hometown event. “The PBR holds a Touring Pro event in Shipshewana, Indiana, about ten minutes from my house,” Marcus said. “It is the only PBR event where I can ride a bull and go and sleep in my own bed that night. I typically will drive to an event if it is under 14 hours away. Otherwise, I fly to the events.”

Marcus most memorable ride was this past summer at the PBR Monster Energy Team Challenge in Las Vegas. He was a member of team Union Home Mortgage, captained by Jess Lockwood. His teammates were Silvano Alves, Mason Taylor, and Luciano De Castro. On June 14, in game 18 in Division A, Mason was hurt and Marcus, being the alternate, stepped in to help the team. He rode Bubba G for 86.5 points! “That was a really rank bull, and I am really proud of that ride,” Marcus declared.

Marcus does some core strength and stamina exercises and runs to keep in shape for the rigors of bull riding. I asked him if he researches the bulls he draws. “If I see a bull buck one time, I remember pretty well how they buck,” Marcus said. “I will talk to the other riders about bulls that I’ve never seen before. When I climb on that bull in the chute, I try to know what that bull usually does. But I also know that a bull is going to do what he’s going to do, and you have to ride the bull for what he’s doing.”

“I hope to have a better year this year,” Marcus revealed. “Last year was a tough year! My goal is to get on the Tour, stay on the Tour, and make it to the PBR Finals on my own this year. It all starts at the Cedar Park Chute Out Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour event in Cedar Park, Texas on January 15 & 16 at the H-E-B Center.”

“I became a father at age 19,” Marcus shared. “That helped me Marcus takes on Safety Meeting (Dakota Rodeo - Berger/Struve / Hruby / Kainz).