Bull Riding Is The Love Of Will Rogers’ Life by Nancy Brannnon For most people, the name Will Rogers may not be synonymous with bull riding, but in the Deep South Rodeo Association, it is. At nearly 52 years old, Will Rogers “senior” of Potts Camp, Mississippi has been riding bulls since he was 39 (he’s still holding) and winning awards for doing it. He has been so successful at it that people speculate what a wonder he might have been had he started bull riding earlier in life. His son, Will Rogers “junior” also rides bulls at the rodeos, competing with his dad, who is still able to best him most times. Rogers told how he got interested in bull riding just shortly after his oldest daughter graduated from high school. “She met a young man who was into rodeo. That’s when my son was younger, and this young man got my son interested in bull riding. I went to watch them practice one day and they asked me if I wanted to try to ride one. I did and I’ve been hooked ever since.” Needless to say, falling off a bull, hopefully after eight seconds, and getting out of his way afterwards doesn’t come as easy for older folks as it does for younger riders. “My bones don’t heal as quickly as they used to,” said Rogers “senior.” But he has obviously developed some effective techniques that have kept him running in the top placings for several years. “I have won four belt buckles so far. In 2006 I won the Year Ending and the Finals at the Deep South Rodeo.” So far this year, he is in second place in the top 15 slated for the Finals. He discounts the danger, too. “Anything you do in this day and age is dangerous,” he said. “It’s how you look at it.” How does he look at bull riding and what are his secrets to success? “The first thing is you have to have faith in Jesus,” he said. “You ask Him to help you make it through without getting hurt too much. The second thing is you have to have it in your heart and mind to do it. If you don’t have it in both places, you’re just wasting your time.”That is the philosophy behind several practical things that he does while actually riding the bulls. Rogers said he “didn’t cover a bull, didn’t go to the pay windows” his first three years of riding. But he observed other successful riders and asked them questions. “I watched and listened to others who were doing well.” To learn “you have to ask questions of someone who’s been doing it longer than you. I would ask questions like ‘what did I do wrong?’ They would tell me, well ‘you didn’t have your spurs down right’ or whatever else I did wrong.” That’s how he caught on and learned that “there are all kinds of little tricks to it.” Here are some of the things he has learned over the years: “Make sure you lift up on the rope when you come out of the chute. Focus on the bull’s head and block out of your mind everything else that’s going on around you. Make sure your spurs are set right. Get good balance and a good hook with your spurs. When you come out, just ride the bull jump for jump and hope you make eight seconds. The main thing is to have some good bull fighters to help you get out of the way before the bull comes back to get you.” Rogers has “had several bulls to get me,” but so far has suffered no serious injuries. What is the key to avoiding injury from hitting the ground so often? “Try to land on your feet if you can,” Rogers answered. “But if you can’t, be prepared to take it wherever you land. Just ignore the pain and get out of the arena” as fast as you can. “The bulls will hurt you, especially the Longhorns. It’s just part of the nature of being a bull. Most will turn around and try to get you.” Rogers said his brother tried bull riding a time or two, but decided he didn’t want any part of it. Rogers jokingly said, “He can’t ‘hang ten’ with us old folks. We really enjoy it!” Rogers and his son are still competing, but he believes his son is just out to be seen and “to see how many pretty girls are looking at him.” Perhaps that’s why Rogers “senior” is often “in first or second place, while his son may be around tenth place,” he said. This may be his last year, he said, depending on how his health holds out. “I’m going to try to ride as long as I can.” In spite of the danger, Rogers contends, “I just love it. When one rodeo ends, I can’t wait for the next one. I find out where it’s going to be and start preparing for it. It’s the only pleasure I get out of life. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.” The rest of the time he works six days a week at his own business: Rogers’ Truck and Equipment Repair. Perhaps Garth Brooks did capture the essence of Rogers’ feelings about bull riding: “It’s the bulls and blood; it’s the dust and mud; it’s the roar of a Sunday crowd. It the white in his knuckles, the gold in the buckle he’ll win the next go ‘round. It’s boots and chaps; it’s cowboy hats; it’s spurs and latigo. It’s the ropes and the reins and the joy and the pain. And they call the thing rodeo.” Rodeo has also made a major difference in his personal life. “Before I started bull riding, I was an alcoholic. I still worked everyday and supported my family, but I let alcohol take over my life. One day, I decided it had to go. When it went, I started bull riding and I’ve been doing it ever since. You just have to have it in your mind to quit.” He sees other people going to rehabilitation centers to quit, but thinks that is probably not necessary. “It’s what you’ve got in your heart and mind” that’s important, he believes. If this were his last year in rodeo, he would like to go out a winner. “I hope that when the Finals come in October, I’ll go into the Finals in first place and I hope to win the Finals. It would be a good way to go out.” His son will probably continue riding bulls and “senior” will find a way to help out, maybe in bull fighting, “but I won’t get on one” after he retires from it. The inevitable questions about his namesake, the famous Will Rogers, had to come. “I had a rough time going through school because of the name. I had to fight a lot.” If there’s one famous Will Rogers saying that he identifies with it’s this one: “Will Rogers said he never met a man he didn’t like. I’ve met a lot in my day and there have been very few I didn’t like.” There’s another Will Rogers saying that fits him: “If you want to be successful, it's just this simple. Know what you are doing. Love what you are doing. And believe in what you are doing.” Will Rogers “senior” certainly knows and loves bull riding, and is successful at doing it.