Many cowboys have tried, but none have lasted eight seconds on Big Slim. Yet.
That is why he has been selected as the bounty bull for the second annual Bull-A-Rama Saturday at Vernon’s Coyote Creek Ranch.
There will be a field of more than 30 riders for the event on Westside Road (near the north end), and anybody drawing Big Slim and getting in a full ride will pocket $500. Anything less and the bounty keeps rising until someone does.
Coyote Creek Rodeo Company, owned by Ted Marchand, purchased Big Slim as a two-year-old from Texas and brought him to Canada to enhance their breeding program.
“It’s just his bloodlines,” said Craig Moore, a retired bull rider who is helping promote the event, presented by Winkler Bros. Excavating.
“He’s from Big Buck, a (PBR) world champion bull, and Pandhandle Slim, another champion.
“He’s one of the smartest bulls out there. He might buck one way, and next time he’ll go the other way. That’s why he’s so hard to ride – he’s unpredictable.”
Bull-A-Rama will also feature a lineup of other quality bulls from S&E Bucking Bulls of Kamloops and JRB Cattle Co., operated by Vernon’s Reynolds and Jimmy Bonneau.
Moore said rodeo fans should watch out for S&E’s Cowboys Choice, and Bonneau’s Guiyar and Cadillacs.
As for the riders, Vernon’s Cody Moore, formerly of Houston, B.C., will be back to defend his title. Other cowboys searching for a piece of the $3,500 purse are coming from as far away as Mexico and Australia.
Assisting the riders in the ring are bull fighters Greg Loring Jr. and Ozias Gordon.
Moore said spectators looking for up-close action can’t go wrong with the Coyote Creek venue.
“The pen’s not that big so people are right there watching them get roped in,” said Moore, 42, who now works with the ministry of forests. “It’s happening right there in front of you.”
Tickets are $10 (free for kids under 12) and are available at Boston Pizza, Cowboy’s Choice, Little Kingdom, Autowear Accessories and Elevation Motor Sports. The Bull-A-Rama after party is at The Green at The Village Green Hotel.
Meanwhile, the North Okanagan Rodeo Club is hosting its annual high school rodeo, running Friday, April 19 to Sunday, April, 21 at the Armstrong rodeo grounds. Action starts 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Admission is free and there will be a concession onsite at the Armstrong grounds.
