Change is sometimes for the best

Ok, so this post although not completely about bull riding does have some connection. It has come to the point in my college career where I have to declare a minor. Seeing as I know very well I want to write for the PBR it was difficult for me to find a minor that would apply. My first instinct was that I wanted to do a sort of sports medicine program because that kind of applies to the career path that I want. When I discovered my school does not offer this a minor I was back to the drawing boards once again. Then When scrolling through a list of minors offered I saw sports psychology. Now ask any rider out there and they will say that bull riding is more of a mental sport than a physical sport; so I looked into the coursework for this degree. I noticed that a lot of classes sounded really applicable and interesting. A lot of the classes deal with what drives people to be competitive and other things of that nature. So tomorrow I go to the Psychology department and make it official. I hope that I am not wrong in thinking that this minor is one that I can actually apply while working for the PBR. I think that having the psychological advantage will help me in getting more in depth with the riders I am interviewing and therefore give me better stories. The reason I write this is because it shows how much bull riding has changed my life. Before that first event I was dead set on being a Political Science major and being a family court attorney and minoring in something fun to me like journalism. Now that doing Public Relations for the PBR has become my dream career every academic decision I make is based on one simple question: will it help me get a job with and be successful at the PBR? That has lead me to change my major of about oh 15 years and go on a totally unrelated career path. This is something to me that is more important than all those years of wanting to be a lawyer. I feel as if that time of wanting to be a lawyer was just there to keep me entertained with my schooling until I found my true passion and desire. 

Love, dedication and admiration.

So there is now a countdown on the PBR website counting down until next season's schedule is released. This made me wonder; how addicted to the sport are the fans? You go to the website of any major sporting organization pre season and there is not a clock announcing when the season schedule is being released. Bull riding fans are rare breed of fans. As far as us fans out concerned these men are celebrities and heroes. We admire them for what they do and who they are as well as who they aren't. Now if you are someone who is not a fan and look in on the fans of the sport you might think we are a little obsessive and crazy. The fact of the matter is we are just more passionate about the sport than other fans are about other sports. Bull riding is a sport based on emotion so obviously the emotion of the fans is going to be higher. Right before I met two very important riders, Justin McBride and JB Mauney I was in a state of pure elation. When those men walked in the door of the car dealership I seriously think my heart stopped beating for a little bit. These were two major men in the sport and they were here for me and all the rest of their fans. They went above and beyond their call of duty showing how much they care about all of us. Justin McBride talked to a fan on the phone as if they were old friends catching up.   No other celebrity or major league athlete is going to do something this nice for someone just because. When I was talking to JB Mauney and Brendon Clark they were actually listening to and caring about what I had to say. That in my opinion is why the fans of the PBR seem so much more intense than other fans because the riders are humans who don't try to be all high and mighty.