ALL Clancy Butler wanted to do when he first jumped on a calf at age six was to ride bulls.
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This weekend the 27-year-old cowboy is off to Deniliquin to ride bulls.
The weekend after that he’s off to Bundaberg riding more PBR bulls.
His season has just kicked off but he’s already been to Darwin, Innisfail, Mackay and Rockhampton.
A stockman (Warrah Station) at Willow Tree, Butler’s determined to be in good form when the Professional Bull Riders return to Tamworth in November.
It will be his second outing in the Tamworth round of the PBR in Tamworth’s Australian Equine and Livestock Events Centre (AELEC).
“It’s my home crowd,” he said.
“I want to ride well at home and impress everyone.”
The AELEC is also one of the best arenas to compete in, he said.
The crowd and atmosphere help the bullriders perform on their 1000kg or so opponents.
Butler started riding calves at age six, progressing through the ABRCA ranks on calves and steers to win a national ABCR junior title.
He also competed in the 2003 National High School Finals in Farmington, New Mexico, USA.
Butler debuted on the PBR tour at Kempsey in December 2012 and snared his first PBR placing at Marrabel, South Australia in February, 2013.
Top five finishes at Yass and Darwin and an eighth at Caboolture qualified him for his first PBR Cup Series event at the Brisbane Invitational.
It was to be a brilliant success for Butler despite breaking his scapula (collar bone) in his very first ride.
His first bull was Chuck a Wobbly and he scored not only 86 points but the shoulder break.
That didn’t stop him though and he strapped it up and rode Black Tornado for another 86-point score, qualifying him for the championship round.
He then stuck it out on Napoleon Dynamite for another 86-point ride to be the only successful three-bull rider.
“It hurt when I got up and hurt real bad when I got back off but I didn’t feel a thing for that eight to 10 seconds,” he said.
“You don’t have time to think.”
Consistency is the secret to bull riding, Butler reckons.
“Not getting bucked off,” he said. “Sticking on.”
Consistent performances throughout the start of the 2014 season saw Butler ranked in the Top 20 and given the opportunity to compete in the July Invitational Cup Series.
The second stop on the tour was the prestigious Brendon Clark Invitational in Newcastle which saw Butler finish in the Top 5 and guaranteed a spot in his second PBR Australia National Finals.
Riding three for three in Sydney, Butler finished runner up and just three points from winning the event.
Finishing the season 15th on the Australian standings, Butler is eager to improve his position in this new season.
It means his training is solid with a lot of skipping, weight lifting, jogging and riding practice bulls.
That all adds up to a hectic life for the PBR star.
“It’s all I ever wanted to do,” he said.
