On Being a Champion…With Mike Adams

For those of you who do not know me yet, I am a rodeo loving, boot wearing, horse riding cowgirl from Philadelphia. I have never lived in the south.  Although my lifestyle and hobbies have people convinced that I actually came from the south. When in reality I was born in Montreal. My brother and his family actually live in Toronto now.  I am able to get my rodeo fix mainly from the PRCA events local to me.

Over the course of last season I watched an amazing bull rider compete and he went on to win the championship and average for the First Frontier Circuit of the PRCA. Mike Adams competed in the Ram National Circuit Finals in March in Florida and won the 1st round and placed fourth overall.

Mike is an all-around nice guy. I didn’t get to meet him during the First Frontier Circuit Finals so I did not know him. But I reached out to him and asked if he would do an interview with me for my blog and he was genuinely receptive.

What makes Mike standout to me, beyond his gold buckles, is that he did not grow up rodeo. His parents held mainstream jobs, his friends were not rodeo kids, and he is from Pennsylvania. He currently lives in Oxford, Pa, which is about 65 miles south and west of Philadelphia, with his girlfriend on a horse farm where she trains and teaches hunter/jumper ponies. He tells me he rides around on the ponies bareback and jump them as well for practice.

19114:  Did you play any sports as a kid?

Mike:  Yeah, pretty much every sport. Baseball, lacrosse, football, hockey...

19114:  Were you friends with Rodeo kids?

Mike:  Not until I started riding when I was about 17.

19114: I know that your parents were not ranchers, do you think that if you grew up on a ranch/farm that you would have started riding sooner?

Mike: Yeah definitely

19114:  Tell me about the 1^st time you got on the back of a bull?

Mike:  I was at Cowtown the night before as a spectator, I asked one of the workers there if they could introduce me to one of the junior bull riders and he told me about something happening the next day. I got showed the basics on a buckin’ barrel for a couple minutes at Luck of the Draw Bullring in New Jersey, and then got on a bull that was perfect for a beginner.  He didn’t buck that hard but I got him rode.

 19114:  What’s your favorite event that you compete in?

Mike:   I only compete in bull riding. But I enjoy watching saddle bronc and bareback riding.

19114:   Do you have a favorite bull? Have you covered him?

Mike:  That’s always tough, there’s so many good bulls out there. But I will say Footloose from Pete  Carr is one of my favorites, since he helped me win the first round at the RNCFR.

19114:  Ultimately what do you want to achieve in your riding career?

Mike:   It’s every bull rider’s dream to be a world champion and that for sure is mine.

19114:  What has been your biggest accomplishment so far?

Mike: Making it to the final four man round of the RNCFR.

19114:  As a Northerner do you feel at a disadvantage competitively to the riders coming out of the Southwest, Northwest, Badlands? Why? Why not?

Mike: No, because whoever puts in the most time and effort wins. You can do that wherever you live, it’s up to you.

19114: What would make you a better competitor? Access to ranker bulls on the circuit, more variety of bulls?

Mike:  If I owned practice bulls and could just get on every day, I’m in the process of working on that.

19114: I wonder if by starting later, that your career will go longer, having not taken as much physical abuse as a teen. What do you think?

Mike: I don’t know, I’ve never thought about that. I don’t plan on ending my career anytime soon.

19114: Would you encourage your sons to ride bulls? Or even rodeo?

Mike: I have learned a lot from rodeo and riding bulls. I would encourage him to do whatever he was interested in.

19114:  I am a city girl, I love rodeo, my son wants to ride bulls. Any advice for me or him?

Mike: Well depending on how old he is, I would make sure he only gets on bulls or steers that are his level. Too many kids get on bulls too good for them       where they can’t learn anything and they have higher chances of getting hurt. As for you, I don’t know what it’s like being a mother, maybe you can talk to my mom. (haha)

19114:  What’s your favorite event to compete in?

Mike: The Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo is my favorite rodeo to compete in.  I have qualified there three times now.  It’s my favorite because you’re competing for a National Title, there’s a lot of money/awards and the bulls are great.

19114: What rodeos are you competing in over the next month? Do you post them on Social Media?

 Mike: I was in Indiana last week for a World’s Toughest Rodeo, this weekend I was in Waynesburg Pa for SEBRA (Southern Extreme Bull Riding Association) I won that event on Saturday.  As far as the rest of the month I’m not exactly sure, playing it by ear.  I’ll find something to go to every week for sure to keep me busy.

I am sure we will see Mike claiming many more gold buckles in the course of his career as a bull rider. Mike posts his rides on his FaceBook page. I will be following Mike closely over the season so look for updates on my Twitter account @cowgirl19114.  As I always say ‘Yes We Rodeo Big  In the North’.

Coming soon I will be exploring being a Rodeo Kid. If there are any topics you would like me to explore or people you want to hear from let me know. Leave a comment or email me cowgirl19114@gmail.com