ProRodeo Sports News - August 18, 2023

XTREME BULLS WOODSTOWN PILESGROVE, N.J.

Comeback

BY BRADY RENCK, Special to Prorodeo Sports News T urning rodeo into a career is difficult. The gravitational pull remains strong. Who wouldn’t want to travel the country, see cool cities, and compete with friends in front of big crowds? But for every cowboy who pursues this goal, others disappear into obscurity. “I didn’t know this was for me until I was 22 years old,” admitted bull rider Laramie Mosley. “I bought my rookie card. I had a pretty good year. I thought I had a chance to make it to the NFR (Wrangler National Finals Rodeo). I thought I was just good. But when I did well at Cheyenne (Wyo.) and Pendleton (Ore.) I knew I belonged. I had to reset my goals.” At 27, Mosley is pushing to reach the pinnacle of sport – the golden bucking chutes in Las Vegas. It didn’t seem possible for a few months, but he has executed a U-turn over the last few weeks. The momentum picked up full steam when he arrived at the Cowtown Rodeo Xtreme Bulls in Woodstown Pilesgrove, N.J. It was an unlikely spot, but it turned out to be a perfect fit. “I got a little ol’ good bull. I thought he was a calf. I didn’t think he would do much. Nobody knew anything about him,” Mosley said. “Then I got into the chute, and somebody said somebody went 90 on this bull. I was like, ‘Oh (bleep)! I better buck up,’” Mosley said. “It was just a super event. Super production. I was really impressed, and I told the organizing committee that I plan to come back if they have it again.” Mosley delivered an 89.5 -point ride on Three Hills Rodeo’s No. 73. The score held as no one in the field completed a second ride, leaving Mosley with a roughly $7,000 first prize. “He ducked to his right, but I stayed with him,” Mosley said. Mosley also had a 90-point trip on Stockyards Pro Rodeo’s Cheddar Biscuit in the first round at the Lea County PRCA Rodeo Xtreme Bulls in Lovington, N.M. Couple that with his Cowtown win, and his confidence is filling with helium after facing adversity for weeks. “It’s been a rough season. Shoot, I don’t think I had won more than $20,000 until (mid-July). Then all of a sudden, I won Nampa (Snake River Stampede). There were a couple of dry weeks, then Lovington, and here,” Mosley said. “I was driving down the road and told my partner in the rig that wouldn’t it be something goofy if I made the NFR? I don’t know what I would do. I am supposed to have hip surgery during that time. I guess I would have to reschedule.” For Mosley, the ride back into contention has come littered with potholes and pain. He broke his neck in 2021, creating physical and mental obstacles. However, he refuses to lose faith as he eyes the remaining six weeks on the circuit. “It was a battle last season. I had to figure out how to deal with it. I was more worried about landing on my head than staying on the bull,” said Mosley, who finished 18th in the PRCA | RAM World Standings in 2021, his best finish to date. “This year it would mean a whole lot more than any other year if I made it to the NFR because it means I would have come out of nowhere to do it. God willing, maybe it will happen.” Mosley overcomes injury with X-Bulls win

Casey Martin photo Laramie Mosley, who broke his neck in 2021, is making a frantic push to try and qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. He helped his plight by winning the Cowtown Rodeo Xtreme Bulls in Woodstown Pilesgrove, N.J.

ProRodeo Sports News 8/18/2023

ProRodeo Sports News 8/18/2023

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