ProRodeo Sports News - Sept. 7, 2018

ROUGHSTOCK

KING OFTHE PASTURE According to Reagan, confidence has never been a problem for Apollo’s Ghost. “In the chute, he is mean, but in the pasture, he is dog gentle,” Reagan said. “You can go all around him and do whatever you want, but when it’s rodeo time, everything changes for him. He knows what he is doing. When we start sorting, he makes sure he’s one that gets to go (to the rodeo).” Reagan said Ghost is the king of his bull pasture in Palestine. “All my bulls hang out together, I don’t keep anything separate,” Reagan said. “He’s one of the bulls who has been here the longest, and he does what he wants around here. It is crazy, but bulls are a lot like a prison yard. They know where they fit in and that’s where they stay. I have a group of bulls that stays on one side of my place and I have another group that stays on the other side, and they don’t cross. If one crosses, they start raising Hell and they go back. But Ghost is one who can go to either side. He does whatever he wants, and they don’t say a word to him.” Reagan is hopeful Apollo’s Ghost’s comeback will be rewarded with a bid to the 2018Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. “That would mean everything we did was worth doing,” Reagan said. Medders agreed. “To be able to watch him buck at the NFR would exceed all expectations I ever had,” he said. “That would blow me away.”

The first time Reagan bucked Apollo’s Ghost came at an unsanctioned rodeo three years after the injury. “He was OK, and he bucked, but not like he did in the past,” Reagan said. “I thought he might just not be able to do it. So, I turned him out again and left him alone. But he’s an athlete, and I thought I would buck him again and he was a little better. It was a matter of himmaking sure everything was OK. Once he figured out he didn’t hurt and nothing was wrong, he went to bucking.” Bringing Apollo’s Ghost back to compete was hard to fathom for Reagan. “He never acted like he was in terrible pain, and we did everything we could to make sure he was OK,” Reagan said. “If it heeled up, we could use him for a breeding bull, that’s what I was going to do. I never thought about bucking him ever again. But, the way he started acting and moving around you couldn’t tell any difference in him than the rest of the bulls. So, I wanted to try and buck him again.” Apollo’s Ghost began displaying his old form four months ago. Reagan was sold that Apollo’s Ghost was back when he competed at the Division 2 Xtreme Bulls event in Gladewater, Texas, June 6. “He was bucking like he was when he was a 3-year-old before he got injured,” he said. “He gets really high and has a lot of drop and spin.” Medders was thrilled Reagan gave Ghost a second chance. “He looks spectacular in the videos that I’ve seen,” Medders said. “That

bull is a cool dude. I’m anxious to see what he produces on the breeding side. I would love to see him have a two to three-year career here, where he can make some trips to the bright lights and go up against J.W. Harris and Sage Kimzey and some of those guys.”

EARNING PRAISE

Bull rider Jeston Mead has seen how solid

Apollo’s Ghost can be.

Mead had an 86.5-point ride on Ghost to place second at the Eureka (Kan.) PRCA Rodeo (Aug. 17-18). The bull was scored 43 points during the ride. “He turned back to the left and was really flashy,” said Mead, 29. “Eureka was really muddy, but Apollo’s Ghost performed great.” When Mead was told Apollo’s Ghost missed three years with injury, it caught the cowboy off- guard. “That really surprises me, and that’s really impressive,” Mead said. “I would have never known that bull overcame that serious of an injury, considering the way he bucked. It shows how good of a heart Danny has to give that bull a second chance, and it also shows how big a heart Apollo’s Ghost has to be able to come back and perform to the best of his ability.” After Mead rode Apollo’s Ghost, it seemed to fire up the bull more for the final night of the rodeo. He bucked off Dakota Macom – Ghost scored 46 for his effort. “The next day he was outstanding,” Reagan said. “After he got ridden (by Jeston Mead), it made himmore rank, and he was even better. There was no way he was going to get ridden (Aug. 18). He really bucked. He has it going on right now and he knows it.”

The late standout bull Apollo, and his son, Apollo’s Ghost, look almost identical. Apollo’s Ghost, after being injured for three years, is back and bucking better than ever. Photos courtesy Danny Reagan

ProRodeo Sports News 9/7/2018

ProRodeo.com

45