ProRodeo Sports News - September 21, 2018

GRILLE COWBOY

Bull rider LARAMIE MOSLEY, 22, was sixth in the PRCA | Resistol Rookie of the Year standings with $27,989 as of Sept. 17. The Sublette, Kan., cowboy has overcome his share of adversity to become a competitor in the PRCA. He plans on competing more in 2019 to hopefully qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

WITH TRACY RENCK PSN

Has this rookie season been everything you expected? Laramie: Everything could be better, but it could also be a heck of a lot worse. The traveling is fun. I didn’t really expect it to be all that it was. It was dang sure a different experience. I like traveling and seeing new places and making some money while I’m doing it. How did you get the name Laramie? Laramie: My parents named me after the town, Laramie, Wyo. I’m an only child. Both my real parents are deceased. I lived with my

aunt, Patricia Parrish, and the guy I call my father is Larry Phillips. I asked Larry for a job when I was a sophomore in high school, and he took me under his wing and raised me ever since. He buys cows for a living and has a bunch of horses, and I’ve always taken care of his cow deal. He leases a feed yard in Turpin, Okla., and that’s where all my free time goes. How much pride do you take in what you have been able to make of yourself? Laramie: It means a lot to me. Larry has taught me a lot, and without him in my life I really don’t know where I would be. I dang sure wouldn’t be going up and down the road rodeoing. He has had a big impact on my life. What does eight seconds feel like to you? Laramie: It’s the best feeling, and it is a lot of fun. There’s no better way to have a lifestyle. Is there a favorite bull you have been able to ride?

Laramie: Salt River Rodeo’s Rocky Road. I had an 87-point ride on him to win the rodeo in Window Rock, Ariz., in July. I knew that was a good bull, and I really didn’t want to fall off him. He’s a young bull, but he’s intimidating because he’s big, but once the ride started happening everything came together for me. What has been your biggest highlight this season? Laramie: Personally, I think staying on at the St. Paul (Ore.) Rodeo and getting something out of there. (Mosley finished in a tie for fourth with an 86.5-point ride at St. Paul and earned $2,281.) That Fourth of July run was really fun. What are your thoughts o n the mental aspect of bull riding? Laramie: I know if I fall off a bull, I want to forget about it right here and now. I don’t want to keep thinking about it. I like to think about the good and forget about the bad. I also like riding bulls I have never seen just so I don’t set traps. Those are the ones I have the most success on. You also do tie-down roping, team roping (header) and saddle bronc riding? Laramie: I liked tie-down roping because you’re going fast, and you have to step off fast. Team roping I’ve done since I was little. I thought saddle bronc riding would be fun, but that was a lie to myself. It was not fun at all. Why did you choose to concentrate on bull riding?

Laramie: It was just something I always wanted to do and prove to myself I could do it and go somewhere with it. I tried to ride my first bull when I was an eighth-grader. It didn’t go well. I was very scared. I got bucked off. But I wasn’t going to give up. I wanted to prove to myself I could do it.

What would it mean if you could qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo next year? Laramie: I’m going to go even harder next year and make it a reality to make the NFR. It would mean the world to me if I could qualify for the NFR. I’ve never been to Las Vegas for the NFR. I told myself when I was little I wouldn’t go to Las Vegas until I made the NFR. Where is your favorite place to go eat? Laramie: I’m a steak guy, so I have to say Texas Roadhouse. I get a ribeye, loaded mash potatoes and sweet tea. Would you rather skydive or ride a roller coaster?

Laramie: Ride a roller coaster. Because you’re way too high in the air with skydiving. Jumping out of a plane is not my party. I enjoy roller coasters. What type of car are you driving? Laramie: A 1993 Dodge van. It gets me to all the rodeos. I have owned it since April, and it gets me down the road. What’s your favorite movie? Laramie: All The Pretty Horses (released in 2000). I could sit down and watch that on repeat.

MOSLEY

ProRodeo Sports News 9/21/2018

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