Lance Rowe, 17, of Eagle River, says this about bull riding, “I'm sure it's better than anything anyone's ever felt. If there's a way you can do it, try it.”
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Eagle River's Lance Rowe rides a bull at an event in Wasilla in early June. The 17-year-old traveled to Springfield, Ill., in July to attend the National High School Finals Rodeo, where he placed 85th in bareback.
PHOTO BY Penny Gillen
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According to Rowe, he started “rodeoing hard” about two or three years ago, and in June, he was named the Alaska bareback champion at the State High School Finals Rodeo in Soldotna, when he placed fourth in bull riding.
That qualified him to travel to Springfield, Ill., in July to attend the National High School Finals Rodeo, where he placed 85th in bareback, which he said isn't bad considering he was competing against competitors from every state, all of the Canadian provinces and Australia.
“I did all right,” he said. “Not as good as I wished.”
At nationals, he said he was bucked off of every bull he rode.
In the military rodeo standings, he said he's rated eighth or ninth in the world, and he's second in bareback riding in that same military league.
For the events he participates in, Rowe uses rough stock, horses and bulls, which are provided at the rodeos.
“The wilder the animal, the more points you get,” he said.
“You practice any chance you get,” he said. “Me and a couple buddies got an oil drum, just a big ol' barrel, and we jerry-rigged it to a front-end transmission spring, and it rocks back and forth and turns to the side a little bit, so you can practice on that.”
Or, he said, “every so often, you get a day off of work or something and you can go down to Soldotna or out to Wasilla and get on some practice bulls.”
Homeschooled through an Eagle River Christian Academy program, Rowe will be a senior in high school this fall, and he works at the Commissary on Elmendorf Air Force Base in the produce department. His home schooling schedule allows him the freedom to travel to rodeos during the school year.
For one so young, he's had his share of pain, mostly from riding bulls.
“I've had several real bad concussions, knocked teeth out, crushed muscles. I'm sure I've broken something somewhere along the line,” Rowe said.
“You've got to be one tough son-of-a-gun to do it. I can't explain it,” he said.
As much as he enjoys the thrill of bull riding, the bareback event is his favorite.
“It's the hardest event in the rodeo, a lot of people are scared to do it. It takes a lot of strength and skill. When that horse gets going, he's going,” he said.
Rowe plans to attend the 2007 Military World Finals Rodeo in November in Fort Worth, Texas.
When he's done with school, Rowe said, he'll decide on the two options he's settled on. He'll either “hit the road rodeoing or join the Marine Corps.”
But he is hooked by the rodeo way of life.
“The top cowboys in all the rodeos are the classiest guys you'll ever meet. They'll give you the shirt off their back. It has a positive impact on my life, it's such a positive thing, it's such a positive sport,” Rowe said.
Reach the reporter at sally.foo@alaskastar.com.
