Professional bull riders often find themselves face down in the dirt. It is part of the sport.
Former Blackfoot resident Brady Oleson has had to pick himself up and dust himself off countless times in pursuit of the often elusive eight-second ride.
Rising after the fall is something that Oleson has down to an art. The 28-year old has risen from injuries and battles with alcohol to become a world champion as a member of the Professional Bull Riders’ Texas Rattlers.
In so doing he has demonstrated the true grit of a genuine cowboy.
“I was 23 years old when some injuries happened to me combined with some personal failures,” he said. “I’d had hip and shoulder surgeries and some dislocations. I was really struggling with things. I ended up depending on alcohol. In 2021 I hit bottom. Just being willing to do something about it was the first step in recovery. I spent a lot of time praying, just trying to make things right.”
Oleson has recovered not only from addiction and injury but he has risen to the top of the PBR team sports series. As a member of the Texas Rattlers, Oleson is a key performer on a team that had a magical run to the league championship in Las Vegas last season.
The Rattlers muddled their way through the regular season but came on like gangbusters in the championship series, eventually defeating regular season champion and in-state rivals the Austin Gamblers on their way to earning the coveted gold buckle.
“Shoot, I think it surprised a lot of people but to me and the members of our team, it wasn’t really surprising,” said Oleson. “It was the goal all along. We just kept riding and doing our jobs, one ride at a time and it all worked out. It was a pretty huge blessing.”
Oleson’s path to becoming a Texas Rattler was improbable. Things just fell into place for the Firth High School alum.
“It was a crazy turn of events because it wasn’t looking like that would happen before the draft,” Oleson said. “I ended up winning the first round of the 2022 PBR World Finals and that kind of caught Cody Lambert’s eye. I guess he liked what he had seen of me and heard about me, so in a matter of just a couple of days I ended up with the Texas Rattlers.”
Given Oleson’s troubles in recent years, the opportunity to join the Rattlers under the tutelage of bull riding legend Lambert was a no-brainer.
“The way it worked out, Lambert has been a huge part of my life the last three years. He’s done so much for me. It has just been a blessing.”
Lambert, the Texas Rattlers head coach, agrees.
“Brady steps up in whatever role the team needs him to play,” said Lambert, a PBR Hall of Famer. “He is a real leader and does whatever it takes to help the team be better. Brady is a veteran who hasn’t seen his best days yet, but he has made a lot of good rides for us and given us a lot of scores. We have very high expectations for Brady.”
Oleson made the move from Idaho to Texas in June of 2022 to pursue a bull riding career. It was a dream Oleson had since childhood
“It was just kind of a family thing,” he said. “My step dad raised bulls and my father raised bucking horses. So, it kind of runs in the family. It was something I was always around and always wanted to do. My grandparents owned a pretty good piece of land out in the area, around 200 head of cattle. I was probably 12 when I got on a bull for the first time but I’d been riding sheep, calves, steer and mini bulls before that.”
Oleson credits one person with helping him become the best bull rider he can be.
“My stepdad, Jason Johnson, taught me everything I knew about bull riding,” he said. “Anytime I am having a hard time out there, I’ve always been able to talk to him and he reminds me that I am able to do these things.”
A cowboy at heart, Oleson explains the draw to bull riding and the surging interest nationwide in the western lifestyle.
“I think it is just the feeling you get when you are up there on the animal,” Oleson said. “I haven’t really found anything else that comes close. They are big animals. It is scary. There is a point of challenge in your mind where you have to get through that fear. It is just kind of a mental challenge, I guess is the best way to describe it. As far as the interest that the country is showing in a western lifestyle is concerned, I think it is the good old cowboy code and the morals that go with it. I think that is attractive to a lot of people these days. Maybe there are people out there that want to live old school.”
Oleson’s defending champion Texas Rattlers are off to a slow start this season. As of now, their season record stands at 2-3 placing them seventh in the ten-team Camping World Team Series. But it was a similar story last season for the Rattlers who emerged from the middle of the pack to make their playoff drive to a title.
For his part, Oleson, riding leadoff has been up to the task. For the second-straight week, Oleson earned points for his team, recently besting a bull named “I’ll Make Ya Famous” for an 86.75 point ride during a victory over the Florida Freedom in Duluth, Georgia.
“The team goal is to repeat this year,” said Oleson. “For me personally, it is just to grow as a bull rider and improve. I’d like to improve my riding percentage and stay on more bulls.”
Oleson recently found some time to visit his home state. Between team events Oleson made his way back through the Gem State.
“I don’t make it back to Idaho very often,” said Oleson. “The PBR team schedule keeps me pretty busy. But I did head back there recently for the Big Sky event. So, I drove through and saw some of the family and friends there before I headed out to Montana.”
Oleson is right where he wants to be at this point in his life participating in a professional league that he thinks is about to hit it big.
“PBR Team series offers a lot of opportunities for the bull riders to earn a really good living and make some great connections and build friendships,” he said. “With my coach, I’ve learned so much from him, it has changed both my bull riding and my life.”
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