TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — In 1925, Tucson’s La Fiesta de los Vaqueros was born, cementing cowboy culture in the Southwest lasting to this day. It was 70 years after the first Tucson Rodeo that Bobby Rodriguez learned what it meant to be a cowboy. He won the mutton-busting competition in 1995, igniting a long lasting passion for western sports.
“The cowboy spirit's lived in me ever since that moment,” he said.
Many years passed before deciding to make it a lifestyle. After he went to college, he got back into rodeo and committed to the rigorous grind of professional bull riding. In 2020, he retired from the Professional Bull Riding League. During his experience, he found he rarely came across other professional bull riders from Tucson, let alone the southside.
While this year is a huge milestone for the Tucson community, it’s also a special year for Rodriguez. This is the first year his son can compete in the Tucson Rodeo, exactly 30 years after he got his first win in mutton-busting.
“It’s exciting to see this guy do it 30 years later. You know, celebrating 100 years is important and then looking back, in those 30 years out of 100 to see that it’s all coming full circle means a lot,” said Rodriguez.
His son, Pierre, will be competing in the mutton-busting competition where children ride a sheep and attempt to stay on for as long as possible. When asked what he does when sheep riding, he said he has to “hold on tight,” then put his hands in the air.
“Because I can say hi to the people,” Pierre answered when asked why he would put his hands in the air. The final step, he added, was to fall off.
Despite the passion Rodriguez has for rodeo, he said he did not have any influence on his son’s interest in participating.
“He wanted to do it on his own, he saw pictures and liked it on t.v. It wasn't something that I put on him at the end of the day,” said Rodriguez. “He's been around here [their family ranch] since he was a newborn.”
Pierre has had a few years of practice, but his dad said this year isn’t about winning or losing.
“Later on in life we can talk about winning or losing, but for right now, we're just enjoying the moment.”
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Reyna Preciado is a reporter for KGUN 9, she joined the KGUN 9 team in July of 2022 after graduating Arizona State University. Share your story ideas with Reyna by emailing reyna.preciado@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or Twitter.
