Cowboy Up

by Jake Maddox

“Hey, Jake!” yelled Alicia from the bucking chute. “Just because you’re recovering from that spill doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you. I’m here to win!”

  The arena buzzer sounded, and the gate swung open. Alicia and her bull flew out. She rode well and lasted the full eight seconds. Her score put her in first place.

  After her ride, Alicia sat with Jake. Brandon was up next. “Are you going to go left-handed or right?” Alicia asked as Brandon got ready to ride.

  Jake rotated his right arm to test his shoulder. It didn’t hurt, but it still felt weak. “I think I’d better stay with the left,” he said.

  In the arena, Brandon rode a high-ranked bull for the full eight seconds. It wasn’t his best ride, but his score still put him in the top five.

  Brandon joined them after his run. “What’s your plan, Jake?” he asked. “Who are you riding?”

  “Razorwire,” Jake said, glancing over at his friend.

  Jake thought about the bull he’d drawn. Razorwire was a mid-ranked bull. He’d make for a good comeback challenge. But all Jake could think about was King Minos. I have to cowboy up, he thought.

  “That’s a good bull,” Brandon said. “Tommy Maskin rode him earlier. Got tossed in six seconds. But I’m sure you’ll last longer.”

  Jake glanced up at the arena. The stands were packed.

  “Don’t worry about the crowd,” Brandon told him. “You’ll be fine. Just get back out there on that bull.” He walked with Jake to the bucking chute to prepare for his first run.

  Brandon helped Jake check his helmet, gloves, and boots. Then Jake climbed the rail and lowered himself onto Razorwire. He gripped the bull rope securely in his left hand. Jake could feel the bull tense underneath him. An image of King Minos flashed into his head.

  I can’t think about that now, Jake told himself. I have to concentrate.

  The arena buzzer blared, and the chute opened. Razorwire came out of the chute spinning.

  Razorwire spun into a series of jumps and kicks. The bull kicked its way closer to the wall. Jake remembered how much it had hurt when he crashed into the wall last time. Razorwire spun, kicking the wall hard with his back legs.

  Jake slid backward on the bull. The kick off the wall had knocked him loose. He had to hold on tighter. He knew what the bull would do next.

  Razorwire leaped into the air and kicked hard. All at once, Jake lost his grip on the bull rope. He flew off the bull and hit the arena dirt hard.

  Rolling over, he looked up at the clock. Five seconds.

  CHAPTER 7

  BAD LUCK

  At the end of the first round, Alicia was in first place and Brandon was in fifth. Jake wasn’t even on the board.

  During Brandon’s final ride, Jake sat in the first row of the crowded arena.

  Brandon had drawn a mid-ranked bull named El Dorado for his final ride. As Jake watched, Brandon settled onto the back of the bull. Then the buzzer rang, and the chute flew open.

  El Dorado came out fired up. Right away he went into three powerful kicks and a long spin. Jake thought Brandon was done for, but somehow he managed to hold on.

  Then El Dorado launched into a tight set of spins. Brandon held his arm high and held on. He only had three seconds left. El Dorado continued to kick his way around the arena. There were a few times Jake thought Brandon would slip, but he didn’t.

  Jake looked up at the clock. Eight seconds. The buzzer rang again, and Brandon quickly jumped off the bull.

  The ride was good enough to move Brandon into first place. Jake cheered as his friend walked up the ramp to the front row seats. “Did you see my ride?” Brandon asked.

  “Yeah,” Jake said. “That was your best ride yet!”

  Brandon sat down next to him and pulled the tape off of his gloves. “Who’d you draw for your next ride?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” Jake said. “I’ve been watching the scoreboard to see. I just hope it’s not Minos.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Brandon said. “There’s no way you’ll draw the same bull that knocked you out nine weeks ago.”

  “Come on,” Jake said. “Don’t jinx me!”

  They both watched the scoreboard as the next batch of draws were made. One by one, names of bulls appeared next to riders. As the name of his bull slid onto the board, Jake’s heart pounded.

  King Minos.

  Jake felt his heartbeat speed up. His palms grew sweaty. He remembered the pain of his shoulder popping.

  I don’t think I can do this, Jake thought frantically. Sure, he’d worked hard to recover and get back in the finals — but not for this bull.

  I need some air, he thought. Jake got up from his seat and walked out of the arena.

  Out by the concession stand, Jake sat on the floor by the condiment table. He wore his cowboy hat low over his face. His father walked up to the stand and bought two hot dogs. Then he walked over to the condiment table and piled one hot dog with relish.

  “Lots of mustard on yours, right?” Dad asked Jake.

  Jake looked up. “I can’t eat a hot dog before a ride, Dad,” he said. “I’ll throw up all over the bull.”

  “Are you going to ride?” his dad asked.

  Jake looked down again. “I don’t know,” he said.

  Dad sat down next to him. “I know you think it’s impossible, Jake,” he said. “I’ve been in the same situation. Are you getting sweaty palms?”

  “Yeah,” Jake said.

  “Is your heart racing?” his dad asked.

  “Yes,” Jake admitted.

  “And I bet that bull keeps thundering through your mind, right?” Dad asked.

  “Exactly,” Jake said, nodding. “How’d you know?

  Dad smiled. “I used to ride too, you know,” he said. “When I was sixteen, a bull named Peachie threw me off. I broke my leg.”

  “The bull was named Peachie?” Jake asked, laughing.

  “Yes,” his father said. “You think you have it tough? At least your bull’s got a good name.” Dad shook his head. “The point is, the year after my busted leg, I won it all.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Jake said. “You rode every day of the week for a whole year. You practiced. You worked hard.”

  “That wasn’t all I did,” his dad said. “You think I wasn’t scared to get back on? Of course I was. But I couldn’t let that stop me from doing something I loved.”

  “So how did you get over it?” Jake asked.

  “I had to cowboy up,” his dad said. “Just like you. You can’t overcome your fears without taking them by the horns. You get it?”

  Jake looked up his dad. “Yeah,” he said with a smile. “I get it.”

  CHAPTER 8

  RETURN OF THE KING

  Jake and his dad headed back into the arena. It was time for Alicia’s final run. She’d drawn a mid-ranked bull named Warclub, a chocolate-colored bull with huge horns.

  Alicia held onto the bull rope with her left hand. Her right hand waved as her body lurched with the bull. She made it through the eight seconds. The crowd went wild.

  Jake thought about what he needed to do for his final run. His first run had not been good. He’d have to ride Minos perfectly to move into the top ten.

  Jake gulped. His throat was dry, and he could barely swallow. Visions of King Minos raced through his mind.

  Jake shook his head. He knew he couldn’t let King Minos get to him. Come on, cowboy up, he told himself.

  “Wake up,” said Alicia, sitting down next to him. “Did you see my score?”

  Jake glanced at the scoreboard. Alicia was in first place again. Brandon had been bumped to third. “Wow,” Jake said. “You might be the new champion.”

  “If you have a perfect ride on King Minos, maybe not,” Alicia said.

  “Don’t count on it,” Jake muttered, rubbing his face. “I couldn’t ride him nine weeks ago, and that was when both of my arms worked.”

  “Just do your best,” Alicia said. “Everyone here is rooting for you.”
r />   “Come on, Jake,” Brandon called. He stood near the bucking shoot. “Your turn.”

  Jake took a deep breath and stood up. “Time to go,” he said. “Wish me luck.”

  Alicia and Jake walked to the bucking chute. Jake could see King Minos through the rails. The large bull snorted loudly.

  Alicia wrapped more tape around his gloves. “Don’t forget,” she said, “let your body flow with his.” She squeezed his wrists to make sure the tape was tight. Then she handed him his helmet.

  Jake carefully hopped over the rail and climbed onto King Minos’s back. He tucked his left hand securely under the bull rope and wrapped it tightly.

  Jake glanced over to the stands. He could see his family watching him. Dad gave him a thumbs-up.

  Jake took a deep breath. Everything slowed down again. The only thing he heard was his own heartbeat thumping in his ears.

  When the buzzer sounded, King Minos came out of the gate like a rocket. The bull wheeled into a pinwheel move with a series of high kicks.

  With every kick, Jake’s brain felt like it was being scrambled in his skull. He gripped the bull rope tighter to stay on.

  Then Minos reversed his spin and slammed to a halt. Jake lurched forward against the bull’s neck. The bull lifted its rear legs in a powerful kick. Jake’s body whipped with the kick. It felt like his head was going to snap off.

  Minos tucked into a spin, and everything became a blur again. Jake couldn’t tell how much time was left. He just held on with all the strength he had.

  When Minos swung out of the spin, he began another series of kicks. Each kick brought them closer to the wall.

  With a wild roar and a hard kick, Minos jumped for the wall. Jake flinched. His heart pounded. It would be just like the last time. He squeezed his eyes closed and held on tightly with his left hand.

  But they didn’t hit the wall. Instead, King Minos swung away in another spiral kicking move.

  The buzzer in the arena blared loudly. Jake opened his eyes. Eight seconds had passed.

  He’d done it! He’d gone the whole eight seconds on the meanest bull in the division. Letting go of the bull rope, Jake jumped off of King Minos. Then he ran to the side of the arena.

  As the rodeo clowns wrangled up the bull, Jake climbed out of the arena and made his way back to his family. He could see his parents and sister on their feet cheering. Alicia and Brandon were hollering too. Up on the scoreboard, his name slid into the tenth-place spot.

  Jake grinned. He felt great. Sure, he hadn’t placed first, second, or even third. He’d placed tenth. But that didn’t matter to him anymore. This tenth place felt better than all his championships.

  Jake realized that his dad had been right. He’d needed to cowboy up and overcome his fear. That’s what was most important. And he’d done it. That felt better than any first-place trophy.

  He reached his family and friends in the stands. Everyone was on their feet cheering loudly.

  “Way to go, Jake!” Alicia yelled. “That was amazing!”

  “That was awesome, man!” Brandon added. “I can’t believe you lasted the full eight seconds!”

  Jake leaned over and high-fived Brandon with his good hand. Then he turned to his dad.

  “You were right, Dad,” Jake said. “I just had to dust off and get back in there. I had to cowboy up.”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Scott R. Welvaert lives in Chaska, Minnesota, with his wife and two daughters. He has written many children’s books, including The Curse of the Wendigo and The Mosquito King. Most recently, he has written about Helen Keller, the Donner Party, and Thomas Edison. Scott enjoys reading and writing poetry and stories. He also enjoys playing video games and watching the Star Wars movies with his children.

  ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

  When Sean Tiffany was growing up, he lived on a small island off the coast of Maine. Every day until he graduated from high school, he had to take a boat to get to school! Sean has a pet cactus named Jim.

  GLOSSARY

  arena (uh-REE-nuh)—a large area that is used for sports or entertainment

  chute (SHOOT)—a narrow passage for something to pass through

  concentrate (KON-suhn-trate)—to focus your thoughts and attention on something

  corridor (KOR-uh-dur)—a long hallway or passage in a building

  discouraged (diss-KUR-ijd)—having lost your enthusiasm or confidence

  enormous (i-NOR-muhss)—extremely large

  ligament (LIG-uh-muhnt)—a tough band of tissue that connects bones

  reigning (RAYN-ing)—ruling

  tense (TENSS)—nervous or worried

  trough (TRAWF)—a long, narrow container from which animals can eat or drink

  DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  After Jake saw Alicia riding left-handed, he came up with a creative solution to his problem. Talk about some other ways he could have dealt with his injury.

  What are some other things Jake’s friends could have done to help him?

  What do you think about Jake’s attitude throughout the book? Talk about how it changes from beginning to end.

  WRITING PROMPTS

  At the end of this book, Jake rode King Minos for eight seconds. Write about a time when you had to “cowboy up” and overcome your fears.

  Write about a time you accomplished something you were extremely proud of. Did anyone else help you? How did you do it?

  Would you ever want to try bull riding? Why or why not? Write about it!

  MORE ABOUT BULL RIDING

  Bull riding is a rodeo sport that involves a rider attempting to stay on a large bull while the animal tries to buck the rider off. According to American rules, a rider must stay on the bull for eight seconds.

  At the start of the ride, the bull is held in a bucking chute. The rider mounts the bull in the bucking chute, signals when he or she is ready, and the chute door is opened. The bull tries to buck the rider off. The rider must hold the bull rope with one hand, and try to shift his or her body weight to stay balanced on the bull.

  Riders are judged based on how well they control the bull and how long they can stay on. They are judged for only eight seconds, when the ride officially ends. An adult bull-riding competition usually has four rounds. The rider who earns the most points from all four rounds wins.

  SAFETY EQUIPMENT & TIPS

  bull rope — the rider hangs onto a braided rope that is tied behind the bull’s front legs

  chaps — provide protection for the rider’s legs and thighs

  gloves — leather gloves to help the rider grip the bull rope and prevent rope burn

  helmet — helmets with ice-hockey-style face masks are mandatory at younger levels

  protective vest — riders are required to wear a protective vest made of high-impact foam

  There are several youth organizations that are designed to encourage youngers riders to get involved in the sport. To learn more, check out:

  • Texas Youth Bull Riders

  • National Junior Bull Riders Association

  • Western Regional Bull Riders Association

  JAKE MADDOX

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  Jake Maddox Books are published by Stone Arch Books,

  A Capstone Imprint

  1710 Roe Crest Drive,

  North Mankato, Minnesota 56003

  www.capstonepub.com

  Copyright © 2012 by Stone Arch Books

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publis
her.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Maddox, Jake.

  Cowboy up / by Jake Maddox ; text by Scott R. Welvaert ; illustrated by Sean Tiffany.

  p. cm. -- (Jake Maddox Sports Story)

  Summary: Jake is the best bull rider in his division, but after he finally takes a bad spill during a competition he has to overcome his fear before he can ride again.

  ISBN-13 978-1-4342-2989-2 (library binding)

  ISBN-10 1-4342-2989-0 (library binding)

  ISBN-13 978-1-4342-3425-4 (pbk.)

  ISBN-10 1-4342-3425-8 (pbk.)

  ISBN-13 978-1-4342-8895-0 (ebook)

  [1. Bull riding--Fiction. 2. Self-confidence--Fiction. 3. Fear--Fiction.] I. Welvaert, Scott R. II. Tiffany, Sean, ill. III. Title.

  PZ7.M25643Co 2011

  [Fic]--dc22

  2011000346

  Art Director: Kay Fraser

  Graphic Designer: Russell Griesmer

  Production Specialist: Michelle Biedscheid

  Photo Credits: Shutterstock/Photography Perspectives - Jeff Smith (cover)