Fried Twinkies, Buckle Bunnies, & Bull Riders

August 8, 2005
Sportswriter Peter chronicles a year on the circuit of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) tour, yet fails to capture the excitement of the tenacious battle between man and beast. Readers meet former champ Chris Shivers, whose injuries—broken bones and worse—in 2004 prevented him from finishing in the top 10 that year; Brazilian rider Adriano Moraes, who rides atop the field all year until the final showdown in Vegas; Justin McBride, whose nickname, "McBridesmaid," indicates his perennial runner-up status; and Mike Lee, a devout Christian rider and eventual 2004 champion. Peter tells their potentially enthralling stories in a pedestrian fashion, simply narrating the details of each event on the tour. Readers also meet the bulls, like Little Yellow Jacket, who wins Bull of the Year honors for the third year in a row in Las Vegas, and their millionaire owners, and get a peek at the conflicts about the future of the PBR in the front office (like any other sport, business folks banter about athletes' contracts, sponsorships, prize money, etc.). Along the way, Peter searches for the elusive fried Twinkie, a treat none of the concessions stands on the tour even sell.