Cody Lambert has been called the grandfather of PBR, and it is easy to understand why. The Artesia, New Mexico, native has been part of the sport from nearly every angle imaginable — competitor, co-founder, livestock director, judge, equipment innovator and now head coach of the Texas Rattlers. He does not spend much time trying to please everybody, and after more than four decades around professional bull riding, he has earned the right to trust what he sees.

Lambert was an elite all-around rodeo athlete long before PBR existed. He qualified for the National Finals Rodeo seven times in bull riding and three times in saddle bronc riding, competing alongside a legendary group that included Lane Frost, Tuff Hedeman, Jim Sharp and Ty Murray. He later became one of PBR’s original founders and qualified for the first three PBR World Finals from 1994-96 before retiring from competition.

His influence only grew after he stopped riding. Lambert became PBR’s longtime livestock director, helping identify and select the bulls worthy of competing at the sport’s highest level, and his eye remains every bit as sharp today. That extends to the coaching role, too. Few people are quicker to spot what Lambert believes is a slap, and as head coach of the Rattlers, he has never been shy about reaching for a challenge when he thinks the call warrants another look.

Lambert also changed the sport’s safety culture by helping develop the protective vest that became standard equipment for bull riders. The story is often connected to Frost’s death, but Lambert has explained that the idea actually began with his mother repeatedly pointing him toward the protective equipment worn by jockeys. After reading about a young equestrian whose vest helped save her life, he worked with a manufacturer for roughly a year to create something practical enough for bull riders to wear without interfering with their ability to compete.

In 2022, Lambert added another title to the résumé: head coach. He took over the Texas Rattlers during the inaugural PBR Teams season and immediately established the kind of program that reflects his personality — professional, disciplined and not particularly interested in unnecessary noise. A year later, the Rattlers won the 2023 PBR Teams Championship, giving Lambert another way to leave his fingerprints on a sport he helped create.

Do not expect much celebration from him, though. Every once in a while, somebody can get Lambert to crack a smile from behind the bucking chutes, but it is probably safer not to bet on it. He runs a tight ship, expects his riders to prepare seriously and has little interest in making a decision simply because it will be popular. His advice is usually direct, his evaluations are uncomplicated and his standards are high.

The cowboy exterior can be misleading.

Behind it is one of the most caring people in the sport. When Braidy Randolph was struggling away from the arena, Lambert did more than offer advice. He gave him somewhere to live and helped provide a path back toward stability. Randolph later credited Lambert with changing his life and teaching him not simply how to be a better bull rider, but how to become a better man. When Brady Fielder lost his home in a fire, Lambert was there to help, too.

That is the part of coaching Lambert seems to take most seriously. The Rattlers practice at his ranch near Bowie, Texas, but what happens there extends well beyond matching riders with bulls. A significant part of his coaching revolves around confidence, discipline, character and faith. His son Riley Lambert has described his father’s strength as stripping away confusion and bringing decisions back to a much simpler question: are they becoming the men they are supposed to be?

Lambert knows his own career was not perfect, either, and he uses that with his riders. He has said he had the ability to compete among the best but did not always possess the focus required to become truly elite. Instead of hiding those shortcomings, he teaches from them, particularly when his riders begin questioning themselves during a bad stretch.

Few people have given more of their lives to professional bull riding. Lambert helped create PBR, helped make the sport safer, spent decades shaping its bull pen and then took on the responsibility of shaping its athletes. His ranch remains a place where cowboys come to practice, rehabilitate, learn or simply spend time around someone who has seen almost everything the sport can throw at a man.

He still watches closely from behind the chutes.

He still catches the slap.

He still challenges when he thinks he is right.

And he still expects the men wearing a Texas Rattlers jersey to leave his program as better people than when they arrived.

For someone who helped build PBR from the ground up, Lambert’s work these days is less about creating the next version of the sport than making sure the cowboys inheriting it are ready to carry it forward.