The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) today celebrates two legends of the sport of bull riding by announcing their impending induction into the Ring of Honor. On May 15, 2010, acclaimed bull rider Jim Sharp and former PBR CEO Randy Bernard will join the ranks of the elite few so honored.
The induction ceremony will be held in Pueblo, Colo., in conjunction with the Wild, Wild West Festival and the Pueblo Invitational, the 21st stop on this season’s elite Built Ford Tough Series.
The PBR Ring of Honor was created in 1996 to recognize those who have had the most profound impact on bull riding, both in and out of the arena. Its 30 members include such luminaries as the great Jim Shoulders, PBR founding fathers Ty Murray and Cody Lambert, and three-time PBR World Champion Adriano Moraes.
The Ring of Honor, the PBR’s equivalent of a Hall of Fame, is more than a fellowship: Each inductee is presented with a ring handcrafted of diamonds and gold bearing the PBR logo, the recipient’s name and the year he was honored.
Prior to 2010, the Ring included only former bull riders in its ranks. This year, by special dispensation from the PBR Board of Directors, and in recognition of his unique role in building the organization from a $20,000 enterprise into a multimillion-dollar global phenomenon, Bernard will become the first and only non-rider inducted.
RANDY BERNARD
Randy Bernard was a 28-year-old fair promoter when he was hired as CEO of the Professional Bull Riders in August 1995.
Bernard shared not only the passion for the sport, but the vision of the 20 bull riders who had invested their own money in an effort to revolutionize bull riding and establish it as a standalone sport. He became the driving force that helped the PBR become one of the fastest-growing sports properties in North America, while providing opportunities to bull riders that had only existed in the imagination of the founding members.
“When we hired Randy we had a vision,” said PBR co-founder and current Livestock Director Cody Lambert, who called the hiring a turning point. “We thought we were reaching for the stars, but we weren’t looking at it from the right angle, Randy taught us how to truly reach for the stars.”
In 1996, a year after Bernard was hired, the PBR awarded a total purse of $1 million at the PBR World Finals. Later this year, the PBR will surpass $100 million paid out in prize money to the bull riders.
To date, 20 bull riders have earned in excess of $1 million, and seven of those riders – Justin McBride, Chris Shivers, Adriano Moraes, Guilherme Marchi, Kody Lostroh, Mike Lee and J.B. Mauney – have earned more than $2 million.
When Bernard left the organization in 2010, the PBR had solidly established events, a successful sponsorship program and more than 100 million viewers annually watching approximately 400 hours of prime time programming on NBC, FOX and VERSUS in the United States and on international networks.
Among other accolades, Time magazine recognized Bernard as one of the best sports executives in 2008 and he was named to Sports Business Journal’s "40 Under 40" list.
“His leadership, dedication and endless work ethic have taken the PBR to heights we only dreamed of when we started back in 1995,” said PBR founder, nine-time World Champion and 2002 Ring of Honor inductee Ty Murray. “This couldn’t have happened without Randy Bernard. He has put together an unbelievable team that will continue to grow and take our sport to new plateaus.”
JIM SHARP
Jim Sharp rode professionally for 16 years, and was a founding father of the PBR. His name is included in any list of all-time bull riding greats, and in the estimation of many, he may have been the single most talented bull rider in history.
“In my mind, he’s the greatest bull rider who ever lived - nobody was better. Jim was so athletic and strong and that’s what made him such a great rider,” said 1997 PBR World Champion and 2005 Ring of Honor inductee Michael Gaffney.
Sharp earned $863,797 during a storied PBR career, highlighted by an incredible 2002 season, when he won four events (Fort Worth, Texas; Guthrie, Okla.; Greensboro, N.C. and Portland, Ore.) and finished fourth in the season standings. Sharp earned the largest paycheck at a regular-format single-day PBR event at the time with $120,720 on Mar. 10, 2002, in Fort Worth, Texas. He received $85,000 in bonus money and $10,000 for the Ford Truck Moment of Truth following a 95.5-point ride on Dillinger (Herrington Cattle Company). The 95.5-point ride ranked as one of the Top 10 in PBR history at the time.
“From about 1986 and 1987 until 1992, there wasn’t anybody who could touch Jim Sharp,” said Murray. “If he had ridden those seven years today, he would be the richest guy to ever throw his leg over an animal.”
Sharp rode his way into the record books in 1988 when he became the first rider to ride all 10 bulls at the National Finals Rodeo en route to the first of two Pro Rodeo Cowboys Association world titles. He was named PRCA Rookie of the Year in 1986 and won back-to-back National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Championships in bull riding while attending Odessa College.
Sharp has remained devoted to the organization he cofounded, and was the childhood hero of many of the best riders competing in the PBR today.
The Ring of Honor ceremony will be held at the Pueblo Convention Center from 12:30-2:30 p.m. on May 15th. Individual tickets are $25 for general admission seating and $75 for a reserved seat and lunch. Tables can be purchased for $750, which includes 10 seats with lunch and recognition in the event program, or $2,500 for a patron package, which includes 10 seats, lunch with a PBR rider, a full-page advertisement in the event program, and recognition during the ceremony itself. For Ring of Honor ticket packages please contact Brenda Pachino at (719) 242-2850 or at brenda@pbrnow.com.
The BFTS Pueblo Invitational will be held at the Colorado State Fair Events Center in Pueblo on Friday, May 14 at 8 p.m., Saturday, May 15 at 6 p.m. and Sunday, May 16 at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com or by telephone at (800) 745-3000.
The PBR is the premiere bull riding organization in the world with the best riders from the United States, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, and Canada. One of the fastest-growing sports in the country, PBR events air weekly on VERSUS, NBC, CBS, and FOX. For more information on the Professional Bull Riders, please visit www.pbr.com or contact Jack Carnefix at (719) 242 2800 or jcarnefix@pbrnow.com or Sara Broun at (719) 242 2800 or sbroun@pbrnow.com.
Join PBR on Facebook www.facebook.com/TeamPBR and Twitter http://twitter.com/teamPBR.
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About the Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR)
More than 100 million viewers tune in each year to the PBR on FOX, NBC, VERSUS and a host of foreign networks across the globe. With approximately 400 hours of primetime programming annually, the PBR ranks among the most prolific sports on air, in addition to attracting over one and one half million live event attendees each year with its multi-tiered event structure which includes the marquee Built Ford Tough Series and Touring Pro Division. The PBR is headquartered in Pueblo, Colo., and has over 1,200 bull riders compete in more than 300 PBR-sanctioned competitions in the United States, Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico.
For more on the PBR, please visit www.pbr.com, www.teampbr.com, www.pbr.tv, www.myspace.com/teampbr, http://twitter.com/teampbr, www.facebook.com/TeamPBR, or www.pbr.com/worldfinals.
