[Editor’s note: In a three-part series, PBR Senior Writer Keith Ryan Cartwright will recap the events of the 2010 Built Ford Tough Series.]

DULUTH, GA, NOV. 20–22 – Event winner: Guilherme Marchi

After a forgettable World Finals in 2009, the always-consistent Guilherme Marchi took the early lead in the 2010 world standings by winning the first Built Ford Tough Series event of the season.

Marchi was the only man to ride all four bulls in Duluth at the Challenger Tour Finals, which also served as the first BFTS event of the 2010 season.

Afterward he said, “In the Finals I didn’t do good, but I’m just glad to win this event here.”

It was only fitting that the weekend’s event would again come down to Marchi and J. B. Mauney. Kody Lostroh, who won the 2009 world title by 594 points, did not compete after undergoing surgery on his riding elbow.

Marchi and Mauney were atop the world standings with 955.5 and 831 points, respectively. Rounding out the Top 5 leaders after the first event were Ross Coleman (735), Ned Cross (708.25) and Robson Palermo (635.5).

BALTIMORE, JAN. 2–3 – Event winner: Valdiron de Oliveira

Valdiron de Oliveira is simply too good not to win events.

In the two years prior to 2010, he covered 113 bulls, and had a two-year average of 61.74 percent.

For his efforts he had two Built Ford Tough Series wins – New York and San Antonio – which both came in the first half of the 2008 season.

That all changed at the Baltimore Invitational at the 1st Mariner Arena when Oliveira claimed the third event win of his career. He also took home a check for $27,515.

Oliveira had a spectacular start to the 2010 season. In two events, he’d ridden four of five bulls, including a perfect three-for-three in Baltimore. He ended the weekend in ninth place in the world standings.

NEW YORK, JAN. 8–10 – Event winner: Shane Proctor

Shane Proctor won the New York City Invitational at Madison Square Garden, taking two of the previous six event titles.

Proctor won the opening round and never looked back as he dominated the field of 40 riders throughout the third event of the 2010 season.

The makeup of the world standings completely changed from a week previous, when the Top 3 spots were dominated by a trio of Brazilians – Guilherme Marchi, Robson Palermo and Valdiron de Oliveira. This week’s Top 3 event finishers (Proctor, Travis Briscoe and J.B. Mauney), who all went 4-for-4, did enough to establish themselves in the Top 5.

SACRAMENTO, CA, JAN. 15–16 – Event winner: J.B. Mauney

In the championship round, Elliott Jacoby made nearly every counter move he could to stay upright and in the middle of Necessary Evil’s back until getting out of shape right near the whistle.

J.B. Mauney, on the other hand, looked to have come down early off of Troubadour, and it took a judges’ replay to confirm he did indeed have the tail of his rope in hand at the 8-second mark. The 23-year-old was roughed up, and had his free hand stepped on.

His 86-point effort gave the North Carolina cowboy a combined 258.75 points and his first event win of the 2010 season, which in turn extended his lead atop the world standings to 410 points over Travis Briscoe.

ANAHEIM, CA, JAN. 22–24 – Event winner: Kody Lostroh

Anything good in life is worth working for. That’s the way Kody Lostroh, who won the Tecate Light Invitational, looked back upon the previous two weeks, in which he was 0-for-the-weekend.

“If it was easy all the time you would never develop any character and perseverance,” he said after his 90.5-point event winning ride in the short go round on Tower 59.

After bucking off his previous six coming into the weekend, the 24-year-old from Colorado went 4-for-4, scoring 88 points in the opening round and another 85.75 in Round 2 to take the overall lead. From that point on, Lostroh never relinquished the top spot.

Lostroh, who had a combined 350.5 points on four bulls, moved from 28th in the world standings to 11th.

TAMPA, FL, JAN. 30–31 – Event winner: Wiley PetersenWiley Petersen

“There’s always a chance to win if you just don’t quit.”

So said Wiley Petersen, who until the weekend in Florida hadn’t won a Built Ford Tough Series event since early last year in St. Louis, despite qualifying for five of six short rounds in 2010 and another nine last season.

Petersen was one of two riders to go 3-for-3 at the Tampa Invitational, taking the lead with three riders to go when he covered RFD-TV for 90 points. It was his third attempt on the bull after bucking off twice before.

“It gets discouraging sometimes when you get bucked off,” said Petersen, “and you just have to keep your head up and keep riding and put the buckoffs behind you and just move forward.”

WINSTON-SALEM, NC, FEB. 5–6 – Event winner: Austin Meier

By riding Lonestar for 89.75 points in the short round, Austin Meier accomplished more than winning his first Built Ford Tough Series event of 2010.

He covered three bulls, won the Winston-Salem Invitational and moved into third place in the world standings, while collecting a check for $39,205. But more importantly, he got a head start on the looming Iron Cowboy Invitational.

“I wanted to see how he felt,” said Meier, who found out he’d attempt Lonestar again at Cowboys Stadium.

“He’s a bucker and kind of wiggles around a little bit. He’s definitely not as easy to ride as I thought he would be, but we made it work.”

Meier collected a total 780.5 points (including round and event bonus points) and was within 629.25 points of Travis Briscoe’s lead atop the world standings. He had ridden 15 of 23 bulls in seven BFTS events in 2010 for an average of 65.22 percent. And with the weekend’s win, he had three Top 10 finishes.

OKLAHOMA CITY, FEB. 12–14 – Event winner: Jordan Hupp

Success is about taking advantage of opportunities.

Twice in the 2010 season, Jordan Hupp had an opportunity to ride at a Built Ford Tough Series event, and twice he took advantage of it. The 24-year-old from Cheyenne, Wyo., made the most of his second opportunity by winning the Express Classic in Oklahoma City.

“I knew I had to ride that last bull to win the event,” said Hupp, who covered Buffalo Hump for 90.25 points and beat out Mike Lee by half of a point.

Hupp won $31,264.40, and with a season total of $44,360.31 he was well on his way to qualifying for his first-ever appearance at the PBR World Finals.

ARLINGTON, TX, FEB. 20 – Event winner: Valdiron de Oliveira

Carried off on the shoulders of his fellow Brazilians as a crowd of 46,321 cheered, Iron Cowboy Invitational winner Valdiron de Oliveira was all smiles as the PBR presented him with a check for $260,000—a PBR record for a single-day payout.

But when the cameras were turned off, Oliveira, overcome by a whirlwind of emotions, could no longer fight back the tears of joy.

In a room underneath the stadium, he laid his face in the right shoulder of Paulo Crimber and for the next few minutes broke down.

“He was thinking about where he had come from,” said Crimber afterward, “when his family was poor and starving because they didn’t have any money.”

After the win, Oliveira was within $80,000 of surpassing $1 million in career earnings.

To win his second Built Ford Tough Series event of the 2010 season Oliveira rode Little Mr. T (88.25) and 2008 World Champion Bull Bones (89.5) in Rounds 2 and 3, before besting his head-to-head competition on Big Tex and Code Blue.

Oliveira was less than a half-second better than McKennon Wimberly on Big Tex – 6.9 seconds compared to 6.5 –and nearly a full second better on Code Blue (4.5 seconds) than Travis Briscoe.

After nine events, Oliveira was covering 66.7 percent of his bulls compared to a career average of 61.5 percent.

ST. LOUIS, FEB. 26–28 – Event winner: Jody Newberry

As much as Jody Newberry would have liked an opportunity to select Voodoo Child in the short go, he had a promise to uphold. He had told his wife Amanda and father Terry that he’d make a more suitable choice.

He went with RFD-TV, made the 8-second whistle for 90.5 points, and subsequently won his first Built Ford Tough Series event since 2006.

“It was a businessman’s decision,” Newberry said afterward. “The reality is that I’ll make plenty more short rounds and be lower in that draft, and I’ll have my chance at Voodoo Child.”

In four 2010 BFTS events he had three Top 10 finishes.

Valdiron de Oliveria, in the meantime, closed the weekend on top of the world standings.

— by Keith Ryan Cartwright