Snyder's 13th season to be his last
Veteran bull rider Luke 'Titanium Tough' Snyder announces 2013 will be his last as a professional bull rider. The 2001 World Finals event winner and PBR Rookie of the Year will compete in Australia in November before walking away from the sport he loves.
FORT WORTH, Texas ― Citing the desire to start afamily, 13-year veteran and PBR fan favorite LukeSnyder is the latest professional bull rider to announcethe 2013 Built Ford Tough Series will be his last.
In his opening remarks, Snyder said, "It's crazy when youactually come out and say it."
However, the 30-year-old from Raymore, Mo., never actually usedthe word "retirement" or referred to "quitting" one time in a47-minute long interview in his new home in Springfield, Mo., thathe shares with his wife, Jennifer.
Reaction to the news was that of happiness.
His childhood friend and fellow PBR rider DustyLaBeth said, "I've known Luke since he was 13 and he'slived his dream. He's done it all and the highlight, for me, is himfinding Jen. When he found Jen I knew it was close."
"I'm sad to see him leave," said Ross Coleman,"but happy to see him healthy and happy in life with his wife andfamily, and there (isn't) anything better than that."
Coleman added, "It's been a great ride for him."
"Luke is a role model for younger riders," said PBR co-founderCody Lambert. "He does the right things and saysthe right things. Anyone can say the right things, but if theydon't really believe it they won't walk the walk and Lukedoes."
Others, like J.W. Hart, weresurprised and saddened to hear of his retirement and the loss of agreat spokesperson for the PBR and its sponsors.
"I hate to see that guy do all he did and be as good as he wasin our sport, for as long as he was in our sport, and as good as heis for our sport and not get paid off with a world title," Hartsaid, "because he really could be one of our best worldchampions ― just the way he speaks, his likeability, hischaracter, the modesty he has. Everything he has is world champion,except what's hanging on his belt.
"He's a good speaker, good looking kid and has a great wife. Hehas everything but that one buckle, and I hate to see himquit."
"It's always a sad day when one of our veteran riders decides toretire," said PBR CEO and Chairman Jim Haworth. "Luke has had awonderful career and we've seen him grow up in the PBR. I'm soproud of how he's always handled himself as an ambassador for thisorganization and our sponsors. While I wish him the best as hemoves forward in life, I'm certain someone as well-liked as LukeSnyder will always have a place with the PBR."
Snyder, who was the 2001 PBR Rookie of the Year and World Finalsevent winner, is the first and only rider to nod his head more than900 times at Built Ford Tough Series events.
According to Probullstats, he's done so 948 times and withnine regular season events remaining, and one more trip to theWorld Finals, he'll add 25 to 48 more outs to his PBR careerrecord.
His run of 275 consecutive BFTS events stands as, perhaps, thegreatest mark of resiliency (and luck) in what is undoubtedly themost dangerous sport in the world. According to Probullstats,Snyder has been to 355 BFTS events ― another of his PBRrecords ― and missed only 10 BFTS events in his entire career,which only enhances his "Titanium Tough" moniker.
RELATED: 'Titanium Tough' sets consecutive eventsrecord
"What that equates to is getting on more rank bulls than anybodyin the history of bull riding," said Lambert, the PBR's livestockdirector. "There's nobody in the history of the sport that has beenon as many rank bulls as Luke Snyder has ― nobody.
"Nobody can compare their career to Luke's because he spent hisentire career getting on the best of the best. It's hard to thinkof. Luke's such a nice guy that you don't think of him as a toughguy, but ― to be able to handle that ― it's hard tocompare to anything else because he's been on so many of the bestbulls and still does it today."
Coleman said, "If you're going to get on them you might as wellget on the best ones. That's a tough little dude right there."
"Wow. That's amazing. That's crazy," Hart said. "Those numberssimply amaze me. I know what kind of luck you have to have to notget hurt for an extended period of time or to make that many in arow, and I hate to see him retire this year."
Lambert added, "If he was a baseball player, it would be likeevery time he was up to bat he was up against a Cy Young Awardwinner for 13 years. That just doesn't happen."
Snyder's won six events, recorded 32 Top-5 finishes and posted74 Top-10 finishes. His $1.7 million in career earnings is 12th onthe PBR's all-time list of money-earners.
In 2004, he recorded the highest-marked ride of his career whenhe rode Werewolf Snuff for 94 points in Fresno, Calif. Snyder wonnearly $220,000 in Las Vegas, in 2011, when he claimed the title ofLast Cowboy Standing at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, whichhappened to be the 300th event of his career.
Snyder, who will turn 31 in October, said he contemplatedwaiting until after his final out at the upcoming World Finals tomake the announcement, but ultimately decided against the ideabecause he felt it wouldn't be fair to his sponsors or the fans,who have supported him since making his BFTS debut in Guthrie,Okla.
"It's a point we all come to and I had a (heck) of a run at it,"said Snyder, who said he discussed the decision with family andclose friends before making it public. "I (don't) look back andhave any regrets for the most part. I always said when I got to thechapter in my life when I wanted to have some kiddos I didn't wantto be doing this because everybody knows how dangerous it is, sothat kind of gives me some peace of mind.
"There is more to life than riding bulls."
Snyder and his wife were married last November at a ceremonyheld at the Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, Mo.
He credits his wife and her sister, Julie Manna, with theresurgence in his career.
It was the Manna sisters who introduced Snyder to Pilates andyoga, which led him to rededicating himself towards getting intooptimal bull riding shape after missing the first Iron CowboyInvitational of his career in 2010.
"I've never seen anybody that went from a great bull rider to,in my opinion, a below average (rider and) back to being a greatbull rider," Lambert said. "I've never seen it happen like that. Hespent years struggling to just stay on the Built Ford Tough Series,and then came back and is a Top-10 rider finishing out his career.That's really cool to me."
RELATED: Snyder was out to prove to himself that he was asgood as he thought
Lambert went on to explain, "The Built Ford Tough Series breaksan egg in some riders ― it breaks their spirit in almost allof them at some point in their careers ― and it looked like itwas doing that with Luke, but he refused to let it happen. He wasthat tough. He's ridden with injuries and he's ridden with pain,and he's done it forever. He's done it for a long time and― back to being a role model ― he shows up glad to bethere."
Until 2010, he hadn't missed a single BFTS event despite a tornrotator cuff, broken wrist, broken leg, knees that needed to besurgically repaired, multiple concussions, rib injuries and alacerated chin among other ailments.
He broke the C-7 bone in his neck in April of 2010 and returnedto competition three months later in August. It was the only timehe missed because of an injury.
By 2011, Snyder reclaimed the promise of his rookie season, whenhe finished seventh in the world. He's finished 12th and 11th inthe world standings the past two seasons, and he is currently 18thafter seven years of being outside the Top 20.
"He's so young too, and he's done so much," Coleman said. "He'sbeen nonstop since he was 18 years old. That's a lot of years he'sbeen involved with the PBR. Not only has he rode great bulls andbeen successful as a great bull rider, and maybe one of the best,but he's done so much for the public relations of the PBR."
For the past two years, Snyder has been involved in nationalFord campaigns with the BFTS' title sponsor.
Snyder has made a number of local, regional, national andinternational appearances on behalf of Bass Pro Shops, WinStarWorld Casino and other sponsors. He's also made televisionappearances and even starred in a music video with Master P.
For more photos of Luke Snyder click here.
Television producer Brannon Braga said the first time he metSnyder he recognized him for his movie- star-like qualities.
With all he's done in and out of the arena, Lambert was asked ifSnyder would one day cap his career by joining an elite group ofriders in the prestigious Ring of Honor.
Lambert, who was among the first class inducted in 1996,replied, "There's no doubt to me."
Though he has more than two months to add to his career totals,the next several weeks will undoubtedly be emotional forSnyder.
Next week's event in Tulsa, Okla., will be his first BFTS eventsince making his decision public ― although he's knownsince last year ― and the event in Thackerville, Okla., laterthis month, means a lot to him considering WinStar was the firstsponsor he secured after surging toward the top of the worldstandings in late 2010, early 2011.
He'll also compete in Nashville, Tenn., where he first met hiswife and in Springfield, where Bass Pro Shops is headquartered.Then there is one more trip to Las Vegas, where he earned more thana third of his career earnings.
Snyder has also committed to competing at Australian Cup eventsin November.
Until the past two summers when he's been invited to compete atthe Calgary Stampede, he's regularly gone to Australia withlongtime friend Brendon Clark, who also announced his retirementearlier this year.
Both of them will attempt the final bulls of their respectivecareers at events in Wollongong, Townsville and Tamsworth.
"It's always going to be tough," said Snyder, of walking awayfrom the sport he's been part of since before he was a teenager."Once you do it this long or you do it at all, any bull rider, oncethey close that chapter of their life, I mean, it's going to betough.
"I don't know how much I'll miss the getting banged around andstomped on ― obviously that's part of the sport ― butbeing with your buddies, seeing your friends and seeing the countryand being on the road with them, I mean, this sport draws some ofthe closest friendships that will last a lifetime."
Follow Keith Ryan Cartwright on Twitter @PBR_KRC