Nashville, Tenn. – After enduring more than their fair share of close calls this season, the Arizona Ridge Riders may have found their stride in Music City.
Coming into this weekend’s event, the black and white squad had an 0-7 record, but other than a 178.5-0 final during the season-opening event in Cheyenne, Wyoming, the Ridge Riders exited each of its first seven matchups within one ride score.
Zooming in even closer, just one of those six deficits totaled more than two points, while five of them were very close calls, including a pair of 0.25-point losses, one 1-point deficit and a duo of 1.25-point losses.
“It’s all about perspective. We’ve been in this situation several times, we’ve just been on the other end of it, and it feels terrible. We get back to the locker room and it’s like ‘dang it,’ and we feel really bad,” Ridge Riders’ coach Colby Yates shared.
“We talk about it and we have to continue to get stronger. Ride more bulls, be more consistent. Everybody knows that. They’re all trying as hard as they can, that’s all we can ask from them, so ultimately, we need to get past one or two rides, we need to get back to three and four rides in order to dominate.”
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For a team focused on staying positive and capitalizing on every opportunity they get, the best way to cure a slow 0-7 start is finding that first win.
“It’s been a little slow to start this year, but we just kept telling ourselves it’s a matter of time,” Colten Fritzlan said.
“We knew what we could control and that’s what we’ve been doing lately, worrying about that and letting the rest take care of itself because at the end of the day, it’s just bull riding and we have to stay on our bulls.”
While the team may not have gone 5-for-5 Friday night against the league’s No. 1 Austin Gamblers, they entered the David vs. Goliath-type showdown with renewed confidence. With a few smiles.
“Everybody is different, but personally I don’t give a heck who we’re playing, I don’t care who’s involved,” Fritzlan shared.
“I kind of like to stay in my own lane and worry about what I can control at the end of the day. (I’m) Focusing on that. There’s too many distractions in this world. If you let them get ahold of you, they dang sure will. Some guys might look at who we’re playing and what not, but that’s just what they do.”
Seemingly catching the Jose Vitor Leme-paced squad on a rare off night, it was a quiet night overall for qualified rides, but the crowd quickly found a silver lining when Fritzlan went the distance atop American Valor for 84.5 points.
“He’s legit and a big, big addition to our team. We’re very excited to have him on board,” Yates said after acquiring the talented rider prior to the beginning of the season.
“He’s a strong rider and we just have to keep feeding him and keeping him in the right spot. He wants to ride. He’s so passionate about this sport and we’ve got to be those mentors that can come in and keep his ego on high and good enough to get on Sunday and win.”
Eventually serving as the game’s lone conversion, Fritzlan became the hero of game. The warrior of the weekend. And perhaps, the savior of the season, as the Ridge Rider locker room was filled with laughs and celebrations.
“It’s one day at a time, one bull at a time and just controlling what we can control. We can’t control the judges, what the judges do, the bulls, the setup and if you want to play into that stuff, you’re going to go down a hole,” Fritzlan said of the slow start.
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“Whenever I get the opportunity, I want to capitalize on it and make the most of the opportunity that I can and get better every single time. When one of us stays on, we expect the next guy to stay on, and that’s the way it is for the whole team. Once we get that going and get that streak going, it’s going to be great.”
As if the 23-year-old was foretelling a prophecy, Arizona’s success continued on Saturday night.
Less than 24 hours after ending Austin’s perfect start to the season, the Ridge Riders found themselves in a matchup with the Texas Rattlers, who had just posted their second 4-for-5 effort of the season the night before.
As mentioned above, Arizona seems to find itself in some of the tightest games around the league, and naturally, Saturday was no exception.
This time receiving a spirited out from youngster Vitor Losnake, who’s now 4-for-7 on the season, the Ridge Riders waved their magic wand once again in limiting the streaking Rattlers to just one ride.
“He’s adapting, he’s learning. This year he’s just been eager, he’s changed,” Yates said of the 19-year-old.
“Something about him is really starting to drive. We’ve had some good conversations with him about taking it to the next level and really putting in the work and the effort to become as good as he possibly can, and that switch has flipped for him. He’s all in and he’s becoming a big cheerleader for our team and really trying to prop people up. His personality is shining bright and you can just tell that his energy is right where it needs to be.
When they open the gate, you can tell it’s right where it needs to be because he’s doing some good work. He’s having fun.”
Marking his third ride this year scored an exact 87.5 points, he championed his bovine Sargent Matt in stunning fashion as he furthered a hot streak of his own.
“Last year when we got on the back of the bucking chutes, pretty much in every game, I felt really confident that we had Luciano (de Castro) and Eduardo (Aparecido), who are team players that are very consistent. Vitor is a guy that I feel very confident about when I get on the back of a bucking chute now because he’s been so consistent throughout the last year and it’s only getting better,” Yates offered.t
“We like to put him on a bull that’s kind of flashy because he’s flashy and he gets big points. I think, luckily, that paid off for us tonight. He had one of the biggest bulls that we had tonight and he just looked good. That may have been the difference in the point and a half or whatever the score difference was to get us the win.”
Transforming close calls into tight wins so far inside Bridgestone Arena, the Ridge Riders will look to capture their first event title of the season Sunday when they take on the hometown Nashville Stampede.
“Everybody here is so positive and happy and everybody rides so well,” Fritzlan concluded.
“The best thing about it is everybody wants to get better. Nobody is complacent with where they’re at and that excites me because that’s what I strive for as well. When we show up to a bull riding, we feel like there isn’t anything that can knock us off, and at the end of the day, it’s true.”
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media