PUEBLO, Colo. – We already know that bull riding features the most valuable 8 seconds in sports. And during the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series season, the Texas Rattlers are making sure their 8-second efforts are even more valuable.

It all started in June with the Chevron Showdown in Odessa, Texas, in partnership with the Odessa College rodeo team.

Chevron'sMidland-Odessa is the mid-continent headquarters, and the company was looking for a way to benefit that community. The Rattlers were looking for a way to get on the road, and the Petroplex has deep PBR roots.

Four PBR founders – Adam Carrillo, Gilbert Carrillo, Jerome Davis and Ty Murray – competed for the Odessa College rodeo team.

“There’s a deep history and relationship, I think, between Western sports and even PBR in Midland-Odessa,” Texas Rattlers General Manager Chad Blankenship said. “So what we ultimately decided to do with Chevron was put on a PBR-sanctioned bull riding event. We recognized, given the deep history that the Odessa College rodeo team has and that’s linked with the PBR and its history, that this could be a really cool opportunity.”

The preseason timing was perfect for the Rattlers, as they were already gathering their riders and holding team camps.

“We created this win-win-win strategy,” Blankenship said. “In several years, there had not been a PBR-sanctioned bull riding event in Midland-Odessa. So that was part of the white space. Why don’t we bring a championship team out there? Why don’t we link up with young people who are the future leaders and rodeo stars and bull riders of our country? So we went out there, and we did a two-day training camp and bull riding.”

On day one, the Rattlers used the Odessa College rodeo team’s training facility, which has a large classroom and its own bulls. They did physical training and technical coaching and broke down film alongside 10 Odessa College bull riders.

The bull riding was a team-formatted event, with three teams of six—one team of the Odessa College Wranglers and two Rattlers squads, the Strike and the Venom. All six riders on each team got on one bull, and coaches then designated two riders from their team for the championship round.

“We had prizes for the MVP and for the college MVP,” Blankenship said. “As it turned out, the MVP, which was the highest-scored rider across two bulls, was actually a college kid, so he won both the cash and the college MVP, which was a year’s supply of meals from Raising Canes. So that was cool.”

Indeed, Hayden Welsh of Odessa College rode Ruthless for 87.5 points – the highest score of the event.

The highest-scoring ride for the Rattlers came at the hands of Brady Oleson, who rode Hacksaw for 86.5 points in his first PBR out since April.

“Riding for something bigger than myself was motivating,” Oleson told the Rattlers. “I’ve been anxious to get back healthy and ready for the season, and to have my first ride back with the team benefiting charities [means a lot].”

The Chevron Showdown was a rousing success, filling Odessa College’s 4,000-seat venue, and all parties involved are already working to do it again in 2025.

The event raised more than $17,000, which was donated to the Odessa College rodeo team.

“One of the other affirming aspects of this is that there were a number of local and regional businesses that stepped in to support the event,” Blankenship said. “That was really meaningful, too. And the support we received from Chevron and other local partners really made it possible for us to heighten the fundraising and charitable giving.”

The other charitable aspect of the event was the kickoff of the Rattlers’ 800 for 8 program, which is also in partnership with Chevron.

For every qualified ride made by a Rattler in 2024, $800 will be donated to one of four charities in Midland-Odessa: the Midland Children’s Rehabilitation Center Hippotherapy Program, FFA programs in MISD and ECISD, and the Reeves County Junior Livestock Show.

“Last year, as a reference point, during the 2023 season, the Texas Rattlers had 68 qualified rides,” Blankenship said. “So if we have similar results this year, it should result in $60,000-$75,000 being raised and contributed by Chevron. It really should add up to a very meaningful number.”

Thanks to the Rattlers’ four qualified rides at the Chevron Showdown, three rides in Oklahoma City, and four rides in Duluth, $8,800 has already been earned.

That money is added to the pool, which will be divided equally among the four charities at the end of the season.

“We’re thrilled to broaden the reach of the Texas Rattlers across Texas,” Blankenship said. “We have local and state-level charitable initiatives on a number of fronts. For example, we’re very proud to support the Arlington and Arlington Heights FFA here in North Texas. This created an opportunity for us to also have some impact in west Texas with the Odessa College rodeo team, and with several organizations that do terrific youth-focused work.”

As the Texas Rattlers chase another Team Series Championship, each ride will be a whole lot more meaningful.

Photo courtesy of Josh Homer/Bull Stock Media