Bryan Painter| Oklahoman
MORGAN MILL, Texas - The direct hit to Tuff Hedeman's right hip was sudden.
But Hedeman - the 5-foot-11, 175-pound bull rider with posture straighter than a new 2-by-4 - never swayed.
Lane, the oldest of Tuff and Tracy's two sons, had just sprinted to the security of a father's embrace after the cowboy entered through the back door of their rural north Texas home.
This sort of shot is encouraged by the ProRodeo Hall of Famer and president of the Professional Bull Riders organization.
However, bull riding shots, such as those that injured the cowboy's neck and led to reconstructive facial surgery, are in all likelihood gone forever.
Will Tuff Hedeman ride again?
"Probably not," he said.
Why?
Look at the peach-fuzz blond arms of the 8-year-old child, snug against his waist.
Boots wouldn't budge
In 1995, the head of Sammy Andrews' bull Bodacious went up, and Hedeman's head went down. The cowboy's face was severely disfigured before 6 1/2 hours of reconstructive surgery.
In April 1998, the cowboy suffered yet another injury at a bull riding in Odessa, Texas. But the incident that flip-flopped Hedeman from terror to elation occurred during the eighth go of the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in 1993.
The bull tossed the cowboy hard to the floor of the Thomas and Mack Center.
Hedeman's brain told the feet to move, but they resisted. Paralysis dominated his body for 10 minutes. Never had he been so terrified.
But steadily, a tingling feeling returned, first to the fingers then all the way to the boots.
Tracy Hedeman, carrying Lane in her arms, walked into the sports medicine room. The feeling had returned and Tuff was shaking, partially out of elation.
"Once it started coming back, that's probably the most excited I've ever been," Tuff said. "It was more exciting than winning a world championship."
Two days later, doctors removed the bulging disk. They fused Hedeman's neck with a steel plate and bone graft from his hip.
Changed perspective
After sitting out 1994, Hedeman returned in 1995 to win Bullnanza: A Tribute to Freckles Brown and Lane Frost at the Lazy E Arena for the third time in his career. Hedeman also won the PBR world championship that year.
But because of the 1993 accident, the future no longer seemed so distant. The importance of the PBR to his future and that of other cowboys was so clear.
"Once I did start back riding," he said, "I was more aware than ever that you've got to put yourself in a position where you can make the transition to tomorrow.
"You don't know if your career is going to last five years or five more days."
Hedeman and several other top bull riders had formed the PBR in 1992. They wanted an organization that showcased the best bull riders against the top bucking stock. They were working toward a series format fans could easily follow, both in person and on television. It had to be a situation that guaranteed event-producers the best cowboys, and guaranteed the cowboys an opportunity to compete for large purses.
Connections made through Bullnanza at the Lazy E Arena led them-Hedeman and the other bull riders-to Anheuser-Busch and The Nashville Network.
Anheuser-Busch is the title sponsor of the Bud Light Cup series, which consists of 28 events plus the world championships in Las Vegas and is televised on TNN.
Cowboys can win about $20,000, or more, at any of the regular season cup stops. In 1999, the world championships offered a $1.5 million purse.
A year ago, 35 bull riders earned more than $40,000 each. Seven of those finished the year with more than $120,000. Contestants can generally leave home on a Friday and be home Sunday evening, instead of traveling to more than 100 rodeos as is often the case in professional rodeo.
Where the hugs are
"All the titles have a memory behind them for me," Tracy Hedeman said.
Tracy was a student at Oklahoma State when she and Tuff began dating during the 1984 NFR in Oklahoma City. They were married in 1986, the year Tuff won his first PRCA world champion title.
Lane Frost, Tuff's best friend, was killed in July 1989 in Cheyenne, Wyo. Later that year, Tuff won the world title again. In 1991, Robert Lane Hedeman was born; about five months later his father won a third title. Then in 1995, Trevor Neale Hedeman was born. Five weeks later, Tuff secured the PBR title.
Tracy has been with Tuff through the title days and in the emergency room.
"I would think it would be hard to be negative about it," she said, explaining her support. "Because if they're going to ride, you want them to be at a hundred percent and not have any regrets about doing it."
Hedeman is gone on weekends and some for promotional appearances. But often he can be found at his office, situated between the house and their roping arena.
Why is he probably finished riding?
"Because whenever I'm home, I want to be able to pick up my kids and give them a hug," he said. "I want to go out and rope with Tracy."
"It's frightening, the thought of never being able to walk again. My family is much more important to me than being able to ride and compete."
Archive ID: 793725
