Now I've been busy most all my life,

A ridin and wranglin and avoidin' strife,

And I've had my chance at the rodeo

To do my best to put on a show.

But silver buckles and me aint met

And not much cash did I ever get,

Now months and years have come 'n gone,

While ribs been broke and toes stepped on.

I aint complainin' much these days,

My life's been good in many ways,

But I've been told my life aint full

Until I've tried to ride a bull.

And so one day I told my pard

That ridin' bulls don't look so hard.

The pard, he said I'd never know

Until I put up my entry dough.

O.K., last year at Frontier Days

I paid the fee and set my ways.

I borrowed a rig and surcingle too,

Showed up at the chutes to have my do.

I waited and watched as other 'pokes tried

To stay on the bulls and finish their ride.

Eight seconds didn't seem so long to me,

But most of those boys did not agree.

At last my ride came down the chute

And he was an orn'ry loookin' brute.

They said that "Precious" was his name,

But he was randy just the same.

I got on his back and settled in,

My historic ride was about to begin.

I finished my wrap with a final tuck,

The cowboys there all wished me luck.

I raised my hand, they opened the gate.

I knew right then it was too late

To change my mind; out Precious went,

And the next few seconds was well spent

By Precious, that is, I was dead meat;

It didn't take long to lose my seat.

He bucked and whirled and kicked ev'rywhere,

And pretty soon I flew in the air.

While I was headin' fer the ground,

I suddenly heard the buzzer sound.

Had I made it? I didn't know,

But made it or not, I gave 'em a show.

At last I landed on the dirt,

And up till then I was unhurt,

But Precious stopped and turned his track

And lifted me up and gored my back.

This second time when I came down,

I was rescued by the clown;

But before the clown could make him go

Old Precious promptly stomped my toe!

That is when the man announced,

"Now folks this boy's been truly trounced,

But I want you all to know he tried,

And this was his very first bull ride."

The crowd, they yelled and stomped and screamed,

Went on forever, to me, it seemed.

But now I've had my chance to see

That ridin' bull just aint for me.

Charles  Bell © 2006 All rights reserved.
 

About the author..... CHARLES BELL

My interest in cowboy poetry has developed recently as a result of a musical performance in which I participated in May of 2004.  At the time I was a member of a barbershop harmony quartet. We had been booked to perform at a picnic that had a western theme. The producers of the picnic asked us to "dress western" and sing some western or cowboy songs.

          In our performances we usually spaced our songs between jokes as a part of our entertaining. While we were preparing for this performance, I realized that we really didn't have a complete program of western songs and cowboy jokes.  Therefore I decided to add to the program by reciting a cowboy poem. In the last twenty years or so there had been a real resurgence of cowboy poetry among Westerners and I thought a cowboy poem would be timely and appropriate for this performance.
 

So, I sat down and wrote my very first cowboy poem. At the performance it went over very well and I received many compliments about it. Even my co-singers enjoyed it.
 

A few months later, in August of 2004 I was surfing the internet and came across a cowboy poetry website. This website publishes poems about cowboys, ranching and Western life written by those who submit them. Well, I thought, what the heck, why not submit my poem?  So I did. A few weeks later I heard from the editor of the cowboy website that they had accepted my poem! What a pleasant surprise!
 

Full of enthusiasm for this new avocation I began to write cowboy and Western poems on a regular basis. That website, cowboypoetry.com, now publishes my poems regularly.
 

I was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming in 1931. Beginning at age 10, I spent my summers cowboying on the ranch of a great uncle nine miles north of Cheyenne. I continued this until my early college years. I received my bachelor's degree from the University of Wyoming; Masters from University of Washington; and PhD from Washington State University.

           I spent 30 years as a professor of Biology at San Jose State University in San Jose, California.  I       taught Botany, general education science, computers and technical writing. After retiring I removed to the Salt Lake City area and was able to return to my cowboying for a while, both in Utah and back in Wyoming. Some of my poems reflect both the early and later years of my cowboying experiences.
 

 

 to2bells@msn.com

 

Under copyright protection. The poem on this web page may not be excerpted, copied, or reproduced, used or performed in any form  (graphic, electronic or mechanical) without the express written permission of  the author.

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