Bringing Down the House ~ Oct 27, 2013

Today's event is at 1pm so we use the morning to get organized. We always over pack (scouts at heart) but we are prepared for anything. It will make checking out a little easier if we only have to make one trip to the car tomorrow so we schlep the hanging clothes bag (never touched), shoe bag (too hot for boots or slippers), laundry, spare books and snack bags down to the rig. After a leisurely breakfast and a little play time in the casino, we head out to the taxi stand for the short drive to the Thomas and Mack Center.

 

This is the final day of the event and it's going down to the wire. You couldn't have written a better script for 17,000 PBR fans. There are 35 riders in the first round with hopes of finishing in the money. The top 15 move into the final round. If you win the event there's a $250,000 paycheck, if you win the world championship there's a $1,000,000 paycheck. And trust me if you've ever watched bull riding you know that every cent is EARNED.

The riders start from last to first so the top two ride last in every round. Silvano Alves rides Cowtown Slinger for 88.25 points. J.B.'s bull is Harlem Shake, but he's acting up so much in the chute there is concern for the safety of both rider and bull. The judges make the call and J.B. will ride Ford Hammer Down. He's at the chutes on the other end of the arena, so action stops for a bit while he walks down and gets reset. Think about how hard it would be to stay focused after all this hullaballoo. Evidently no problem for J.B. his ride earns 91 points, here's a link:

 

http://www.pbr.com/en/media/videos/2013/10/monster-ride-jb-mauney-91-points-on-ford-hammer-down.aspx

 

In the final go round Silvano rides Big Tex Rocks. The bull didn't perform well so he is again give an opportunity for a re-ride. Much to everyone's surprise he takes the re-ride option on Jack Daniels Tennessee Honey. He scores in the high 80's but the point is mute.

J.B. has won on points with one more bull to ride. He draws Wipeout and scores 93 points. The cheering is deafening. J.B has twice finished 2nd and twice finished 3rd so he is on top of the world. Paycheck for the day $1,250,000

Final Ride ~ J.B. Mauney and Wipeout

Photo credit Andy Watson

“There’s no better feeling. You dream of something all your life and to eventually get it ..... feels like you’ve done conquered the world.”

 

Silvano Alves, the Brazilian who has won the last two PBR World Championships is a total class act and a great ambassador for the sport. As soon as J.B.'s bull is out of the arena, he's out to congratulate him.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=_SukoIyhE0k

It's a gorgeous afternoon so we decide to walk over to the MGM grand for lunch. It's 2 miles (sure looks closer), but we've mastered the buck and weave to stay in the shade most of the way. The Vegas monorail starts at the MGM Grand and ends at our hotel so it's a great way to get back home and see yet another perspective of the city.

This a been an experience of a life time, a total rush. There's much to be said for living in the moment, for closing the door on real life for a couple of days and just doing what pleases you.

Street Walking in Vegas ~ Oct 26, 2013

Gotcha! Not what you're thinking at all, curb your imagination and read on. 

 

 

Opened the curtains in our 27th floor aerie to an amazing sunrise reflected in the windows of the Wynn. Since we've been doing a lot of sitting the last few days it's time for a walk. Temperatures are in the mid eighties, which is warm for me, but large hotels cast mighty shadows. After breakfast we take off down the Strip.

There is something for everyone here: shows, fine dining, sports events, gambling, and shopping. Where else could you find the Chapel of the Bells wedding chapel next door to the Strip Gun Club? There are hucksters and entrepreneurs on every corner. People watching is spontaneous entertainment: short story scripts everywhere you look.

Wynn Atrium

 

We declare a turnaround point at the Wynn and stop in to look around. By the time we returned to our hotel we were astonished to find we'd walked 5.3 miles. (iPhone app from Kaiser called Every Body Walk! logs time, distance, calories and your route via GPS).

 

We head out to Thomas and Mack Stadium a little after 5pm. Our taxi driver tells us not to worry about standing in line for the return trip. He handed us his card and said "call me when the event is over and walk up to CVS Pharmacy (about a quarter of a mile) I'll pick you up there".

 

 Eight seconds is an eternity

10 months, 26 events, 71 riders, 2,500 outs and no one has seen a race like this one in the 20 year history of the PBR. It's the best bulls vs. the best riders. The venue was more electric than the night before, the crowd larger and louder.  
 

Since mid season J.B. Mauney has been on fire, overcoming a 3,000 point deficit. Tonight he's in second place, by only 19.75 points, so he rides next to last. The feeling is that J.B. is betting on himself and leader Silvano Alves is betting on J.B. to fail. 

Silvano has a penchant for not taking re-rides and keeping low scores (judges award one to rider if the bull is not performing well) and on a previous night he didn't take advantage of the opportunity and kept a score of 70 something. This may come back to bite him. 

Some of the riders have theme songs and when J.B. enters the chutes you hear the first few bars of George Thorogood's "Bad to the Bone" and 15,000 fans go nuts. He scores 90.75 points on Breakdown. Silvano's bull tonight is Trueblood and the clock is stopped at 6.9 seconds due to a touch, 1.1 seconds short of an 8 second ride (rider cannot touch the bull with free arm).

 

Click on the link below to see J.B.'s ride on Breakdown

 

http://www.pbr.com/en/media/videos/2013/10/monster-ride-jb-mauney-wins-round-4.aspx

J.B. Mauney is only 26 and being the World Champion has been his dream for over 20 years. He regained control tonight with only the final two rounds to go tomorrow. Past champion Kody Lostroh captured the moment: "There've been a lot of great races throughout PBR history, but this year with guys swapping places at the Finals, it's inspiring to watch.”
 

We've been screaming, clapping and cheering for a couple of hours and need to take a few breaths and calm down before we reverse direction on the 120 plus steps of what we've dubbed the Stairway to Heaven.  Since we have a personal taxi tonight we just amble out of the arena and stroll over to the CVS parking lot. He's pulling in as we walk up ~ big time tip. Back to the hotel for a late dinner, a little gaming, and a few chapters of Louis L'Amour.