The Florida Freedom, the state’s inaugural professional bull riding team, has introduced one of the world’s most intense sports to Florida.
At their inaugural home competition at Sunrise’s Amerant Bank Arena, the rodeo team made their debut.
“The Florida Freedom team is just a group of young guys passionate about the sport. They’re hungry to win,” head coach Paulo Crimber stated.
Riding these large, irascible creatures requires extraordinary strength and bravery and is regarded as the most perilous eight seconds in sports. Being a specialist in a sport requires years of practice and quality coaching, even if some people may just be drawn to it.
Though their head coach, Paulo Crimber, used to be the best in the world of bull riding, this team seems to be in good hands.
“We got to do our job. Ride our bulls. Then it doesn’t matter where we play. We’re going to beat them all and that’s our game plan,” Crimber can be heard telling his group.
John, Paulo’s eighteen-year-old son, is a member of this squad. He was selected first overall by the Freedom in the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) draft. John’s father got him began riding bulls at the age of five.
“He actually was the one that taught me everything growing up and I just want to be like him and follow his footsteps. So I just watched him and ever since I was a little kid I’ve wanted to be a bull rider,” John stated.
This rigorous sport can be quite hard on the rider’s body, and injuries are frequently just one jump or kick away—something John says he is used to. Bulls can weigh up to 2,000 pounds.
Riders clinging to the bull are required to grasp onto the rope with one hand. The judges award points for a successful eight-second ride, and those points are added to the team’s final total.
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The best bull riders learn a maneuver so they can ride the bull for as long as their bodies will allow them to or until the bull kicks them off.
The PBR consists of ten teams, just like any other professional league; their goal is to win the world championship in October by traveling to Las Vegas and accruing points during the regular season.
