Eight Seconds

Eight seconds. Just eight seconds of pure adrenaline where time stood still and those seconds felt like they turned into hours. I could feel everything in slow motion. The gate flung open and the bull beneath me charged into the arena, bucking and turning in a desperate attempt to throw me off. I could feel the sweat rolling down my neck and into the collar of my shirt as my nerves started to drift away.

One...

The cheering of the crowd dwindled down into a dull roar that was hard to hear over the sound of my own blood rushing through my veins. Another buck of the bull sends my cowboy hat flying behind me. For a moment I think he may throw himself into the dirt just to get rid of me, but he doesn’t. He continues to kick and writhe beneath my weight. I hold on, one handed, for the ride of my life.

Two…

I could hear every agonizing breath that escaped my lungs. My heart started beating wildly out of control as excitement took over. Flashes of light danced around the crowd as people snapped photos, enraging the bull more. I pushed my legs down as best as I could to keep weight under my feet. My abs were already aching from the effort to keep upright in the earthquake the bull was causing.

Three…

I was sure that at any moment the force of his muscular legs stomping the ground over and over would tear open a rift that would sink the entire stadium. It felt like a thousand pound anchor had been tied to my arm and the bull could rip it out of the socket without even blinking. It’s only goal was to get me away from him and he didn’t care how that was achieved.

Four…

It was like they tied me to a freight train in the middle of a tornado and said, “hang on as long as you can, cus if you fall off it’ll crush you to death” and sent me on my way. The dull roar of the crowd was getting louder as the clock ticked away and the bull grew more frantic. The seconds started to speed up as I tightened my hand around the rope that was connecting me to the bull.

Five…

I tried to clear my thoughts and not let the excitement and adrenaline take my mind away from the task at hand. Don’t think. Just react. I knew if I tried to predict the bull’s movements then I would always be two steps behind. I let my instincts guide me in our race against the clock and just prayed I could make it.

Six…

All of my muscles were screaming for me to let go but I couldn’t. The bull beneath me was getting more and more agitated the longer I held on to him. I knew he wouldn’t tire out as easily as I did but I also knew if I let go now, knowing I still had fight left in me, I would never forgive myself. So I held on with everything I had.

Seven…

I couldn’t look at the clock, I couldn’t risk taking my eyes off the bull. The roar from the crowd had become deafening and I knew I was close to the end. A smile was creeping at the corner of my mouth but until I heard that buzzer, I wouldn’t let it come fully across. I wouldn’t celebrate until it was truly over. The bull lurched forward unexpectedly, tossing my body forward with him but when he came back up, I didn’t. I slammed into the bull harder than I thought possible. Stars began to dance around the corners of my vision.

Eight…

The buzzer sounded throughout the stadium and the crowd erupted into chaos. I threw myself off the bull as quickly as I could, but it was anything but graceful. I hit the ground hard and struggled to get back up. The bull bucked nearby as the rodeo clowns distracted it from my body on the ground. I did it, was all I could think.