The thrill of bucking bulls captured David Jackson from a young age and the Moyston farmer now owns the top bucking bull of the year.
David threw his hat into the ring and tried riding bucking bulls when he was young.
“I fell off a lot, and I thought it wouldn’t be long before I got hurt,” he said.
The sport that pits man against beast kept David’s interest and in 2006, his wife Carol and he went to the home of the cowboy, the United States, where they went to a lot of rodeos.
“We realised it was not necessarily the people who owned didn’t necessarily breed or ride the bull, so we thought, why don’t we buy a bull?”
They got in touch with Ron Woodall & Sons Rodeo Promotions at Lyons, in south-west Victoria.
“We owe a lot of thanks to the Woodall family. They breed and manage the bulls and helped me helped me pick out the bulls.”
The first bull the Jacksons purchased was named Carol’s Pet and it had about 100 buck-outs, and was only “ridden” seven times, which means the rider manages to stay on the bull for eight seconds.
Their second bull, Dirteater, was runner up for bucking bull of the year in 2015.
The Jacksons now have Jackhammer, who that earlier this year went one better, and was awarded Rodeo Services of Australia Bucking Bull of the Year, as voted by the top 15 bull riders in Australia.
Jackhammer performs at about 20 rodeos a season throughout South Australia, Victoria and southern NSW including the Deni Ute Muster, and David tries to get to all of these events.
David said the aptly-named, 3.5 year-old bull usually “bucks” twice per rodeo and has only been “ridden” once
“Hopefully he can buck for another three or four years.”
David said as much time, money and expertise was invested in bucking bulls’ genetics as breeding other livestock, something the Jackson family knows a lot about.
At their farming in the foothills of the Grampians, David and Carol, their son Ross and his wife Lydia, and children Lane, Lily and Ned, run a Border Leicester and Poll Dorset sheep stud along with cattle, cereal, and canola cropping and the production of hay for sale. Ross and Lydia have expanded the family’s farming interests to include commercial sheep, cattle and cereals on their new farm.
David said bucking bull breeders import semen from America. He said the traits they selected for include athleticism, agility, consistency and stamina. He said nearly all bucking bulls had a bit of Braham in them and a mixture of beef cattle breed and even Friesians.
David said Jackhammer might be good enough to sire the next generation of bucking bulls.
“I just love the excitement of bucking bulls, the thrill of riders, 60 kilogram fellas pitting themselves against a 900kg bulls.”
Jackhammer is having a spell over the winter months and will next perform at the Deni Ute Muster in October.
