Cowboy Will Purcell talks busted bodies and eight seconds of fear

AM: You were just crowned the Australia Professional Rodeo Association (APRA) champion - which is a different rodeo circuit to PBRA - what does that mean to you?

WP: Oh mate, it's a big deal, I've had quite a lot of trouble with injuries the last few years. This association started me out as a bull rider, so it means the world to me, it's been a goal.

AM: What have been some of the injuries you've suffered?

WP: I've crushed all the bones in my (left) foot, that took four surgeries to repair that, it was in the chute, trying to get on a bull, a mad bull. I've shattered my (right) collarbone and dislocated my shoulder plenty of times. One used to dislocate all the time and I absolutely made a mess of it. I've also dislocated my jaw, tore my PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) and MCL (medial collateral ligament), had over 10 concussions and had a list of minor bone breaks like ribs, wrists, ankles and toes to name a few.

AM: How did you get into bull riding?

WP: We grew up on a cattle farm and my old man bought me and my brothers a miniature heifer, it was like a learning experience. He said you can breed it, sell it, whatever, this is your's to do what you want with it. We thought it would be funny to ride, pretty well, that's where it all started.

AM: I believe your mum was terrified when you started showing interest in the sport?

WP: My dad (his father rode horses in the 1982 movie, The Man From Snowy River) and uncle got me into it, my uncle used to ride bulls back in his day and mum didn't talk to them for months, she was off them, hey. But once she realised that's what I wanted to do and it wasn't just a phase as a kid, she was all for it, she was there to support me.

AM: What can you remember of your first ride at the Merrijig Rodeo in 2009?

WP: It was the scariest moment of my life, but from there I've absolutely loved it, I love everything about the sport.

AM: Are you scared every time you hop on a 900kg bucking beast?

WP: I'd be lying if I said there was no fear, but when you are getting on bulls all the time the fear goes. I find if I take a couple of weeks off, I get pretty nervous.

AM: So just like a pushbike, you never forget how to do it?

WP: I wouldn't say that either, there's so much that can go wrong and everything needs to go right at the same time.

AM: You have to stay on for eight seconds, is it the longest eight seconds of your life?

WP: When everything goes right, it's the shortest eight seconds of your life, but if you're a bit out of position, you can bank on it being the longest (laughs).

AM: So how do you combat your fear?

WP: Years of mental preparation, obviously when you start out you're really scared, but you find ways to deal with it. You know it's not alright, you're s--t scared, but you've got to be tough, you've got to prove yourself, you just have to deal with it. Since I dedicated myself to bull riding, it's all I've wanted to do, come hell or high water. I was going to make a bull rider out of myself. I would do anything and everything to get better or improve.

AM: So how have you tried to improve?

WP: Mate, I've pretty much tried it all. I've tried all the visualisation and mental preparation, like reading books and learning everything I can about it, it was good, it wasn't quite for me. I've tried going to the gym all the time, lifting weights, that didn't work for me, same thing with yoga, that ended up doing more to my shoulder. My friends and I have tried anything and everything to get better but the biggest thing I find for preparation is riding horses without saddles, but it's all about getting on practice bulls frequently because I'm not one of those kids that are naturally talented, I've had to work at it all the time.

AM: It's such a dangerous sport, are the competitors a bit, unique?

WP: Yeah, absolutely mate, I think bull riders, we come from all walks of life, but we all have that same thing, that mental toughness and that grit and determination. It whittles the weak out pretty quickly. If you're not pretty tough and mentally strong, you're not going to last long at something that's so dangerous.

AM: With some of the injuries you've had, you would have spent long periods out. How do you make a living then?

WP: It's not like footy where you have a contract, you only earn money when you're competing and winning. In Australia, it's really hard to get insurance, that means when you're injured, you have no income, especially when you're not able to work and there's plenty of moments like that.

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AM: You were crowned Canada's national bull riding champion in 2016, how big is the sport there?

WP: It's heaps bigger than Australia, there's more money, more fans, bull riders are treated more like footy players are here, in Australia's it's not quite there yet.

AM: Can you expand?

WP: A cowboy is respected over there, but people just don't understand it here. Some rodeos you get treated like superstars, it's unreal hey?

AM: That would be fantastic?

WP: I don't mind it (laughs).

AM: You spoke about people not understanding the sport and I believe you've come across animal activists at one of the events, at least. How are the animals treated?

WP: They're treated unbelievably well, the activists, it's kind of annoying because they're not willing to learn about it. They have their side, I don't know whether they get out there and think, let's protest about this when they don't even learn about it. It's just annoying, they don't want to learn, especially the contractors here, they put so much work into helping them learn, but they're not interested.

AM: What can people expect on Saturday night?

WP: They can expect some of the best bucking bulls and bull riders in the country. It's just action-packed, a great atmosphere, it's something different. It's the greatest sport in the world in my opinion. You can never master it.