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HOWDY, PARDNERS!

Rodeo round up time for THE CODYS:FIRST FAMILY OF RODEO SERIES has come to an end for this 2010 season.

It’s been full of thrills and chills. We lucky ladies who were asked to write for this miniseries have lived through the heartaches and triumphs of a remarkable Wyoming family who made the rodeo into an art form.

Between the six of us, we authors are so gratified by the response from our readers. It’s clear from all your feedback that the rodeo is a great and loved part of our national heritage and always will be. I know I speak for everyone when I say we’re sad it’s over. If you haven’t had the opportunity to read the whole series, I’ve listed the titles here:

June 2010 Walker: The Rodeo Legend by Rebecca Winters
July 2010 Dexter: Honorable Cowboy by Marin Thomas
August 2010 Dusty: Wild Cowboy by Cathy McDavid
September 2010 Mark: Secret Cowboy by Pamela Britton
October 2010 Elly: Cowgirl Bride by Trish Milburn
November 2010 Jesse: Merry Christmas, Cowboy by Lynette Kent

For those of you who can’t get to the rodeo right now, you have the option of watching bull riding on television. I thought for a final farewell, I’d give you some quotes from some NON-FICTION rodeo champs who have drawn my attention to the bulls themselves.

Oklahoman J.W. Hart, veteran of 13 seasons as a pro rider in the PBR puts it this way: “The machine doesn't simulate the action of a bull. That's probably the very beginner stages of it, but once you get to this level, the machine doesn't move ahead. It doesn't roll. It doesn't back up. It stays in one place. So it's pretty easy to match moves. Bulls develop bucking patterns but don't always stick to them. So it's unwise to shift in anticipation of what a bull will do. All it is is a dance contest, really. I mean you're just dancing with him the whole time. He's the one leading the dance, and you've just got to match the moves.”

Adriano Moraes, a native Brazilian who won his record third PBR wor
ld title last season, is one of the bigger riders on the PBR tour at 5-10, 185 pounds. He has bulging muscles in his left arm — the arm he uses to hold the rope. He has added these thoughts: “Our riding arms are always a little bigger, a little stronger. Bull riders are strong, but no rider overpowers a bull. You don’t move before the bull moves because he's liable to go the other way. Then you're screwed because the bull leads, and you just follow. You're talking about animals that weigh 2,000 pounds. You bring me the strongest guy in the world, and he's not strong enough to ride on strength. It's why most of the bull riders you see look more like gymnasts than they do like a bodybuilder. Gymnasts don't work through their moves with brute strength. They work through them with finesse and correct form and correct timing. It's the same thing here."

Lastly, Canter, another champion, says: “When the chute opens, you have to rely on skills that have become second nature. Things are happening so fast, there's no time to ponder each move, but moves must be made in rhythmic harmony with the bull. Nothing is going through my head. I've just got to stay on. That's it! You know, it ain't but eight seconds, but it seems like it’s fifty!"

Interesting info from the horse’s mouth so to speak, don’t you think?

Well, that’s it for now, pardners. But y’all come back to view the latest exciting titles coming out from all our Harlequin American Romance authors in 2011, ya hear?

Rebecca Winters