The Active Historian

Hey, friends! Welcome back to another post! Today we’re going to do things a little bit differently because I want to tell y’all about a really cool opportunity I had this past weekend. I got to go take pictures at the 2023 Oklahoma Freedom Fest in Oklahoma City for the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Freedom Fest is an event on the PBR Teams tour hosted by the Oklahoma Freedom PBR team. (PBR = Professional Bull Riding)

So, here’s the backstory. I grew up watching PBR on television and have always thought it’d be cool to see an event in-person. I wanted to see the cowboys ride those bucking bulls for 8 seconds and hear the crowd go wild! I always assumed I’d sit somewhere in the middle or top of the arena. Never in a million years did I ever think I would get to sit on the front row with a media pass taking pictures for The Cowboy on my first trip to see PBR in-person! When I checked into the arena and found my seat I was truly speechless. I was right on the dirt and could truly see it ALL. See the photos below!

To the left of where these pictures were taken sat a camera man for PBR. We had a lovely conversation and found out we both went to Oklahoma State University around the same time. Go Pokes, right?! He warned me to keep my mouth shut when the bulls came bucking by otherwise he said you’d get a mouth full of dirt… And boy was he right. I wound up with a lap full of dirt!

What to expect at a PBR event

Now, if you’ve never been to a PBR event – these events are a production. There’s pyrotechnics at the beginning, flashing lights and loud music which make the arena come to life! Next, comes a prayer and the singing of the national anthem. Then, it was time for the action on the dirt to start!

Seeing the cowboys come bursting out of the chutes on the bucking bulls was a thrill! Some of the cowboys made 8 seconds, while others did not…

Sometimes when you get bucked off of the bull you have to get out of its way so you don’t get run over or stomped on. The safety team does a fantastic job of protecting the cowboys by diverting the bull’s attention to themselves instead. See the photo below of the cowboys wearing the green jerseys. There are other times when the best option is to jump up on the fence or on top of the shark cage in the middle of the arena to get out of the bull’s way.

Capturing History

I was so excited to capture the photos of the second Oklahoma Freedom Fest because this is only the second year for the PBR Teams series. It’s a really cool feeling when your boss says “you’re capturing history” and my little historian heart just burst with joy knowing researchers will have the opportunity to use the photos I captured this weekend for years to come.

I use photos taken by the great rodeo photographers almost weekly when writing blog posts and social media posts for the The Cowboy. Ralph Doubleday, DeVere Helfrich and Bern Gregory are truly some of the photographers I look up to. I will forever be grateful to Doubleday, Helfrich and Gregory for capturing the photos which allow me to vicariously live rodeo history through their lens.

Concluding Thoughts

There are some days (or weekends) in life that you won’t ever forget and I know this weekend was one of those for me. I am so very thankful for all of the opportunities The Cowboy gave me this weekend to capture these photos. I hope they’ll be put to good use one day!

I can’t wait to go watch another PBR event the next time they’re in town!

That’s all for now, I’ll talk to ya soon! 🙂