Bull rider Toby Collins moved across continents to pursue his bull riding dreams. Taken in by the family of former saddle bronc rider and horse trainer Travis Edwards, he now lives in Stephenville, Texas, and has made a name for himself on the ProRodeo circuit. Collins and Edwards recently sat down with us at home in Stephenville to talk about the differences between rodeoing in Australia and America.
THE COWBOY CHANNEL: What part of Australia are you from?
TOBY COLLINS: The Southeast corner, Victoria. It’s a couple of hours north of Melbourne.
TCC: When did you come to the United States?
TC: I first came over in 2013. I was 20 years old.
TRAVIS EDWARDS: If you grow up with a passion to rodeo in Australia, your end goal is to ride at the NFR in America.
TCC: Did you come to Rodeo?
TC: Yes.
TCC: Tell us the first difference you noticed between riding in the United States versus riding in Australia.
TC: The following that rodeo has, the number of contestants, the size of the committees. The sport is much bigger in the U.S.
TCC: What does the average day sheet look like for a bull rider in Australia?
TC: I haven’t rodeo’d back home for a few years now, but during our Christmas run you might get 20 bull riders. Other times of the year you might get 5 to 10.
TCC: So, when you say your “Christmas Run” is that the same as our Fourth of July run over here?
TC: Yes, there was probably 8 to 10 rodeos in two weeks.
TCC: Is there an association over there like the PRCA?
TC: So there are two associations. There are two major associations, the ABCRA (Australians Bushmans Campdraft Rodeo Association) and the APRA (Australian Professional Rodeo Association).
TCC: Are there world titles over there? Is it based on regions, states, or the country as a whole?
TC: They both crown an Australian Champion. I won the rookie saddle bronc and bull riding title in the APRA.
TCC: Is one ranked higher than the other?
[Edwards says “EWWWWW” with a laugh.]
TC: [Laughing] It depends on who you ask. If you’re with the ABCRA, you’re going to say it’s superior, and if you’re with APRA, you’re going to say it is superior.
TCC: Can you be a member of both or are they divided?
TC: You can be a member of both.
TCC: Are the prizes over there the same? Saddles, buckles, bits and spurs?
TC: Yes.
TCC: How are the rodeos different in the way of format or duration?
TC: Rodeos are usually only 1 day and there are not as many of them. They are much smaller, a lot less contestants. Some of the bigger ones go for 3 days, with morning slacks and evening performances.
TCC: Is the payout structured the same? We have more entries, so I’m sure it’s better here but are the percentages the same?
TC: The rodeos in Australia don’t have the added money that they have in the United States.
TCC: Are the rodeos in Australia produced by committees?
TC: Yes, but they’re much smaller and they don’t have the support of local businesses and sponsorships. The committees are older, and there isn’t enough growth in the ranching industry to build interest
TCC: Is the sport growing there like it is here?
TC/TE: No, a lot of the committee men have kids who are growing up and pursuing other careers. They grow up and become mechanics. The ranchers don’t raise their kids to carry on the tradition because they can make a better living in town.
TCC: Is being a cowboy the same here as it is there?
TC/TE: When you grow up riding horses and working cattle in Australia you don’t ride a western saddle and you don’t doctor cattle. They run their cattle through a chute. You don’t get the horses made and you aren’t making cowboys.
TCC: Is there more timed event or more rough stock competitors there?
TC: Team Roping and Barrel Racing are both big over there. Team Ropers have a number system there too. Barrel Racers do the 4D format.
TCC: Are there a lot of finished horses imported into Australia from the United States since they are not easily made over there?
TC: There have been several stallions, especially cutting studs. Some of the barrel racers have imported running bred stallions too. They import more bucking stock than anything.
TCC: Are there a lot of people that aspire to make rodeo great over there that come to the United States to watch and learn how we do it and then take what they’ve learned back?
TE: Not enough, but the ones that do make a big impact. There is just not a big following of the sport there, so they are a minority in a way. It’s not the money maker there that it is here.
TCC: What would you say the number of Australians living here to pursue their dream of rodeo is?
TC/TE: There hasn’t been an Aussie make the NFR since Sam Spreadbough, in maybe 2011. There will be a couple make it in 2020, it looks like. It’s been a while. There are quite a few guys, probably 10-15 that are top of mind. A lot of Aussies rodeo in Canada too.
TCC: Do you see the number of practice pens in Australia that you see here?
TC: No, that is probably the biggest difference. Within a mile of where we live in Stephenville there is probably 20 different arenas. In Australia, I had an arena, but the next closest to me was like an hour away. Sometimes we’d have to drive 2-3 hours to practice, so we’d only get to practice once a week.
TCC: What’s the best thing about living here?
TC/TE: That you can make it a lifestyle here. You can make a living rodeoing or training horses. We like the cantina’s too.
