Bull riding heads for the big city - with the big investors

L.J. Jenkins of Texico, N.M., rode Super Duty for eight seconds yesterday in New York, for a score of 90, during a preview for the Versus Invite, which will feature more than 60 riders competing today through Sunday. (Julie Jacobson/Associated Press)

CHICAGO - Professional bull riding, an extreme sport billed as a cross between a NASCAR auto race and a rock concert, has moved from the country to the big city - attracting big money along the way.

Last year, more than 1.6 million fans flocked to these competitions, during which mostly wiry, 150-pound men struggle for up to eight seconds to stay astride bad-tempered, 2,000-pound bulls with names like Scene of the Crash.

Professional Bull Riders Inc. has come a long way from its start, when 20 bull riders chipped in $1,000 apiece so their sport could break away from its rodeo roots. It's celebrating its 15th season by hauling dirt into New York City's Madison Square Garden for a competition this weekend.

With PBR expecting 2008 sales growth of 25 percent and cash flow to rise 30 percent, it's no wonder that a New York private equity firm, Spire Capital Partners, invested almost $100 million in PBR in April to buy a two-thirds stake.

It's an odd choice for Spire, whose $700 million portfolio includes a radio broadcasting company and SkyMall Inc., a publishing company known for its airline catalogs. "You would not think of it off the top of your head," Spire partner Rick Patterson said.

The mostly young riders' purses have also increased. The PBR champion in 1995 earned about $150,000; last year's winner, Justin McBride, 28, won $1.8 million.

PBR has left behind its days as a segment of the rodeo.

"We're not rodeo because we're so different. We're closer to a cross between a Rolling Stones concert and a NASCAR race," chief executive Randy Bernard said. PBR events include fireworks, musicians, and soldiers rappelling from the rafters.

The rules are simple: A rider, using one hand, tries to stay mounted on a bull for at least eight seconds. The rider is then scored on a 100-point scale, based on his performance and the bull's difficulty.

An athlete is injured once every 15 rides. But the action has proven to be an attractive lure for the Pueblo, Colo.-based sport's 22 sponsors - including VF Corp.'s Wrangler jeans, UST Inc.'s Copenhagen smokeless tobacco, and Ford Motor Co. - as well as its main broadcast partner, Comcast Corp.'s Versus network.

Versus president Gavin Harvey said bull riding's crossover appeal suits the cable network's growth strategy.

"We're a country that's dominated by stick-and-ball sports, but there's a lot of room," he said. "The PBR is a legitimate A-list competition."

The network airs the sport from January through early November.

Fox and NBC also televise select events. PBR has tours in the United States, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, and Canada.