By Brian Argabright
He’s not old enough to legally buy alcohol, but T.J. Gray can claim a spot among the bull riding greats.
The 19-year-old Gray, who calls Dairy, Oregon home, was the only rider to cover two bulls this weekend at the 43rd Annual George Paul Memorial Xtreme Bulls event at the Val Verde County Fairground. That feat earned Gray the champion’s buckle and the right to have his name and photo placed on the champions’ wall along with hall of famers like Tuff Hedeman, Lane Frost, Charles Sampson, Jim Sharp and others.
“It’s really exciting to me! When I was younger I dreamed of being like those guys. And then now where I’m at it’s more … when you’re in high school you plan to be as good as those guys were but now with the guys I’m running with you kind of grow to a level of confidence where you kind of expect yourself to be there one day. I’m not saying you will but that’s what you have to expect of yourself,” Gray said.
Gray qualified for the short go round by riding 4L/Diamond S Rodeos’ “Three Days” for 87 points near the end of the first flight of riders. It was the first time in three years that bull had been successfully ridden.
That score put him as the third to last rider to climb down into the chutes in the short go. Since he trailed Trevor Kastner’s 90.5-point ride, which was the top score of the weekend to that point, Gray needed to successfully ride his last bull of the weekend – Stockyards ProRodeo’s Silver Lining – if he had any chance at the champions’ buckle.
Eight seconds later, Gray had become the first man to successfully ride two bulls on the weekend and now owned the highest score with a 172.
“I wasn’t thinking about the pressure of it or anything too much. I was just enjoying it, having fun and wanted to make a good bull ride and it worked out,” Gray said.
But there were still two more riders left, and both men were more than qualified to give Gray a run for his money.
Six-time consecutive world champion Sage Steele Kimzey had never won the George Paul in his career but he rode “Wicked Sensation” for 89 points in the long go round Saturday and needed just an 83.5-point ride to finally win the thing that has eluded him throughout his pro career.
Kastner, a six-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier, had already posted the highest score of the weekend and needed just an 82-point ride to claim his first George Paul title.
But when the dust settled, and the bulls were back in their pens, it was Gray who stood tall and was soon joined in the rodeo arena by George Paul Bull Riding Producer Bobby Paul, George’s brother, and stock contractor Jim Gay. He was then presented with the custom-made buckle that signified him as champion of the 43rd George Paul.
Gray said he had been riding since he was two years old. He began on sheep and moved to calves before graduating to bigger bulls when he was 14. He travels with his brother, Levi Gray, and said his brother is the more emotional of the two, cheering his brother on and making those long drives more bearable.
This was Gray’s first visit to Del Rio, either as a spectator or a rider, but this will be one visit he won’t ever forget.
“Everyone knows what the George Paul is. I’ve never been here, not to watch or nothing. I mean we were really excited to come here, though. It’s the George Paul Memorial. It’s Del Rio so we were really excited,” Gray said. “This is the top for sure. I have not won a big rodeo yet. I mean nothing legendary at all. This is really exciting, a really big accomplishment!”
