Shepherd Hills Tested facts for kids
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| Country | United States |
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| Breed | American Bucking Bull |
| Brand | 20U |
| Sex | Bull |
| Color | Black |
| Weight | 1,700 pounds (770 kg) |
| Born | 2008 Ardmore, Oklahoma |
| Years active | 2011 – 2014 |
| Sire | 194 Smooth Move |
| Paternal grandsire | Kish's Top Gun |
| Paternal granddam | Kish 002 |
| Dam | Page #502 |
| Maternal grandsire | 22 Hotel California |
| Maternal granddam | TBB K304 |
| Breeder | D&H Cattle Co. |
| Owner |
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| Notable riders |
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| Died | April 14, 2017 (aged 9) Lebanon, Missouri |
| Awards | |
| 2014 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull 2013 PRCA Bucking Bull of the Year 2013 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull 2012 ABBI Classic Champion 2012 PRCA Bucking Bull of the NFR Finals |
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Shepherd Hills Tested #20U (born 2008 – died April 14, 2017) was a famous bucking bull known for his incredible strength and skill in bull riding competitions. He was named the 2013 Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Bucking Bull of the Year, which is a top honor for these animal athletes.
Tested competed in both the PRCA and Professional Bull Riders (PBR) events from 2011 to 2014. He won several big awards, including the 2012 American Bucking Bull (ABBI) Classic World Champion title and the 2012 PRCA Bucking Bull of the NFR Finals. He was also the PBR Reserve World Champion Bull in both 2013 and 2014, meaning he was the second-best bull in the PBR world finals.
Over his four-year career, Tested was ridden only four times out of 84 attempts. Two of these successful rides were by the famous two-time World Champion J.B. Mauney, and the other two were by Kasey Hayes. His owners decided to retire him after the 2014 season.
Contents
Meet Shepherd Hills Tested
Shepherd Hills Tested was born in 2008 and was first known as Smooth Groove. He was co-owned by several groups, including D&H Cattle Company, a very large stock contractor. When Shepherd Hills Cutlery became a part-owner, the bull's name was changed to Shepherd Hills Tested.
His father was #194 Smooth Move, who was also a well-known bull in PBR finals. Tested's mother was Page #502. His grandfather on his mother's side was #22 Hotel California, a bull famous for being very hard to ride. Hotel California even had a long streak of bucking off riders on the PBR's top tour.
Shepherd Hills Tested was a black bull and weighed about 1,700 pounds. He was registered as an American Bucking Bull, a special breed known for their athletic ability in rodeo.
Tested's Amazing Career
Shepherd Hills Tested competed in both the PRCA circuit and the PBR's elite Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) tour. He was known for his power and how difficult he was to ride.
2011 Season: Getting Started
In 2011, when he was three years old, Shepherd Hills Tested (still called Smooth Groove then) began competing. He had several successful buck-offs in PRCA events.
He also started competing in the PBR, even making it to a BFTS event in Billings, Montana. He quickly bucked off Colby Yates and Reese Cates. Later that year, he competed in the PBR BFTS Finals in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he bucked off Dusty Eprom. He also earned the most money in the ABBI regular season that year.
2012 Season: A Champion Emerges
The 2012 season was a big year for Shepherd Hills Tested. He continued to buck off many top riders in PBR BFTS events, including Austin Meier and two-time World Champion Chris Shivers.
He also faced J.B. Mauney for the first time in March 2012, bucking him off in Arlington, Texas. By August 2012, Tested was making a strong push for the ABBI Classic Championship, an event for younger bulls. He had already earned $50,000!
In the end, Shepherd Hills Tested won the ABBI Classic Championship as a four-year-old in 2012. He earned a total of $339,570.39 during his Classic career.
In September 2012, J.B. Mauney made history by becoming the first rider to successfully ride Shepherd Hills Tested. Mauney scored an impressive 92.50 points on the bull. However, Tested's co-owner, H.D. Page, said that the bull would get upset when ridden and would try even harder in his next competition. True to form, Tested bounced back quickly after Mauney's ride, bucking off his next challenger.
At the end of 2012, Tested competed in the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in Las Vegas. He bucked off two riders, including PRCA World Champion Cody Teel, with excellent scores. His performance at the NFR earned him the PRCA Bucking Bull of the NFR Finals title.
2013 Season: Top Bull of the Year
The 2013 season was one of Shepherd Hills Tested's best. He continued his winning streak, bucking off riders like Jory Markiss and Austin Meier. In March 2013, he achieved his career-high bull score of 46.75 points by quickly bucking off Austin Meier.
He faced J.B. Mauney again in April 2013, and this time, Tested bucked Mauney off so hard that Mauney was knocked unconscious! This showed just how powerful Tested was. Later that year, Mauney did manage a second successful ride on Tested in November, scoring 90.50 points.
In October 2013, Shepherd Hills Tested performed incredibly well at the PBR BFTS Finals. He bucked off Chase Outlaw and Markus Mariluch with high scores. His amazing performance earned him the 2013 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull title, coming in second only to the legendary bull Bushwacker.
In December 2013, Tested competed in the NFR again. He bucked off Josh Koshel and Trey Benton. His consistent excellence throughout the year led him to win the 2013 PRCA Bucking Bull of the Year award. In 2013, he had an incredible record of 26 buck-offs with no qualified rides against him across all competitions.
2014 Season: Final Year of Competition
Shepherd Hills Tested continued his strong performance in 2014. He bucked off many top riders, including Joao Ricardo Viera, Austin Meier, and three-time World Champion Silvano Alves.
In May 2014, Kasey Hayes became the second rider to successfully ride Tested, scoring 91.5 points. This broke Tested's streak of 21 straight buck-offs. PBR Director of Livestock, Cody Lambert, praised Hayes's ride, saying it had to be one of his career highlights because Tested was so strong.
Later that year, Tested participated in a special challenge event against another famous bull, Asteroid. Two-time PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney and four-time PRCA World Champion J.W. Harris were matched against them. Harris almost rode Tested, lasting 6.17 seconds, which was the longest anyone had lasted without making the 8-second ride since February 2013.
Tested continued to perform well, even as a "bounty bull" at some events. He finished the first half of the 2014 season with a high average score.
2014 PBR Finals
In October 2014, Shepherd Hills Tested was one of eight bulls nominated for the PBR BFTS World Champion Bull title. The top bull riders in the world voted for these contenders.
At the finals, Kasey Hayes rode Tested for a second time, but it was a lower score. Tested also bucked off Lachlan Richardson with an excellent score. In the end, Bushwacker won the World Champion Bull title for the third and final time. Shepherd Hills Tested came in second, earning the PBR Reserve World Champion Bull title again.
Tested's Career Highlights
Shepherd Hills Tested had an amazing career. On the PBR's top tour (BFTS), he had a record of 39 buck-offs and only 3 qualified rides over four years. Across all competitions, he had 80 total buck-offs. His buck-off percentage was an incredible 95.24 percent, meaning he bucked off riders almost every time!
His highest score in the PBR BFTS was 46.76 points. In the PRCA, he scored 47 points four times, including twice at the 2012 National Finals Rodeo.
According to Cody Lambert, Tested was not a favorite bull for riders because he was "incredibly strong and hard to ride." He had a powerful first move out of the chute, and he could spin either way, making him unpredictable.
Rider Austin Meier, who never successfully rode Tested, had great respect for him. Meier said, "I remember how much power and speed he had. He had it all. Power, speed, smarts. He was an athlete."
Tested bucked during a time when other famous bulls like Bushwacker and Asteroid were also competing. He was known more for his raw power than for flashy moves. J.B. Mauney described him as not the biggest bull, but very wide and powerful, filling up the bucking chutes.
Awards and Honors
- 2014 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull
- 2013 PRCA Bucking Bull of the Year
- 2013 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull
- 2012 ABBI Classic World Champion
- 2012 PRCA Bucking Bull of the NFR Finals
Retirement and Legacy
Shepherd Hills Tested retired in 2014 and spent three years at D&H Cattle's ranch as a breeding bull. This means he helped create future generations of bucking bulls.
Sadly, in April 2017, Tested was involved in an accident. He got into a fight with another bull, which led to him getting out of his enclosure and onto a highway, where he was hit by a vehicle. He passed away on April 14, 2017, due to his injuries.
Tested's legacy lives on through his offspring. His son, #A1 Mud Shark, also became a bucking bull on the PBR's elite tour. J.B. Mauney has even made two qualified rides on Mud Shark, continuing the family's tradition in the arena.
Images for kids
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Shepherd Hills Tested, a famous bucking bull.
