Tuff Hedeman
Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (b. 2 March 1963, El Paso, Texas) is a retired 3 time PRCA World Champion bull rider, as well as the 1995 PBR World Champion, and is the current president of the CBR.[1] He was also the president of the PBR until leaving to go to the CBR, and is also known for having been one of Lane Frost's closest friends.
Professional career
Hedeman won many junior rodeos growing up. In 1980 he won the New Mexico High School rodeo bull riding and All Around titles. He won the Team roping title and All around again in 1981. After high school he attended Sul Ross State University. At Sul Ross he was a member of the rodeo team, competing in bronc riding, team roping, steer wrestling, and of course bull riding.
Hedeman filled his PRCA permit at one rodeo in 1983 as a bronc rider. Tuff was known for riding bulls that often were not rode, with an all or nothing style that amazed rodeo fans. He often traveled with fellow bull riders and close friends Lane Frost, Cody Lambert, Jim Sharp, Clint Branger, and Ty Murray to save travel expenses. He married Tracy Stepp in May 1986. He would go on to qualify for 11 NFRs. By 1993 he had surpassed $1,000,000 in career earnings, and won the 1986, 1989, and 1991 world titles in the PRCA. A neck injury at the National Finals Rodeo in 1993 kept Hedeman out of the arena for the entire year of 1994. In 1994 he was portrayed by Stephen Baldwin in the film "8 Seconds" about the life of his friend Lane Frost. He was actually a stunt double for the man portraying himself.
Hedeman was instrumental in starting the Professional Bull Riders, or PBR. In 1995, he won the PBR world Championship despite his horrific encounter with Bodacious the bull (see paragraph below). Hedeman just missed winning the PBR World Title in 1996, coming in 2nd place that year. He finished 3rd in the world during the 1997 PBR season. His last ride was at the PBR event in Odessa, Texas in 1998, when he landed on his head after getting thrown off and herniated a disc in his previously injured neck. After some consideration, Hedeman retired in 1999. He was leading the PBR World Standings in 1998 at the time of his injury.
Hedeman is one of only seven riders to have ever ridden the great bull, Bodacious, with the stand-out ride being a 95-point ride at a 1993 BRO (Bull Riders Only) event in Long Beach, California. However, his more familiar encounter with the bull happened in the short-go of the 1995 PBR World Finals in Las Vegas. He was jerked down by the bull upon exiting the chutes and struck his face on the bull's head, shattering every major bone in his face. To the crowd's astonishment, he managed to walk out of the arena, albeit a bloody mess. He required several hours of reconstructive surgery for his face, and less than two months later, he was riding again. At the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) later that year, Hedeman ended up drawing Bodacious again, this time in round 7 of the NFR. Hedeman decided to turn out the bull - getting off the bull when he left the chute. He then tipped his hat to the bull, and he received a standing ovation for his decision.hedeman had a great 16 seconds on that bull he rode Lane.:)
End of career, retirement and after
He is now the current president of the Championship Bull Riders after abruptly leaving the PBR in 2004 for undisclosed reasons (Ty Murray has since replaced Tuff as the PBR's president under much controversy ending their longtime friendship). Tuff, Tracy, and their 2 boys, one which he named Lane after Lane Frost, now live on a ranch near Morgan Mill, Texas. He also adds color commentary on TV to many rodeo broadcasts. He spends his free time traveling to bull ridings, and team roping. It was announced that in April 2010 he will be inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Hedeman in film/TV
Actor Stephen Baldwin portrayed Hedeman in the 1994 biopic 8 Seconds, which was centered around the life of Lane Frost (who in that film was portrayed by Luke Perry).