CORTEZ – The debate may never cease between rodeo competitors – which event is the toughest? Perhaps the entrant total sheds some light on resolving that matter.
If the Ute Mountain Roundup rodeo is any indication, bareback riding brings in only the most intrepid riders, prepared to take the full brunt of their rides during the spine-jolting eight seconds. While most of the UMR events included a full card of competitors, just a scant few threw their hats into the ring for the night’s opening event.
Among them, Brighton’s Jacoby Campbell, the 2025 UMR champ, is working his way back from a late-season injury in search of a back-to-back on the Montezuma County Fairgrounds dirt. A collection of athletic training tape and gauze – and that’s before he ever sidled onto his bucking horse – Campbell geared up for another run under the setting summer sun on Thursday night.
Asked why he took on bareback riding, “I want to give the saddle bronc riders someone to look up to,” said Campbell with a laugh.
While saddle bronc served as one of the foundational pieces of the early rodeos, the rodeo community has viewed bareback riding on a different intensity level where only the most fearless dare to tread.
On Thursday night, Campbell lasted the full eight seconds on Powder River Rodeo’s Shady Deal, scoring a 79.5 – not good enough for a UMR repeat title, but certainly enough to electrify the crowd with the night’s opening ride.
Like many riders, UMR fit into his jigsaw puzzle schedule for the summer, with Campbell set to ride four horses in four nights in four different towns – Cleburne, Texas, followed by Cortez, then Monticello, then Eagle Mountain, Utah. It’s an unforgiving schedule coupled with an unforgiving event.
Last year near the end of the rodeo calendar, Campbell rolled his leg up after a competition, only to learn that he had been riding the past four years on a torn ACL. A surgery and extensive rehab later, Campbell made sure to highlight the UMR rodeo on his calendar – after all, he had a title to defend.
“I’ve been injured before, but knee surgery has been one of the hardest,” Campbell said matter-of-factly about his litany of challenges before stepping back to the ring, “but it’s just like riding a bike, you have to do a few tries to remember how.”
He now has a piece of his quadriceps where the ligament used to reside, postponing the start of his 2026 rodeo campaign until June – so the UMR Rodeo gave him a chance to get back “in the saddle” to kickstart his recovery journey.
“There’s been a lot of good people in my corner, my coach, my trainer – they helped me make sure I didn’t lose as much muscle mass after the surgery,” he said, “and thanks to them, recovery was pretty simple.”
Campbell splits his time between Colorado and Fort Worth, Texas, where he started his rodeo journey – enjoying the pleasant Rocky Mountain summers while also getting his fix of time in his old stomping grounds during the winter months.
The four rides in four nights kicks off Campbell’s summer aspirations, which include whistle stops in towns all across the Rockies and Great Plains as he seeks a profitable, and more importantly, healthy bounceback season.
“Once you get the first adrenaline rush, you don’t think about the injury much,” said Campbell of his first climb back into the bucket chute.
Injury aside, Campbell fondly remembered his maiden ride in Cortez, a 78.5-point ride, his first of four wins on the 2025 calendar and second-highest score of the year.
“The crowd was amazing, everyone here took really good care of me, and I drew a hopping horse – it was a good rodeo,” he said of his inaugural UMR rodeo, “I like the weather and the great views.”
Compared to Fort Worth, “there’s a lot less traffic here,” he added with a smile.
Early in his career, the Brighton cowboy tried his hand at every rough stock option on the rodeo menu, initially favoring bull riding, but eventually switched to his signature event.
“I realized that the bucking horses were paying for my entry fee for the bull riding, so I asked myself ‘why am I doing this?’ and switched to riding bareback full-time,” he said.
Campbell’s gritty attitude is what fills the stands every second weekend in June in the Four Corners, as the UMR rodeo continues to bring out the heart of the West.
