Louis Looking to Honor his Grandmother’s Legacy in Billings
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – Dakota Louis spent plenty of late nights alongside Mason Lowe, discussing the cowboy mentality and letting out a few war whoops along the way.
Having the cowboy mentality and passion – and a little bit of fun along the way – was something Louis still recalls Lowe always instilling upon him.
“A big thing that I always remember from him is a conversation we had after the bull riding somewhere just about kind of that cowboy mentality, and about how, when you nod your head, you’d better mean it, and you give everything you’ve got because that’s why we do it, and there’s no reason to give anything less,” Louis told PBR.com this week. “That always sticks out in my mind about Mason, and then just seeing how he was all in. Like when he rode (SweetPro’s) Bruiser and jumped off and threw his hat and gave his war whoop and showed his emotion, you could see that he was all in there.
“And I think that’s what, as professional bull riders, we strive for that feeling.”
Louis let out quite the loud war whoop for his late friend last weekend in Cassville, Missouri, after he rode Panic Button for 86 points to cap off his victory at the Ridin’ with Mason Lowe Invitational.
“Oh man, it was huge for so many reasons,” Louis said. “Mason is a good friend of mine. We were right around the same age. I’d see him at the Velocities and then meet him at a few UTBs, and got to hang around off tour, too, at other buddies’ houses around there that had practice pens that we went to. It was awesome not only to be there but be able to have some luck and get the win. It was huge.”
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Lowe, a Missouri native, passed away on January 15, 2019, due to injuries sustained during a PBR event at the Denver Coliseum.
Louis said the best way he and his fellow riders could honor Lowe was to not only put on a great show, but also raise money for a good cause. The Ridin’ with Mason Lowe Invitational raised over $20,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
“Oh man, that’s huge too,” Louis said. “It’s so much bigger than bull riding right there, and to be able to give back to such a great cause, to kind of get a little bit of extra hope and faith into other people’s hands, that’s all a guy can ask for right there. Just to have that little bit of inspiration.”
There was another added motivation to Louis’s effort in Cassville. The 28-year-old knew that an event victory could be enough to earn him a draw spot for this weekend’s PBR Wrangler Invitational, presented by Cooper Tires, in Billings, Montana.
The Browning, Montana, native attended his first PBR event when he was 8 years old in Billings, and the home-state cowboy has fond memories attending MetraPark Arena with his grandmother, Nathel Show, who passed away because of COVID-19 last December.
Before her passing, Show, who always told Louis one of the keys of being a cowboy was hard work, was in attendance in Billings last year when Louis went 2-for-4 for a career-best seventh overall finish.
Louis is ranked 47th in the world standings courtesy of his Touring Pro Division win and is the first alternate this weekend in Billings. Louis now hopes to honor his grandmother’s legacy with another strong performance in Billings and potentially win the first premier series event of his career.
The 2020 PBR World Finalist has drawn Wooden Nickels (3-1, UTB) for Round 1 on Friday night (11 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network / 9:45 p.m. ET on RidePass).
“My gram, she’s the first one that’s ever brought me to the PBR event, and she was there last year, and she had the time of her life,” Louis said. “She was so proud. She is my biggest fan by far, and to be there, to be back in there, it would definitely be a little bit emotional because I’ve never competed with her not being there (in Billings), whether it’s roping, wrestling, playing basketball, anything. But I know for sure that she’s going to be watching. I know she’s going to be there.
“I know for sure now I’ve got an extra guardian angel. I know she’s there every ride.”
Professional Bull Riders – Ridin’ With Mason Lowe Annual PBR
Cassville, MO, 2021 – Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Dakota Louis, 86-86-172.00-15 Points.
2. Austin Richardson, 82.5-88-170.50-8 Points.
3. Joe Hostetler, 88-0-88.00-7 Points.
4. Dakota Eagleburger, 87-0-87.00-4 Points.
5. Thiago Salgado, 85.5-0-85.50-2.5 Points.
(tie). Casey Coulter, 85.5-0-85.50-2.5 Points.
7. Cole Skender, 85-0-85.00-1 Points.
8. Kyle Jones, 84.5-0-84.50
(tie). Adriano Salgado, 84.5-0-84.50
10. Conner Halverson, 84-0-84.00
11. Wyatt Rogers, 82.5-0-82.50
12. Andrew Alvidrez, 80.5-0-80.50
Chase Dougherty, 0-0-0.00
Eli Vastbinder, 0-0-0.00
Hunter Ball, 0-0-0.00
Logan Biever, 0-0-0.00
Luis Blanco, 0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0.00
Alecio Ferreira da Costa, 0-0-0.00
Thor Hoefer II, 0-0-0.00
Keith Hall, 0-0-0.00
Jake Gardner, 0-0-0.00
Laramie Craigen, 0-0-0.00
Vinell Mariano, 0-0-0.00
Brady Sims, 0-0-0.00
Gage Gay, 0-0-0.00
Eli Miller, 0-0-0.00
Riley Gagnon, 0-0-0.00
Cody Rodeo Tyler, 0-0-0.00
Dusty Craig, 0-0-0.00
Quentin Vaught, 0-0-0.00
Luke Bradley, 0-0-0.00
Brandon Chambers, 0-0-0.00
Cody Jones, 0-0-0.00
Jaron Hughes, 0-0-0.00
Buddy Asher, 0-0-0.00
Tyler Rogers, 0-0-0.00
Bob Mitchell, 0-0-0.00
Timmy Vaughan, 0-0-0.00
Matt Hennelly, 0-0-0.00
Denton Fugate, 0-0-0.00
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
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