Triplett: “When you climb in that chute, it is still game time”
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – Matt Triplett pointed toward the CBS Sports Network camera and let out a yell that would normally have been drowned out by thousands of screaming fans during an Unleash The Beast event.
Triplett’s 86.25-point ride on Audacious, though, came in unique circumstances that are slowly becoming a temporary norm for the top bull riders in the world. Triplett was one of 41 riders competing at last weekend’s closed-to-the-public PBR Las Vegas Invitational, presented by Union Home Mortgage, at the Lazy E Arena.
His celebration could be heard echoing off the back walls at the top of the Lazy E Arena bleachers.
“It is different, but when you climb in that chute, it is still game time,” Triplett told John Letasky of 406MTsports.com. “The fans pump you up, but once you get in the chutes, you zone out and take care of business.”
It had been 41 days since the PBR held an event because of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak.
Triplett finished 1-for-3 and in 12th place. He is ranked 14th in the world, and trails No. 1 Jose Vitor Leme by 487.5 points ahead of this weekend’s Cooper Tires Invitational, presented by Ariat, at the Lazy E Arena.
The private event will air on CBS Sports Network and RidePass at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday and 3 p.m. ET on Sunday.
The Unleash The Beast was supposed to stop in two cities that Triplett considers “home games” – Billings, Montana, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota, last month.
“That was a huge disappointment,” Triplett said of missing his home state event. “The fan base there is off the roof every year. The fans were just as bummed. They look forward to that year in and year out. It does suck we can’t go to those spots, but in times like this it wasn’t safe to send the riders out.
“I’ve got a lot of support there. The fan base is awesome. I don’t live there anymore, but I’m still known as a Montana boy. That helps out a lot.”
Triplett, a Columbia Falls, Montana, native, is often referred to as the Montana cowboy by in-arena announcers Clint Adkins and Matt West. The six-time PBR World Finals qualifier now calls Canton, South Dakota, home with his wife Cierra, who is from Sioux Falls.
“The fans play a huge role in how we perform,” Triplett said. “It dang sure helps when you have fans yelling, and it gets your motor running a little bit more.”
The PBR followed a series of health protocols in Guthrie to hold the bull riding.
All competitors and crew went through thorough daily medical screening in order to enter the Lazy E grounds. The event used a much smaller production crew than normal, including the use of robotic cameras.
Judges and TV announcers were also relocated compared to a standard event, and the PBR created functional groups of no larger than 10 people (averaging 6.5 people) to ensure limited interactions. The number of riders/stock contractors on the back of the bucking chutes was also significantly reduced.
Social distancing guidelines and self-isolation policies were set for travel and lodging, severely limiting any contact with anyone in the local Logan County or surrounding Oklahoma community. Everyone drove to the venue, avoiding air travel and public transportation. They all stayed in RVs on the grounds of Lazy E.
The 140 people on site signed a social responsibility pledge to abide by workflow, process, hygiene, sanitary and separation guidelines.
Triplett explained that he appreciated everything the PBR did to put its riders, contractors and staff back to work.
“It was amazing. Anytime we get back to work it is awesome,” Triplett said. “It is just awesome they went out of their way to put us back to work and we were the first sport going.
“They took all the right protocols for that. They made it very safe. I was comfortable doing it.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
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