On October 6, 1991, Washington native Wade Leslie takes eight seconds to make Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association history, scoring the first – and as of 2023, the only – perfect, 100-point bull ride at the Wild Rogue Pro Rodeo in Central Point, Oregon. The previous bull-riding record was 98, set in 1979 in Palestine, Illinois.
In the Chute
Wade Leslie (b. 1964) spent his early years in George, Washington, on his family’s ranch. He attended high school in Lacey, where he worked on a thoroughbred horse farm. He started riding at age 5, rode his first bull at 12, and went professional in rodeo at 18. In 1985, he finished second in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull-riding rookie of the year standings, missing first place by just $76. He also regularly competed in saddle-bronc riding.
Leslie met his wife TrishAnne at the rodeo in Roy, and the couple moved to Moses Lake by the mid- to late-1980s. Leslie supplemented his rodeo winnings by horseshoeing. He was fairly successful in the PRCA regional circuit in the years leading up to his history-making ride. In 1988, he scored 89 points at the Pendleton Round-Up, reportedly the best bull-riding score in Pendleton’s history at the time. That same year, he qualified for the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo.
The Ride
The "perfect" ride happened on a 1,300-pound bull named Wolfman Skoal. Wolfman was owned by Don Kish/the Growney Rodeo Company from Red Bluff, California. Wolfman’s grandfather, Red Rock, and father, Oscar, were both ProRodeo Hall of Fame bulls.
In bull riding, both the rider and the bull are scored up to 50 points each. Rider scores are based on their control, rhythm, and how in sync they are with the animal. Riders must stay mounted for at least eight seconds, and they are disqualified if their free hand touches the bull, the riding equipment, or themselves during the ride. The bull is scored based on its overall agility, power, speed, kicks, and movements. Bull-riding judges are required to have experience riding bulls themselves, and rides are generally scored by two to four judges.
In Oregon, the judges, Russell Davis of Hermiston, Oregon, and Raymond Lewis of Ione, California, watched the ride from opposite sides of the arena. Without conferring, both awarded Leslie 25 points for his ride and 25 points for the bull’s performance. (Video of the historic ride can be found on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXHsjKQS3S0).
Four months later, Leslie had some time to reflect on his ride. "I knew it was a good ride, but I never dreamed of getting a 100. It felt good from the start. When I saw the score, it gave me a big adrenaline rush. It was a big ego booster for a while" ("Moses Lake’s 'Perfect' ..."). Four years later, Lewis, one of the judges, said it was easy to score the ride the way he did. "I probably seen 10,000 bull rides made, probably more, and that was the only one I probably would have marked like that. It was really something special. Still is. I think about it all the time" ("Perfection Reflection ...").
Because of a shoulder injury, Leslie competed in only 45 out of the 125 rodeos that set the PRCA standings. He finished 28th in 1991 and didn’t qualify for the 1991 National Finals Rodeo despite the historic ride (only the top 15 go to the finals). However, he did qualify for the Dodge National Circuits Finals rodeo and was the 1991 Columbia River Circuit Champion.
Life after 100
Leslie seems to have had mixed feelings about his historic ride. "It played with my head at the next one when they would announce it. You feel like you have to live up to something more than what you used to, but after that it got back to normal" ("100-Point Cowboy ..."). He had a rematch with Wolfman Skoal a year later back in Central Point. This time, the bull came out on top, bucking Leslie off in four seconds and leaving him with a split lip.
Leslie never made the National Finals Rodeo, but he got close in 1992. By June, he had competed in 86 rodeos and was ranked No. 5 in the PRCA bull-riding standings. After a string of losses, however, he returned to Moses Lake and shoed horses for a couple of months, which cost him in the standings. Leslie continued to have success regionally as the 1993 Columbia River Circuit rodeo champion and a qualifier for the 1993 Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo.
A Life-altering Event
On April 26, 2001, Leslie was driving in southwest Montana when he dozed off and rolled his truck. He suffered a crushed chest cavity, broke several bones, and injured his spinal cord, leaving him mostly paralyzed from the waist down. At the time, the family, which by now included two sons, Dillon and Dallas, was living in Wyoming. Leslie and his wife eventually divorced, and Leslie now [2023] lives in George. Through extensive therapy, he is able to walk short distances with the aid of a walker. He works as a silversmith and modifies wheelchairs to give people with limited mobility easier access to the outdoors.
What About the Bull?
Wolfman Skoal, the bull ridden by Leslie, bucked at the National Finals Rodeo from 1991-1994 and was the 1991 National Finals Rodeo Bucking Bull of the Year. In 1994, he was the Sierra Circuit Bucking Bull of the Year. He was retired in 1995 and died in 2004.
