» No Bulls: No bucking bulls around to get on? No problemo! Most of us, when starting out will feel the frustration of not having any livestock to get on. However important it is to get on live bulls, the fundamental basics of riding must be learned prior to getting on any bucking bull. Whether you're a beginner or seasoned pro, the basics must be maintained. So how do you learn or maintain the basics if you do not have any bulls to get on? Enter the mechanical bull. Two types of mechanical bulls you should have; one is the rocking drop-barrel, and the other is the ole fashion stationary-barrel. Both are very inexpensive to build. And the Return-On-Investment is knowing what to do with them. The first barrel you should build is the stationary. Once you get this built, start by working on body position; back straight, free arm above eye level, chin tuck, squeezing, lifting, and moving over the front. You can also set the barrel at an angle and work on posting, or work on getting your arch by sitting on the barrel in the downward direction. This is also a good resource to practice setting your rope. But the best part is, working with your feet up off the ground helps in controlling your body position. The second is the rocking, mighty bucky type barrel that pivots on a spring loaded center axis. The main problem with this type of design is that its center axis has no forward motion that bulls have. To create the forward motion, design your rocking barrel so the pivot axis is about 12 inches behind the barrel, then anchor your springs another 2 feet behind the pivot axis. This will allow the barrel to motion up and down, and that'll create forward motion as the barrel drops down. Your rocking-barrel does not need to spin. The emphasis is to train your body to ride the momentum out over the front and get a good sold arch as the bull kicks out. Follow this by moving back over the front - square up and post over the front with some daylight. Bulls are always moving in a forward motion, even when they spin; therefore training your body to move straight up and back will get you by them 20+ point spinning bulls. Watch PBR's Mike Lee ride spinning bulls. He rides them like they're going straight across the arena; straight up, straight back, and back to the front. Loops * Basics * Schools * Which Hand * Get-Offs * Bullfigthers * Knot Grabbing * No Bulls? * Back to Starting