Springdale Resident Steps Away From Bullfighting

SPRINGDALE -- Clay Collins may stick around Parsons Stadium a little longer than usual and take in as much of the Rodeo of the Ozarks' final night as he possibly can.

When the lights go out tonight, the Springdale resident's last rodeo -- and a 20-year career in bullfighting in which he missed only one rodeo because of injury -- will come to a close.

"It's something I don't spend too much time thinking about because it saddens me quite a bit," Collins said earlier this week. "I mean, I've been doing it 20 years. When you've been doing something that you love and are so passionate about for so long, it's hard to see it come to an end, and probably sooner than I wanted.

"I'm sure I will be dang near a basket case. I know I won't want to leave the arena when it's all said and done and I've fought the last bull. When it's time to walk out the gate, I think I'll want to sit there for just a minute and just soak it in a little bit. Saturday night, when I hang them up, I'm done."

Collins, 41, knew the time eventually would come when he would have to step aside, but he didn't think it would happen this quickly. He believes he still has two or three good years of competition left in him, and retirement was nowhere in sight when he competed in last year's Rodeo of the Ozarks.

Everything began to turn a different direction in August. Collins, a car salesman at Everett Chevrolet in Springdale when he wasn't actively on the rodeo circuit, was offered the opportunity to be a full-time sales manager, and it started to make him think of what life might be beyond his bullfighting career, but the decision was far from easy.

"There's just so many of us that rodeoed like I did for 20 years that, when you get through rodeoing, you really don't have anything to fall back on," Collins said. "It's a lot like a professional athlete: what are you going to do when you are through and how are you going to provide for your family? This was a perfect opportunity for me to be able to do that.

"It might have been an easier decision if I wasn't as good, or if Father Time was catching up with me, or if I had slowed down or got tired of the aches and pains. But when I sit there and think about quitting and telling my boss that I'm thinking about quitting next year, it literally was one of the hardest decisions I had to make. I really, really, really love fighting bulls."

Collins mulled over his decision for two weeks and he spent every night in conversations with his wife about his next move. He then decided to step down this year, which gave him opportunities to go to some of his favorite rodeos and bid those places farewell before he capped his career this week at home.

Two things became vital components in his decision. One was the opportunity to spend more time with his wife and son, and the other was the fact that there was really nothing left for him to do on the rodeo circuit.

"I've been fortunate in this business," Collins said. "I've accomplished everything that a bullfighter can accomplish -- three-time world champion and been a National Finals Rodeo bullfighter. I've done the Dodge National Circuit finals.

"I've done every circuit finals and been to every rodeo all over the country. For me, it was fight bulls two or three more years, and what do I accomplish and what is there to do that I haven't done before? That's not really anything, and in three years, are you going to be able to provide for your family?"

The farewell tour has already let Collins know even more that stepping away from the sport would be difficult. He was given a 30-second standing ovation and presented a buckle and a statue at the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, and he admitted he tried his best not to tear up as a tribute was done while "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" played on the loudspeaker.

Then came the Old Fort Days Rodeo, which took place in May in Fort Smith. One of his closest friends, Travis Adams, also decided to step away from bullfighting this year, and it was their last rodeo together, and their mentor Lecile Harris -- the clown at the Rodeo of the Ozarks -- was there as well.

"People don't understand that when you've done something for 20 years, it's already hard enough," Collins said. "When you put your life in another man's hands for 20 years and you take of him and he takes care of you, that's a bond most people don't understand. That's a luxury in this business that you don't always have.

"They stopped the rodeo that Saturday night and did a little tribute for us, and it was hard. When we had to walk out there and give Lecile a hug for the last time -- and he's out there crying and the announcer is trying to tell our story and he's crying -- it was rough because I tell everybody Lecile is my rodeo dad. I call him Pappy, but in the rodeo world, Pappy is everything. I owe everything to him."

When he leaves Parsons Stadium tonight, he said it may take him two or three years before he goes back and just be a spectator, simply because he still knows he could still be a good bullfighter. The only exception may be to help out one of the friends he's had over the years.

There has been talk about him becoming a member of the rodeo board. But for the immediate future, he wants to experience what it's like being a family man and spend more time with his and son, who turns 2 next month.

"The first two years of his life, I've been rodeoing and missed some things," Collins said. "I realized if I keep rodeoing, I'm going to miss out on a lot of firsts, and I don't want to miss that. I wanted to be home and be a part of his life and see him grow.

"My wife likes the fact -- I think she likes the fact -- that I'm home every night. She may be ready for me to go to a rodeo."

Sports on 07/05/2014