by Terry Lidral
The son of Phenom Genetic’s great bull 927 Air Time, 501 Air Support was surpassing his father’s greatness with a Number 1 world ranking and a real shot at winning the 2020 title of PBR World Champion Bull. But as with everything in life, there is no guarantee, and on June 15th, Air Support passed away unexpectedly, leaving the bucking bull world and his devoted fans shocked and heart broken.
Air Support was raised by the highly respected Phenom Genetics program on the Scharping Ranch in Minnesota. Matt Scharping, whose dedicated herd management of the Phenom Genetics breeding program has given him confidence to expect quality in his calf crops, sold Air Support as an unbucked calf to the Braun Family of Braun Bucking Bulls, a small operation in Central Texas.
Air Support was hauled to PBR events by Cooper Bucking Bulls and the Brauns’ bull proved himself to be outstanding from the beginning. 501’s first pro bull stat was from Las Vegas in November 2018 which was a bull score of 44. It was in August 2019 in Allen, Texas where Air Support got the full attention of the bucking bull world by putting Dalton Kasel to the dirt in 4.56 seconds for a remarkable score of 46.50.
Air Support sent a message in the 2019 season that he was for real. His start to the season was rather mediocre with a bull score of 42.25 at Fort Worth, Texas. But the buck off time was an impressive 1.84 seconds. Shrugging off the average trip, the bull went on to put up bull scores running in the 44 range and higher, leading up to the 46.50. And the best was yet to come.
In 2020, Air Support blasted onto the season at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with a 44.50 bull score and a buck off of Colten Jesse in 1.69 seconds. And he got better from there. In February, the bull bucked Cole Melancon off in Arlington, Texas in 4.90 seconds for a 46.60 bull score. That was followed by a 46 bull score in St. Louis and a 3.74 second buck off of Claudio Montoya, Jr. In March, Air Support bucked off Ezekiel Mitchell in Little Rock, Arkansas in 3.10 seconds and earned a 45.75 bull score.
Air Support’s last out was in Guthrie, Oklahoma in May. Earning a bull score of 46, he bucked off Mauricio Gula Moreira in 3.23 seconds and secured his lead in the race for 2020 PBR Champion of the World.
The bucking bull world will truly feel the loss of this exceptional athlete who wracked up a one hundred percent buck off rate. As with too many rising stars, his career ended way too soon. Fans will miss Air Support’s brilliant athleticism and his love of the sport. Every time he bucked, his passion and his commitment were evident in his performance. Air Support wasn’t just destined for greatness, he achieved it. And of that, the Braun Family has a whole lot to be proud of.
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Author: Terry Lidral
Terry Lidral is a western writer/journalist who lives in Idaho. She is the publisher and editor of the online magazine Bucking Stock Talk and the online magazine Western Living Journal. Her publishing credits include Storyteller for Real American Cowboy Magazine, writing feature articles for Humps N Horns Magazine as well as a wide variety of national and international web sites, historical magazines and news publications. She is known for her "up close and personal" profiles of celebrities and industry moguls such as NPR's Tom Bodett; PBR's Wiley Petersen and D.H. Page, PRCA's Sammy Andrews, Cindy Rosser and Julio Moreno to name a few. She has been applauded for her way of making a personal connection between her readers and her subjects. She indulges in her love of rodeo by serving as an associate board member for the Caldwell Night Rodeo. She is also an accomplished trainer and handler in dog agility. Her shelties Amelie and Milo are titled in NADAC, USDAA and AKC.
