by Terry Lidral
Cory Melton, who owns and operates Melton Bull Company in Tolar, Texas, knows a whole lot about bucking bulls. In fact, according to Melton, that’s pretty much all he knows. Brought up in Louisiana around bull riding from an early age, being a bull rider came about naturally.
“I started out riding bulls at the age of 10 and I retired at the age of 30, so that’s 20 years,” Melton said of a professional career that included 4 trips to the PBR Finals and 2 trips to the NFR.
When his career as a bull rider came to an end, Melton joined up with his father, Gene, who was a stock contractor and manager for Howard Tally’s Circle T Ranch and Rodeo.
“We had the good ones,” Cory Melton said. “It was one of the top all-time bull herds in the bucking stock industry. I worked for Circle T from 2001 to 2012. Some of the bulls we had included Jack Daniel’s After Party, Shepherd Hills Trapper, David’s Dream, and PBR World Champion Asteroid.”
Photo by Susan Hanrahan
Melton’ father, Gene, credits Cory with the acquisition of the bull that became one of the greatest bulls in the history of the sport of bull riding. It was Cory who saw the potential of the 1400 pound brindle bull he’d seen buck at an event in Kansas. Convinced that the little brindle bull was going to be a world champion, Cory persuaded Circle T to purchase the bull. After a slow start in the elite levels of competition, Asteroid came into his own, living up to Melton’s expectations by winning the title of PBR World Champion in 2012. During a 6-plus year career in the top level of the PBR, Asteroid sported a record of 67 outs with 4 rides, a 45.16 bull score average and a total of 5 trips to the PBR Finals.
Today, Cory Melton owns the Melton Bull Company located in Tolar, Texas, dedicated to raising and training competition bucking bulls. It is the home of the 2014 UBBI World Champion Classic Bull 055 Bad Tattoo and 2017 UBBI World Champion Classic Bull IV37 Astro.
“My goal is always to have a contender or multiple contenders bucking in each class of competition each year,” Melton said about his highly successful program. “You might have a really good bull bucking and winning one year, but you always have to be looking ahead for one to replace him. So I am always either trying to raise or buy a better bull.”
Melton’s business includes partnerships which brings with it a lot of responsibility.
“I have a lot of good partners who trust me with their bulls. Therefore, it is my job to get the most out of their animals. This is my full-time job, but to some of my partners, it’s what they do for fun. So, winning is a must. It doesn’t matter what sport you play or hobby you have, if you’re not winning, it’s not much fun. The only way to win is to be committed and learn from your mistakes.”
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.
