Dan and Linda Russell – A Success Story

June 8, 2018

When Dan and Linda Russell got married, they decided they wanted to go into business as a team.  Dan had the option to dedicate his life to the family cattle business.  Or, he could run Western Rodeos, Inc. and become a rodeo stock contractor full-time.  After talking it over, Dan and Linda decided rodeo was the way to go.  (That wonderful partnership lasted until Dan died in December of 2013.)

Raised on the Folsom Family Ranch established shortly after the end of the Civil War, Dan had the blood of generations of cattlemen running through his veins.  So, when Dan turned out to be one of the top men in the bucking bull business, it came as no surprise.

Dan’s father, Dan H., had brought him up in Western Rodeos, Inc. to help run the rodeo business.  Linda, on the other hand, was not a rodeo girl.

“Unlike Dan, I hadn’t been brought up around rodeo.  I was not a cowgirl,” Linda told us with a laugh.  “I’d never run barrels or anything like that.”

Despite her lack of rodeo knowledge, Linda joined with Dan to cement Western Rodeos, Inc.’s reputation as a top rodeo company.

Dan H. established Western Rodeos, Inc. in the 1960’s and had put together a herd of some of the finest bucking bulls being hauled to rodeos.   The three-time PRCA Bull of the Year Pacific Bell, was born and raised on the Russells’ Folsom Ranch.  A Brangus, he was out of a Barmby/Oscar sire and dam.

When Dan M. and Linda formed their partnership, Dan made it Linda’s job to create their own breeding program.  And she started by using Pacific Bell as the foundation sire.

“Dan gave me the semen business as my part,” Linda said.  “Dan Sr. had a great bull in his herd, Pacific Bell.  We collected him and that was the start of our program.”

Pacific Bell became legendary in the professional world of bucking bulls.  He stands as the only three-time PRCA Bull of the Year, titles he won in 1988, 1989 and 1990.  Pacific Bell died in 1993, but his outstanding career as a bucking bull earned him an induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2007.  Linda had made a great choice for the foundation of their Russell bloodline.

Another star bull in the Russell herd was Grasshopper.  Also a PRCA Bull of the Year, Grasshopper was not only one of the Russells’ best bulls, he was one of their favorites.  He came from Freddy Cordell.

“Freddy Cordell would bring a truck load of bulls to Salinas.  Dan bought them all ‘cause they were great bulls,” Linda told the story.  “One year he brought this bull on the trailer that had a special head.”

Grasshopper had unique horns.   And he was an outstanding bucker.

“Grasshopper was the Coors poster boy for two years,” said Linda proudly.  “We loved that bull.”

This multi-NFR qualifier was one of the top bucking bulls on the circuit in his time.  He spent over 5 years bucking at events until he became ill.

“That bull got sick and we took him to the veterinary center at Oklahoma State University.  They have a tremendous facility there.  They did what they could for Grasshopper,” explained Linda.

But Grasshopper’s sickness advanced and he was in terrible pain.  And Dan Russell was not one to let a bull suffer.

“The assistant from the Oklahoma University veterinary clinic called and said that they didn’t know if they could keep Grasshopper alive.  Dan was outside and I didn’t want to make the decision by myself.  So I took the phone and found Dan,” said Linda.  “When I told Dan what the assistant had said about Grasshopper being in bad shape, he simply said, ‘go ahead.’  I could see the tears welling up in his eyes.  Dan truly loved that bull.”

Trick or Treat, another NFR qualifier and PRCA Bull of the Year from the Russell herd was also one of their favorites.

“Trick or Treat got arthritis.  He had a hard time moving.  It was the winter when he was about 12 years old and he would stand in the middle of his pen waiting for his food,” remembered Linda fondly.  “He’d move his head and motion for us to bring his food out so he wouldn’t have to move.  That bull was smart.”

Dan was proud of his reputation for having good bulls in his herd and it was important to him that he did not keep them in competition past their prime.

“Dan retired bulls before they got worn out.  He believed that if you become something, you don’t want anyone to think less of you than when you were at the top,” explained Linda.  “He was that way with his bulls.  He wanted his bulls to be remembered in people’s minds when they were at their best.”

“When he retired bulls, Dan took them home and took care of them,” continued Linda.  “He took very good care of them,” she added emphatically.

With the likes of Pacific Bell, Grasshopper and Trick or Treat to use as sires, the Russells were able to build a strong breeding program.  And they developed a plan to make sure that their program continued to build on quality genetics.

“We kept track of the outs of all our bulls,” explained Linda.  “We wrote down how many excellent scores they had.  We noted if they were nominated for the NFR and how they did there.  We watched to see if one caught our eye.”

Dan and Linda chose the top one or two bulls from their notes as sires for the year’s breeding program.  Then they chose a herd of cows and put them together in a fenced off pasture to make sure there were no surprises.

“Once the cows were bred, we’d separate them,” continued Linda.  “We would use our second choice as a clean-up bull.”

Dan and Linda were in at the beginning of the Rodeo Stock Registry.  That gave them the ability to control the genetics in their herd.

“We used to sit around at the stock trailer talking with Bob Tallman.”  Linda tells of the time she and Dan spent with Tallman.  “When Bob started the Rodeo Stock Registry, we were a part of it.  Through the Registry, we were able to know from them who was the daddy and mama of all our calves.”

With the information about the DNA of their calves, the Russells were able to make decisions about which calves to keep and which to sell based on their genetics.

And Linda knows the lineage on the bucking stock throughout the history of the Russell program.

“I’ve been at this breeding program for over 30 years,” said stated.  “I collected everything we used.  I’ve developed my own breed of cows.  Those bulls I collected are all part of my bloodlines.  I’ve never bred outside those bulls. ”

Linda went on to say, “I have all those bloodlines that Dan and I started with since I began collecting.  I have used Grasshopper semen that I collected many times with success.  And I’ve sold straws of Pacific Bell for thousands of dollars.”

After Dan’s passing in 2013, Linda has continued on with the business, currently located in Emmett, Idaho.

“We have had hundreds of cows over the years,” she told us about her business with Dan.  “I now have 30 cows that have been bred with the collection of straws I’ve been building over the years.”

These cows carrying on the future of the Russell bloodline were chosen through a careful and calculated process.  Specific genetics were chosen to continue the Russell bloodline and the herd was narrowed down accordingly.  Cow and calf pairs not selected for the Russell program were sold at a sale held with Cindy Rosser of Flying U.

Reflecting back over her partnership with her husband, Linda remembers happy times filled with success.

“Dan loved the babies,” said Linda.  “We’d go and sit in the pasture and watch the little bulls run and jump.  And we’d laugh when they fell down.  I’d say to Dan, ‘That one’s going to be something.’  And Dan would reply, ‘If you say so.’  It was our favorite time of the year.”

Linda is proud of Dan’s accomplishments and talent as a bull man.

“Dan loved his bulls.  He loved his solitude with them,” Linda told us.  “He understood how a bull thought.  I truly felt that he could read their minds,” she continued.  “He had a sixth sense.  He knew if they felt well.  He’d say to me before a rodeo, ‘That bull’s not going to do well tonight.  He doesn’t feel good.’  He could read his livestock like the lines on the back of his hands.”

“His talent was born and bred into him.  His father, grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great grandfather were all ranchers.  Dan was raised to get up every day and go check on the cattle.  He learned the dedication and commitment it takes to be a great cattleman.  I thought of myself as a dedicated person,” laughed Linda.  “And then I met Dan.  He never gave up and he never backed down.  He had consistency.”

For Dan and Linda, rodeo was the right decision.

“We were satisfied with the way our lives evolved together.  We made it happen.  Dan looked at me one day and told me, ‘We’ve accomplished everything.  What do we do next?’ Well, we just kept making it happen.”

by Terry Lidral

for Bucking Stock Talk Magazine

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.