story by Rayne Sherman
Bull rider Jason Tinsman, 27, of Farmland, Ind., suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung at a Southern Extreme Bull Riding Association (SEBRA) event in June. He will be out of competition until the middle of August, but isn’t letting the injury get him down. “We all know as rough stock riders we’re going to get hurt, it’s not a matter of if, it’s when. When it does you just smile, take it, heal up and go back after it. You gotta have a positive attitude. I feel like that’s everything in this sport. If you’re not positive about falling off or getting hurt and don’t think it was meant for a reason, you’re going to have to reevaluate how you approach the sport. To me a positive attitude and trusting in God is everything. He has a plan and whatever happens, that’s according to His will. I’m just happy that right now I don’t have to rodeo so I can spend time with my wife and kids,” stated Jason.
Jason was intrigued by bull riding at a young age and had an older cousin who competed. When his cousin came home for a family event, Jason asked him for pointers on how to get started in the sport. “I like challenges and I thought bull riding looked like fun. When I tried it, it was fun and it’s more addictive than I thought it would be,” said Jason. He also tried bareback riding, but gave up the event after only a few rides to focus on bull riding. Jason didn’t get started in rodeo until he was 17 and competed in the Indiana High School Rodeo Association for the second semester of his senior year of high school. “I only went to four or five high school rodeos. I made a lot of friends back then and we still talk and compete together,” said Jason. Today Jason competes in SEBRA, the International Professional Rodeo Association, and the Mid States Rodeo Association (MSRA). In 2013, he was the SEBRA National Champion and was the runner up in 2014. He qualified for the International Finals Rodeo in 2014. Jason has been a member of the MSRA on and off for several years, but hasn’t qualified for the Mid States Finals Rodeo (MSFR). “This year I focused on qualifying for the MSFR. Getting hurt slowed that down, but I feel like I can at least be a contender at the end of the year. Being married and having a family, I like the MSRA because there are several rodeos in a short period of time so you can rodeo real hard and not be far from home. They’re good rodeos,” said Jason.
In 2005 when Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Ike hit the Gulf of Mexico, Jason was working for Three Bar J Rodeo Company owned by Mike Johnson who sent his rodeo crew south to assist in the affected areas. The Three Bar J crew worked through AT&T keeping the cell phone tower generators fueled up until the electricity came back on. “It was awesome for a 19 year old kid to go down there and get to see the world, especially after a tragedy like that. It sure makes me feel grateful and blessed to earn what I have. Hopefully I’ll be able to keep what I have, but if not, it’s just something that happens. Everybody goes through hard times, it’s just how you go through it and what you learn from it,” stated Jason.
Outside of rodeo, Jason works for his dad’s construction company. He also bales about 80 acres of hay to sell through the winter and enjoys fishing as often as he can. Jason saves his rodeo winnings to purchase an older house which he fixes up during the winter and then rents. He currently has six rental properties and would like to continue to increase the number of rental homes he owns. Jason and his wife Jessica met in high school when her older sister introduced them and will be married for six years in September. The couple has three children, Savannah (5), Maddy (4), and Landon (1).
