National Finals Rodeo - Chris Ledoux

A rodeo’s just a rodeo after riding several years

From ol' Cheyenne to Houston they never cause too much fear

But let me tell you about one that will chill your very soul

It happens in December when it’s snowin' and it’s cold

In Oklahoma City there’s a building of concrete

It’s where the toughest stock and men will gather and compete

The points have all been tallied and the stock has all been brought

We’ve got just two more hours 'cause it starts at eight o’clock

It’s the finals the NFR the series of the sport

Hey rookie can you take ten head have you got the heart

You think you’re a tough cowboy we’ll find out in the end

When that final whistle blows and the stock’s all in the pen

The coliseum’s quiet except for the sounds

Of cowboys getting ready and the workmen of the grounds

The cowboys ask each other, what each other’s got

Did you draw ol' necklace or pluck old double-ought

The tension now is mounting as the crowd starts pouring in

A shiver goes all through me like from a cold cold wind

I hear the horses comin' runnin' down the alleyway

They’re snortin' and they’re blowin' as men shut the sliding gates

It’s the finals the NFR the series of the sport

Hey rookie can you take ten head have you got the heart

You think you’re a tough cowboy we’ll find out in the end

When that final whistle blows and the stock’s all in the pen

We had too much time a while ago but not enough time now

The anthem is now over the grand entry’s going out

I sit there on my bronc I’m ready and I wait

I hear a chute swing open so I look out through the gate

A horse comes boiling out and blows up at the roof

And then out comes another kicking like a curly wolf

I hear the chute boss holler through the yelling of the crowd

He says there’s one ahead of you so you’d better get screwed down

It’s the finals the NFR the feries of the sport

Hey Rookie, can you take ten head have you got the heart?

You think you’re a tough cowboy we’ll find out in the end

When that final whistle blows and the stock’s all in the pen

I nod my head, I’m in a daze the horse goes boiling out

I run my spurrs into his neck and then I drag 'em out

My mind is in a blur my eyes are seeing red

The flank catch slams into my back, his rump bangs on my head

From somewhere in the background I can hear a buzzer sound

My hand’s jerked from the riggin' and I crash into the ground

I stumble to my feet and as I stagger to the wall

I wonder to myself is it really worth it all

It’s the finals the NFR the series of the sport

Hey rookie can you take ten head have you got the heart

You think you’re a tough cowboy we’ll find out in the end

When that final whistle blows and the stock’s all in the pen

It’s the finals, the NFR the series of the sport

Hey rookie can you take ten head have you got the heart

You think you’re a tough cowboy we’ll find out in the end

When that final whistle blows and the stock’s all in the pen