11-Year-Old Bull Rider Wins National Championship

Oklahoma produces lots of champion rodeo performers, and now we can claim another. He just won the National Junior Bull Riding Championship last month in Shawnee, and he's just 11.<br/><br/>News on

Tuesday, December 13th 2005, 3:33 pm

By: News On 6

Oklahoma produces lots of champion rodeo performers, and now we can claim another. He just won the National Junior Bull Riding Championship last month in Shawnee, and he's just 11.

News on 6 reporter Rick Wells went to his Claremore elementary school to talk to him.

Kade Alberty got out of computer lab to talk about his favorite pasttime, bull riding.

"It's just fun," says Alberty.

He's been at it since he was 3-years-old. Little kids start out on sheep; they call it mutton bustin'.

As you get, bigger so does the livestock.

"They start you out on sheep," explains Alberty, "then calves, steers, pee-wee bulls, junior bulls, and senior bulls.

He's riding pee-wees averaging about a thousand pounds. That doesn't sound like pee-wee.

Every bull rider you ever heard of has broken bones. Kade is no different.

"I fractured my growth plate and I broke my foot," he says. "My mom broke her pinky putting me on a calf."

In Shawnee, he was riding against the top junior bull riders from nine states. He won going away, got some prize money and of course a big belt buckle which he is very proud of.

He also bought a pink belt. It leads to some teasing, but he can take it.

"I guess if you ride bulls, you can wear a pink belt if you want to."

As we walked around school, a couple of girls got a little giggly when they saw him and the camera. So I asked about girlfriends: "too close to Christmas," he said.

I asked, "So when would be a good time to get a girlfriend?"

He replied, "after Valentines Day."

Kade says he hopes for a rodeo scholarship to college, and a career as a bull rider. Of course, the next step is junior high.