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We’re going to make the place where we’re at a better place. Through this role, Don continued to promote the sport he loved, participating in youth camps, educational events, and community outreach—always striving to keep rodeo’s heritage alive.

He also maintained a deep bond with the professional rodeo community.

Despite financial hardships, Don remembers a happy childhood filled with purpose and ambition.

“My brothers and I didn’t ever know we were broke…We were living the life of a cowboy,” said Don.

As a young boy, Don watched rodeo greats perform and longed to be among them. He never got another D in school.

“Being a cowboy, I don’t ever take my uniform off.

That same year, shortly after graduating at age 19, he qualified for the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in Oklahoma City, signaling his rapid progression from local novice to national contender.[1][2][6]

Rodeo Career

Rise to Prominence

Don Gay transitioned from amateur competitions to professional rodeo shortly after graduating from Mesquite High School in 1972, securing his PRCA permit and embarking on the rodeo circuit.

Neal Gay was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1993 for his contributions to stock production and rodeo organization, setting a foundation that influenced Don's career path in animal management and event logistics.[19][20]In 2000, Gay joined Frontier Rodeo Company as general manager, where he has overseen the provision of bucking stock for numerous PRCA events, contributing to the company's status as a multiple-time PRCA Stock Contractor of the Year.

Raised in the dust and lights of the Mesquite Rodeo, taught by tough love, grounded in faith, and shaped by legacy, Don became the embodiment of the American cowboy.

Even into his 70s, Don remains an ambassador for rodeo. Experts in the sport have called him the greatest bull rider of all time. Don was told that until he could consistently ride two specific bulls—one that turned left, the other right—he couldn’t enter competitions.

Don Gay’s life has been nothing short of legendary in the world of professional rodeo. Under his leadership, Frontier's breeding programs have produced elite bucking animals, including several world champion bulls and horses, emphasizing selective genetics to enhance performance while adhering to industry standards for animal care and welfare.

Don’s own paralysis scare in the ring later that year led to his final decision to step away from competition for good.

To Don Gay, rodeo is not a sport—it’s a calling and a family. His close friendship with fellow bull rider Lane Frost and the pain of Lane’s tragic death in 1989 left a lasting impact. To manage the grueling travel demands of the PRCA circuit, which spanned major events from Texas to California, he earned his pilot's license in 1974 and flew himself to rodeos in a private plane, enabling broader participation and more opportunities for success.

Over the next decade, he dominated the sport, securing a total of eight world championships—a record unmatched in bull riding history.

Despite numerous injuries and setbacks—including a career-threatening groin injury and a terrifying paralysis scare in Missouri—Don’s love for bull riding never wavered. Growing up in Mesquite, Texas, as the son of PRCA stock contractor Neal Gay, he began riding steers at the age of six under his father's direct guidance, fostering an early passion and foundational techniques for bull riding.[1][6]Through his teenage years, Gay honed his skills in local and junior rodeo events across Texas, competing in amateur circuits that emphasized steer riding and basic bull handling to build balance, timing, and resilience essential for the sport.

His story is one of perseverance, humility, and passion—of a boy who never wanted to be anything else, and who became the best in the world doing exactly what he loved.

This strategic approach to logistics contributed to his growing reputation as a dedicated and versatile competitor.[1][6][16]Key victories in the mid-1970s solidified his national prominence.

don gay

Born into a cowboy family in 1953, Don grew up surrounded by the grit, passion, and perseverance that define the rodeo lifestyle. In his later years, Don embraced his Christian faith, citing a heartfelt conversation with his daughter as the moment that led him to rededicate his life to God. This spiritual transformation brought peace and a new purpose beyond competition.

“We’re together, and we’re going to a better place.

It took him nearly an entire season, but he succeeded, earning the green light to pursue rodeo competition.

The only way to fail is by not trying
-Don

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Don’s first official competition came in Mansfield, Texas, where he met his future wife.

These experiences, often held at community venues and county fairs in the region, provided practical exposure to live livestock and competitive pressure, transitioning him from casual practice to structured participation.[6][12]As a high school sophomore in 1970, Gay earned his PRCA membership, marking his formal entry into professional pathways while still balancing academics.

18, 1953, in Mesquite, Texas, grew up in a rodeo family, son of PRCA stock contractor, Neal Gay. He began riding steers at age 6 and had an association permit before finishing high school. The day he graduated from high school in 1972, Don handed his diploma to his father, who said, “If you get sick or if you get hurt, call me.

The following year, he won his first World Champion Bull Rider title.