story by Riata Cummings
Hailing from sunny St. George, Utah, Colt Glazier is the 13-year-old son of Josh and Heather Glazier. He has two sisters, Meadow and Bailey, and one brother, Quinn. The family enjoys spending weekends at together at their cabin. Colt attends Dixie Middle School and is in eighth grade. His favorite classes, aerobics and physical education, give him the chance to burn some energy and stay in shape. When Colt isn’t at a rodeo, he enjoys riding dirt bikes or 4-wheelers and going hunting or fishing.
Colt was introduced to rodeo by his father and started getting on calves when he was six-years-old. Eventually he graduated to steers, and he is now riding bulls in the Utah Junior High School Rodeo Association. Colt loves the adrenaline rush that he gets when he “crawls in the chute over a bull” and the “feeling of sticking on a rank one.” To Colt, bull riding is different than most rodeo events because “it’s you versus the animal” rather than “you against the other competitors.” He loves to test himself and challenge his preparation by stepping over an athletic animal and nodding his head.
So far, Colt has qualified for state finals both years of competing. He has also qualified for the National Little Britches Finals, won the Bryce Canyon Summer Rodeo Series, and earned a “drawer full of buckles” at various small-town rodeos. This year, Colt is working for a place at the National Junior High School Finals Rodeo. Eventually he would like to earn his living as a professional bull rider. Rodeo gives him the opportunity to spend time with his bull riding buddies, make lots of friends and be “part of the tightly knit rodeo family.” Competing in rodeo has shown Colt how important it is to “follow your dreams and don’t give up on them.”
Colt practices as often as he can, traveling to various buck-outs and getting on practice bulls. He also spends time on the drop barrel, which imitates the bucking of a bull, and on the aerobics ball, which teaches him to find balance while in motion. Many of his practices are aided by older riders that Colt considers mentors, like Garrison Cannon and Travis Partridge.
One of Colt’s heroes is Jess Lockwood, the youngest ever Professional Bull Riders World Champion. Colt admires the “determination it takes to be the best at a young age.” One day Colt would like to be ranked with Lockwood as “the best there ever was.” He wants people to remember him as a good bull rider and a good person.
Colt lives by the saying, “Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” That quote reminds him to chase his dreams without fear of failure or struggle. Colts father described him as “durable” because he doesn’t quit, even when it would be the easier route. When Colt was seven-years-old, he had surgery to have his spleen removed. Even then he kept practicing and was getting back on bucking animals as soon as he could.
If Colt could give any advice to rodeo rookies, it would be to “follow your dreams.” He believes in “putting in the work and sticking with it. There will be bumps in the road before there are good times, but the good times will come.”
Colt would like to thank his father, his rodeo buddies, and his bull riding mentors for helping him become a better athlete and a better person. He is grateful for the chance he has been given to chase his gold buckle dreams.
