Lewis Feild (October 28, 1956February 15, 2016) was an American professional

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaqu ...

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...

. He specialized in bareback bronc riding and

saddle bronc riding Bronc riding, either bareback bronc or saddle bronc competition, is a rodeo event that involves a rodeo participant riding a bucking horse (sometimes called a ''bronc'' or ''bronco'') that attempts to throw or buck off the rider. Originally bas ...

and competed on the

Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) is the largest rodeo organization in the world. It sanctions events in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with members from said countries, as well as others. Its championship event is the N ...

(PRCA) circuit. He was the

All-Around The All-Around is an award given to a rodeo competitor who is most successful in two or more events. Most individual rodeos and championships determine the winner of this award at the conclusion of the other events or championships. Championship ...

World Champion from 1985 to 1987 at the

National Finals Rodeo The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier championship rodeo of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). It showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money winners in the season for each event. The NFR is held each year in the f ...

(NFR). He was also the

Bareback Riding Bareback riding is a form of equestrianism, horseback riding without a saddle. It requires skill, balance, and coordination, as the rider does not have any equipment to compensate for errors of balance or skill. Proponents of bareback riding arg ...

World Champion from 1985 to 1986. The

ProRodeo Hall of Fame The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy was opened in August 1979 as a museum designed to "preserve the legacy of the cowboy contests, the heritage and culture of those original competitions, and the champions of the past, p ...

inducted him in 1992 in the all-around category.

Early life

He was born on October 28, 1956, to Keith and True Feild in Peoa, Utah. He was of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and Scandinavian descent. Feild was raised near Peoa in the Kamas Valley, where Feild saw his first rodeo. "It was the most exciting thing I had ever seen, to watch those cowboys stay on those broncs. It was love at first sight," said Feild. Feild started riding calves after that, which he did at his parents' ranch in Peoa. It was in Ogden at the Golden Spike Rodeo where he rode his first bucking horse. "It was a junior rodeo and it was not a full-sized horse, but it bucked and I stayed on. They gave me a buckle for an award ... first thing I ever won." When he grew older, he attended college. With the assistance of an intercollegiate rodeo scholarship, he attended

Utah Valley Community College Utah Valley University (UVU) is a public university in Orem, Utah, United States. UVU offers master's, bachelor's, associate degrees, and certificates. Previously called Utah Valley State College, the school attained university status in July ...

, now known as Utah Valley University, and

Weber State University Weber State University (pronounced ) is a public university in Ogden, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1889 as Weber Stake Academy and earned its current name in 1991. As of fall 2023, the student population reached 30,536 students, cons ...

. At Utah Valley University, he qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo three times. He also earned three National Finals appearances. Then, in 1980, with some assistance from friends, he turned professional.

Career

Feild competed on the PRCA rodeo circuit throughout his professional rodeo career. He was the All-Around World Champion from 1985 to 1987, and the Bareback Riding World Champion from 1985 to 1986 at the NFR.''ProRodeo Records and Stats'', p. 297-298. He won the NFR All-Around Average from 1986 to 1988.''Wrangler NFR'', p. 373. He won the NFR Average in Bareback Riding in 1984 and 1986. Feild became the first rough-stock cowboy since

Larry Mahan Larry Mahan (; November 21, 1943 – May 7, 2023) was an American professional rodeo cowboy. He won six all-around world championships and two bull riding world championships in the Rodeo Cowboys Association circuit at the National Finals Rodeo. ...

to earn all-around world titles since 1973. In 1980, he was the PRCA Resistol Rookie of the Year.''PRCA Awards'', p. 625. In the years 1981, 1988, and 1991, Feild won the Linderman Award.''PRCA Awards'', p. 623. This award is given to the cowboy who works both ends of the arena (this means timed events on one side and rough-stock on the other side) and has the highest earnings. Feild was also an established team roper. In 1987, Feild took the record for single-season earnings in the bareback bronc event to $114,657. In that same year, he also set a new single rodeo earnings record of $75,219. He held the record for single-season arena earnings until 1986 until

Ty Murray Ty Monroe Murray (born October 11, 1969), is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He competed in the three "roughstock" events; bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, and bull riding. He won nine world championships in the Profe ...

set a new record of $213,771. In 1990, Feild was the first rough-stock contestant to win more than $1 million in his career in the PRCA. He was the third cowboy to do it at any level. Tom Ferguson did it first and

Roy Cooper Roy Asberry Cooper III ( ; born June 13, 1957) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 75th List of governors of North Carolina, governor of North Carolina from 2017 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), De ...

did it second. According to many personnel, Feild was a staple at the Ogden Pioneer Days rodeo in

Ogden, Utah Ogden ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Weber County, Utah, Weber County, Utah, United States, approximately east of the Great Salt Lake and north of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,321 in 2020, according to the United States Census ...

, for as long as they can remember. The committee made him the focus of an opening act which lasted around 10 years up until his death. He was such an icon to the rodeo that it inducted him into its Utah Cowboy Hall of Fame. It also recognized him as the Utah County honoree for the National Day of the American Cowboy. Each of these two honors were awarded to Feild inaugurally in Ogden. "Someday, when rodeo people look back at what I've done, I'd like them to say these things: that I rode tough; I could ride with pain and courage; that I was a fierce competitor in the arena, but a quiet, respectable man outside the gate. I just want to be remembered as a cowboy," said the soft-spoken champion. "That probably says it all."

Personal life

He coached the UVSC rodeo team and lived in

Elk Ridge, Utah Elk Ridge is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It originally incorporated as a town named Salem Hills. It changed its name in 1978 to Elk Ridge, named for the herds of elk that wintered in the area. It is part of the Provo– O ...

, with his wife Veronica. He has three children and thirteen grandchildren.

Death and legacy

Feild died on February 15, 2016, in Elk Ridge, Utah, at the age of 59 after battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer. His son

Kaycee Feild Kaycee Feild (born March 4, 1987) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bareback bronc riding and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He is a son of PRCA World Champion all-around cowboy L ...

won six World Bareback Bronc Champion titles at the NFR from 2011 to 2014 and 2020 to 2021. He also has won four NFR Average titles.

Awards

* 1980 Bareback Riding Rookie of the Year''PRCA Awards'', p. 625. * 1981, 1988 Linderman Award''PRCA Awards'', p. 623. * 1986-1988 NFR All-Around Average Champion * 1984, 1986 NFR Bareback Riding Average Champion * 1985-1987 PRCA All-Around World Champion * 1985-1986 PRCA Bareback Riding World Champion

Honors

* 1985

Rodeo Hall of Fame The National Rodeo Hall of Fame was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1955. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of cowboys and cowgirls from around the world. ...

of the

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 American West, Western and Native American art works and Artifact (archaeology), artifacts. The facility also has the worl ...

* 1992

* 1997

Utah Sports Hall of Fame The Utah Sports Hall of Fame is an athletics hall of fame in the U.S. state of Utah. The Utah Sports Hall of Fame Foundation, organized in 1967 as The Old Time Athletes Association, was founded "to celebrate and preserve Utah's storied sports herit ...

, 2nd inducted after Earl Bascom * 2012 Utah Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum * 2015

Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Hall of Fame The Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Hall of Fame, is a hall of fame located in Pendleton, Oregon, United States. Begun in 1969, it was the first hall of fame started by an individual show, the Pendleton Round-Up. Exhibits focus on show mem ...

* 2017 Molalla Walk of Fame * 2018 PBR Ty Murray Top Hand Award * The Lewis Feild Bareback Riding Award is administered by the Utah Sports Commission. * Listed in the 50 greatest sports figures of the century from each of the 50 states.

References

Sources

Biography on the ProRodeo Hall of Fame's website
* * * *

External links

Lewis Feild by KSL Sports

Lewis Feild Re-ride Story, Rodeo Weekend 2011 by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

In Loving Memory of Lewis Keith Feild

Kaycee and Lewis Feild, Father and Son; Champions!
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feild, Lewis Bareback bronc riders 1956 births 2016 deaths People from Summit County, Utah Sportspeople from Utah County, Utah Deaths from pancreatic cancer in Utah ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductees All-Around Roping (rodeo) Sportspeople from Utah Professional Bull Riders: Heroes and Legends