Hill riding, Mufasa among stock at PBR World Finals

By CHRIS PETERSON / Hungry Horse News

The Columbia Falls community is well represented at the Professional Bull Riders Built Ford Tough World Finals in Las Vegas.

West Glacier bullrider Beau Hill is riding in the event and Columbia Falls native Shane Gunderson's bull, Mufasa, is in the competition.

Gunderson now lives in Bismarck, N.D., and has been trucking cattle and raising bulls now for several years. Mufasa is a red cross-red bull that weighs 1,800 pounds and has a lousy attitude, which makes him perfect for the professional bull riding circuit.

Mufasa is named after the King of Lions in the Disney classic animation, "The Lion King."

"And that's what he acts like," Gunderson said in a telephone interview early this week.

Gunderson got into raising bulls when he used to ride them in Columbia Falls. He started out raising them so he'd have something to ride. But then he quit riding, but stayed in the business as a a stock contractor.

He raises about six bulls a year. Gunderson has several bulls listed in the PBR circuit. He says his bulls are in 15 to 18 events a year.

He'll have his bulls in the Rocky Mountain Classic Nov. 23-24 at Majestic Valley Arena in Kalispell.

Hill has made it through the first two rounds of the PBR Finals and is doing well.

Hill is ranked 15th in the Built Ford Tough Series. The top 45 qualified for the finals. The first three rounds took place last weekend. After three rounds, Hill had 195.5 points and won $2,000. Hill currently sits 10th. He scored an 86 and 84.5 in the first two rounds, respectively, but didn't score in the second round.

For the season, Hill has made about $61,000 in the Built Ford Tough series this year.

The World Finals continue starting today (Nov. 1) through the weekend and are broadcast on the Versus network.

Gunderson said that there's about a 90-percent chance that Mufasa will be in the final round.