Spud Jones Was The First Navajo To Ride Bulls In NFR
Spud Jones, 36, a former bull rider with the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), passed away on July 4, 2025.
Notably, he qualified in 2008 for the National Finals Rodeo.
According to Spud’s family, he passed away peacefully in his sleep after dealing with some health issues.
The eldest of four children, Spud learned to rope, ride saddle bronc, and bull ride from his father, a PRCA bull rider named J.W., who was active in the sport from 1987 to 1994 according to The Navajo Times.
This passion went back to his youth, with his family saying his love for the sport formed as he attended Cheyenne Frontier Days with his father.
His mother, Michaelene, remembers the way Spud cried as a boy when she told him he couldn’t ride bulls.
“He was so upset,” Michaelene recalled. “He wanted to ride bulls so bad, but I didn’t want him to get hurt. He was always tough as a kid.”
Of course, she eventually caved, allowing for Spud to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Thinking back on his son, J.W. said, ”Some of my favorite memories are when we were on the road. I did the schedule for him. We went all over. He just wanted to compete and he always had a smile on his face.”
Once, while in high school, Spud broke his leg, but cut the cast off himself after only three months so that he could continue riding bulls.
“One thing about being hurt is, you’ve got something to look forward to, and that’s getting healthy,” Spud said in a 2008 interview with The Navajo Times.
When he turned 18, Spud received his pro card from the PRCA, but success on the rodeo circuit did not happen overnight. After winning only a handful of rodeos, the PRCA noted that it was the year 2008 where “everything changed.”
“It was the best season of his career by far, as Spud won the bull riding titles at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo in Denver, the Lead County Fair & Rodeo in Lovington, NM, and the Dodge Turquoise Circuit Finals Rodeo in Las Cruces, NM,” the PRCA said.
That year, at the age of 20, Spud then became “the first Navajo to ride bulls in the world’s biggest rodeo,” The Navajo Times said.
Earning just over $98,000, with more than $27,000 of that earned at the National Finals Rodeo, which saw him place in two rounds — including a second-place finish in Round 5.
In 2008, he placed seventh at the NFR, and was ranked 13th in the world standings.
Tearing up, his sister, Twila, said, ”We were so proud. It’s hard to describe the feeling walking into the Thomas & Mack and knowing he was going to ride. It was a special moment for our family.”
She added, ”We are going to miss him very much.”
Spud is survived by his parents, J.W. and Michaelene, and sisters Twila, Mikala and Fallon.