On an expectedly humid August evening in Austin, Texas, that spirit filled a hotel ballroom at WSF’s annual Bootlegger Ball fundraising event. In addition to raising $149,250 during silent and live auctions, the event celebrated the purpose of the foundation: to support cowboys and cowgirls in Western sports as they work to achieve their goals on and off the dirt.

The Aug. 22 event was sponsored by the Austin Gamblers, one of the 10 teams in the Professional Bull Riders Team Series, established in 2022. Gambler rider Ezekiel Mitchell was one of a handful of cowboys in attendance, and between the steak dinner and a fundraising auction, he shared his own story of gratitude.

Mitchell said WSF provides many resources to help riders advance their careers. For example, WSF granted a college scholarship to his fiancée.

“And that meant the world to us, and our family,” Mitchell said, speaking onstage to a crowded ballroom.

He said through the most trying times in his life, WSF has been there. In 2019, Zeke’s cousin, Ouncie Mitchell, broke his femur while competing in West Virginia.

“We were just fresh on our own,” Zeke recalled. “We were livin’ in a house together, and without bull riding, the ends didn’t meet. The Western Sports Foundation, they contributed every month that Ouncie was healing, recovering, to make sure that we were able to pay our bills and be good through life.”

When Ouncie tragically passed away in 2022, WSF stepped up to cover end-of-life costs, and provide resources and emotional support to a shocked community.

“And God bless Ouncie’s soul, but his daughter’s taken care of, you know… so she can go to college one day and live out the rest of her life and live in his legacy. We’re just so grateful to God that the Western Sports Foundation has provided everything that we need.

“As bull riders, you know we live check-to-check,” Mitchell added. “No matter how much money we’re making, we never know when it’s our last time. And for the most part, [WSF is] there for us through everything.”

WSF was founded in 1998 as the Rider Relief Fund and has since evolved to cover all facets of cowboy life. The nonprofit now serves as a comforting lifeline for athletes and their families in moments of uncertainty, and a network of “unwavering support” for thousands of athletes who find themselves on the challenging journey of recovery, explained Executive Director Aubrey O’Quin during the August event.

“Athletes and their families place their trust in us, and we hold that responsibility with the utmost respect,” she said. “They trust that we genuinely have their best interest at heart, and that every decision we make, we prioritize their needs and their aspirations.”

O’Quin said athletes often come to WSF at their most vulnerable—scared, hurt, worried, even feeling broken. But they also return to thank the organization and share victories—a new child, engagement, or proud purchase of a new home.

“The athlete is our why, their future drives us, their success propels us forward.” – Aubrey O’Quin, WSF Executive Director

Western athletes are defined by grit and resilience, celebrated by golden buckles, prize money and patches, O’Quin explained. “But what if we broadened our definition? What if we measured success not just by their performance in the arena, but by their mental resilience, by their financial stability, and their overall health,” she suggested.

That’s the purpose of WSF: to provide tangible support by investing in athletes’ potential, nurturing their dreams and enabling them to reach new heights throughout life. O’Quin said they’re changing the narrative that defines success.

“Together, we can ensure that the spirit of the cowboy continues to thrive, both today and for many tomorrows to come,” she said.

In addition to empowering WSF’s mission at its Big Sky’s Biggest Week events, Outlaw has donated $164,203 since 2021. That included $78,175 in 2023, and after WSF had selected Outlaw for the award, $50,202 in 2024.

“They are the cornerstone of the 10-time—and probably soon to be 11-time—PBR Event of the Year. Their unwavering commitment to nurturing the cowboys and leading with a spirit of generosity has solidified their place at the top,” said PBR Announcer Matt West, presenting the award one month after his stop in Big Sky.

“They love bull riders, and they love being able to contribute,” West added.

Josh Timon, Outlaw COO, was honored to be recognized by WSF.

“It’s been a great partnership, they’re part of our family, and as we continue to be the passport to the western lifestyle, we look forward to many more years of our event and supporting our athletes, our stock contractors and our livestock,” he said.

Timon believes there’s value in supporting Western sports in communities like Big Sky, and across the country, as a means of preserving our nation’s history. He’s not alone in that belief.

Marcene Taylor has always loved rodeo, particularly the roughstock. She first became involved with the Rider Relief Fund as a donor when the nonprofit focused primarily on medical bills and financial assistance.

“If I’m gonna cheer for the animal athletes, then I probably should contribute to something that’s helping the human athletes,” Taylor told Mountain Outlaw.

In 2018, when the organization transitioned to being proactive versus supporting riders only after injury, Taylor was inspired to join the board.

The organization began considering mental health, head trauma and CTE, and other factors of overall wellness that extend beyond the arena, to help make a rodeo career more sustainable for athletes.

“Typically, the rodeo career is pretty short in the whole scheme of things,” she said, and WSF’s resources can help them make a life of it. That matters because Taylor believes the values exemplified in Western sports could benefit America today.

She said there’s a tight, family-like community among Western sports athletes. It keeps people around even once their rodeo days are far behind.

“It’s the spirit that won the West, right? It’s people being fiercely independent, but at the same time, everybody showing up for a barn raising if somebody’s barn burned down, and helping people they may be competitive against in other places,” Taylor said.

She’s proud of her family heritage; generations back, they were among settlers of the American West. It required independence, accountability, and careful risk to leave the comforts of home and pursue the frontier.

Rodeo athletes compete individually. But at the same time, cowboys and cowgirls constantly support each other during competition, pulling for their opponents to preserve the integrity of the contest.

“Competition with independence, but also community, is really the core values of America,” Taylor said.

She believes Western sports can have a positive influence on the rest of the country—especially people in big cities and on the coasts, to whom the Western lifestyle may be entirely foreign, and who may stand to benefit from the bold, community-oriented spirit of the West.

“If there’s interest in it, then it gives people a glimpse into the lifestyle,” she said.

But if the bruises and costs of rodeo life keep athletes from a long career in their sport, they might not be able to make an impact. That’s where WSF is working its magic, bolstering a Western culture that could share its competitive values with a nation struggling with unity.

That’s when Taylor thinks of JR Vezain—how an intentional push of community support, and his own display of inspiring grit, allowed him to continue living his life after a life-changing setback.

“Being able to support him, and seeing the impact he has on other people because of that support, is really one of the most important things to me.”

JACK REANEY is a senior editor at Outlaw Partners.