Chris Shivers

Christopher Lee "Chris" Shivers (born December 30, 1978) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding, and competed on the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) circuit. He turned pro in 1997, and won the PBR world championship in 2000 and 2003.

Chris Shivers
Personal information
Full nameChristopher Lee Shivers
Nickname(s)Chris
NationalityAmerican
Born (1978-12-30) December 30, 1978
Natchez, Mississippi, United States
Years active1997 - 2012
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight145 lb (66 kg)
Sport
SportRodeo
Event(s)Bull riding
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking2000 and 2003 PBR World Champion

In 2023, Shivers was ranked No. 6 on the list of the top 30 bull riders in PBR history.[1]

Background

Chris Shivers was born on December 30, 1978, in Natchez, Mississippi.

Career

Shivers has twenty-two career Bud Light Cup Series (BLC) and Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) wins. The BLC was the name of the PBR's elite series from 1994 through 2002. The BFTS was the name from 2003 through 2017.

Shivers has recorded the following history-making firsts: the first PBR bull rider to win more than $300,000 in prize money in one year (1998); the first PBR bull rider to reach the $1 million mark (2001), the $2 million mark (2003) and the $3 million mark (2006); the first PBR bull rider to register 13 90-point rides in one season (1998); the highest marked ride in PBR history (96.5 points - twice) [a record later broken by José Vitor Leme]; and the first bull rider to win three consecutive Bud Light Cup events (2000).

Shivers is the second man to win multiple PBR world titles, after Adriano Morães (1994, 2001).

Shivers rode with a cowboy hat for most of his career. However, after a wreck fractured his nose at the 2009 BFTS season opening event in Baltimore, Maryland, he rode with a helmet for the remainder of his career.[2][3] He had suffered multiple head and facial injuries throughout his career, but only made a helmet a permanent part of his riding gear after this specific injury.

Career highlights
  • First PBR bull rider to register 13 90-point rides in one season (1998)
  • First PBR bull rider to earn $1 million (2001), $2 million (2003) & $3 million (2006)
  • First PBR bull rider to earn $1 million World Champion bonus (2003)
  • 94 career 90-point bull rides (most of any rider in PBR history)
  • Tied PBR Record High-Mark Ride (96.5 points) (2000 Tampa Open & 2001 PBR World Finals) [Record for Highest-Marked Ride in PBR history later broken by Jose Vitor Leme with 98.75 points in 2021]
  • 22 career Bud Light Cup/Built Ford Tough Series wins
  • 15-time PBR World Finals qualifier (1997–2003, 2005–2012)
  • 4-time PBR Touring Pro Division/Challenger Tour Finals qualifier (1999–2001, 2004)
  • 3-time Mossy Oak Shootout winner:
  • First bull rider in PBR history to win more than $300,000 in a single season (1998)
  • National High School Finals Rodeo qualifier (1996)

Awards
  • 2-time PBR World Champion (2000, 2003)
  • 2012 Lane Frost/Brent Thurman Award (90.75 points on Shepherd Hills Sod Buster)
  • 2001 Lane Frost/Brent Thurman Award (96.5 points on Dillinger)
  • 2000 PBR 90-Point Club Champion
  • 2000 Copenhagen Touring Pro Division Champion
  • 1999 Lane Frost/Brent Thurman Award (96 points on Trick or Treat)
  • 1997 Copenhagen Touring Pro Division Champion
  • 1996 Louisiana State High School Bull Riding Champion

Championships

Retirement

Shivers announced that the 2012 PBR season would be his last.[4] He retired after the World Finals that year. His final earnings during his 16-year PBR career total nearly 3.3 million dollars.[5] He was inducted into the PBR's Ring of Honor in 2013.

Unfinished Business

On May 30, 2015, Shivers came out of retirement for one more ride at "Unfinished Business" (a special event featuring several PBR legends coming out of retirement to attempt one final bull, held during the PBR's J.W. Hart Challenge at the Wise County Sheriff's Posse Arena in Decatur, Texas). There, he rode a bull named Black Cat for 88.5 points and split the event win with J.W. Hart (whose 88.5-point ride came aboard King Buck).[6] Shivers and Hart were the only two PBR legends to ride their bulls for the full eight seconds in the event.

Honors

Personal life

In 2001, Shivers married his girlfriend, Kylie. They have three children. In 2019, Kylie was awarded the PBR Sharon Shoulders Award.[9] The Shivers family resides in Jonesville in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana.[10]

References
  1. "PBR Top 30". Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  2. Branch, John (January 9, 2009). "On Rodeo Circuit, Cowboy Hats Are Being Replaced by Helmets". The New York Times. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  3. "Shivers Shows His Old Form at Unfinished Business |". Wrangler Network. June 2, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  4. "Shivers: 'This is it for me. It's my last year.'". Professional Bull Riders. February 15, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
  5. "PBR Rider | Chris Shivers". Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  6. "Ring of Honor members discuss coming out of retirement". Professional Bull Riders. May 31, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
  7. "PBR Ring of Honor". Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
  8. "Bull Riding Hall of Fame inductees". Bull Riding Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 19, 2023.
  9. "Tears of joy as Kylie Shivers receives Sharon Shoulders Award". Professional Bull Riders. November 5, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  10. "World champion Chris Shivers signs autographs, ropes stubborn bulls in Mobile". al. April 7, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2020.

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