Wegner, Bob
Bull Riding • Inducted 2015
Bob Wegner was one of the greatest bull riding stars in an era populated with the likes of Jim Shoulders, Harry Tompkins, Freckles Brown and Ronnie Rossen. Over an 11-year span from 1956-1966, Wegner finished among the top five bull riders in the world standings 10 times, earning a gold buckle in 1964 and setting an event record – later tied by Ted Nuce – by claiming four reserve world championships (1958-59, 1961, 1966).
Wegner shared the National Finals Rodeo average title with Rossen in 1964 and won it outright two years later, claiming the Todd Whatley Memorial Award as the top NFR money earner of 1966.
The Ponca City, Okla., native joined the Rodeo Cowboys Association, precursor to the PRCA, in 1953 and, despite suffering a broken back a year later when a horse fell on him at a rodeo in Henderson, Texas, Wegner quickly earned his place among the elite of the cowboy sport.
He won multiple titles at many of the sport’s biggest rodeos, including three each at the Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days (1961-63) and the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up (1960-61, 1964), along with wins at Boston Garden and the San Antonio (Texas) Stock Show & Rodeo.
In his prime, Wegner could use his feet – and get out of a jam – as well as anyone since Shoulders was at his peak. Bull riders also talked about the way “Weg,” as he was known by his contemporaries, could use his inside leg – pulling it high like a jockey – and let the bull throw him back up when he started down, inside a spin.
Accolades
Biography
World Championships: 1
Bull Riding: 1964
National Finals Rodeo Average Champion
Bull Riding: 1964, 1966
Born: March 10, 1934 in Ponca City, Oklahoma
Died: March 30, 2014 in Bandera, Texas
Joined the PRCA: 1953
Rodeo Championships
Buffalo Bill Rodeo / North Platte, NE
Bull Riding: 1958
Cheyenne Frontier Days / Cheyenne, WY
Bull Riding: 1962, 1963
Ellensburg Rodeo / Ellensburg, WA
Bull Riding: 1960, 1961 (tie)
Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo / Fort Worth, TX
Bull Riding: 1966
Grand National Stock Show & Rodeo / San Francisco, CA
Bull Riding: 1958, 1959 (tie), 1961
Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo / Guymon, OK
Bull Riding: 1957
Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo / Ogden, UT
Bull Riding: 1964
Pendleton Round-Up / Pendleton, OR
Bull Riding: 1960, 1961, 1964
Redding Rodeo / Redding, CA
Bull Riding: 1960 (tie), 1961
San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo / San Antonio, TX
Bull Riding: 1958
Snake River Stampede / Nampa, ID
Bull Riding: 1963, 1964
