I read this when things get tough. If you don't know about Freckles Brown and his ride, well, here:

In 1967, at the National Finals in Oklahoma City, Freckles wasn't in the running for the Championship, but perhaps he is remembered better than the bull rider that did win the Championship that year,
because that year Freckles rode the "unridable" bull called Tornado.

Tornado, owned by Jim Shoulders, was the first bull Freckles drew on the opening night of the Finals, Dec 1, 1967.

A full house of 9000 spectators were in the Oklahoma City's State Fair Arena, to see the match-up between 47-year-old Freckles and Tornado.

Tornado, in his rodeo career, had scared his share of bull riders off,
some preferring to turn him out rather than try to ride him. Freckles took it as a compliment when Ken Roberts said: "Tornado's scared a lot of guys off, but he's going to have to buck Freckles off."

Freckles said, "Tornado scared a lot of people off of him. I was real tickled when I drew him. I was wantin' him. I'd watched that bull for years. Everytime anybody jumped out of there, any time anybody drew Tornado, I was up there watching, looking over the chute. When a bull bucks that good, everything has to go right, you gotta get tapped off right."

Tornado went high and far on his first jump out, something he was known to do. He spun three or four times. He changed his pattern on Freckles, jumping straight ahead and then back to the right, but nothing he did could throw the determined man.

Freckles never heard the whistle. The crowd went wild and the bullfighters moved in, that's how he knew he had him rode!

Freckles described it as: "I just felt real good. I got where I wanted to be, and that's the first time I got just exactly where I wanted to be. Sometimes you don't feel that way. But sometimes you feel like you can ride them no matter what they do, but not very often. It was just before the whistle when I felt like I had him rode."

The first person to congratulate Freckles was Jim Shoulders, the owner of Tornado.

Tornado had gone unridden for 220 professional rides. He died in 1972 and is buried near the Cowboy Hall of Fame.

Freckles Advice                     
    Baxter Black

Though Freckles is an angel now, he ain't forgot his friends.
He drops to earth and hangs around behind the buckin' pens.
He pulls a rope or just makes sure a rider gets bucked free.
So I took it as an honor, the day he spoke to me...

"I saw you ride your bull today. You sure did yourself proud.
You had him by the short hairs, I could feel it in the crowd!"
"I really should be thankful that I even stayed aboard.
You could'a done it better, Freckles...I'm lucky that I scored!"

"Hey don't be puttin' yourself down! You know you did okay.
The time will come when you look back and hunger for today
When everything was workin' right and judges liked your style,
Your joints were smooth, your belly flat and girls liked your smile.

"Cause in between the best you rode and the last one that you'll try
You'll face your own mortality and look it in the eye.
There ain't no shame admittin' you ain't what you used to be,
The shame is blamin' Lady Luck when Father Time's the key!

"So if they know you came to ride and always did your best
Then hang your ol' spurs up with pride, 'cause that's the acid test
And, say some gunsel offers you a 'Geritol on Ice,'
Just grin 'im down, 'cause you don't have to ride Tornado twice!"