Professional Bull Riders (PBR) staged an event at the US Air Force Academy in conjunction with Space Force to celebrate America 250
Professional Bull Riders (PBR) staged an event at the US Air Force Academy in conjunction with Space Force to celebrate America 250
It’s a sweltering Saturday in Colorado Springs as 33 new recruits, some of them baby-faced, line up to be sworn in at the Air Force Academy’s Falcon Stadium.
Off in the wings, there are chaps-clad bull riders waiting to battle against 1,600lb (725kg) horned bovines.
It’s an in-your-face marriage of Western grit, rodeo and military strength. Billed as Professional Bull Riders (PBR) Space Cowboys, the one-off event is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. But the spectacle is not just trying to draw fans to rodeo, but also to branches of America’s military and law-enforcement agencies.
Space Force – a military branch for space – co-sponsored the event and is recruiting on site, as is US Border Patrol.
It is an example of the unique ways that the US military and Border Patrol are trying to boost recruitment, as President Donald Trump focuses on strengthening the country at home, abroad – and in outer space.
The PBR Space Cowboys event drew more than 30,000 people
The PBR Space Cowboys event drew more than 30,000 people
Recruiting at a rodeo may seem random, but PBR CEO Sean Gleason, beaming in a cowboy hat during the day’s events, says it’s a natural fit.
“Our cowboys, and the cowboys in our audience, they believe in hard work, honesty, integrity, help your neighbour, some selflessness,” he told the BBC. “So that’s what it takes to be in the military or in the US Border Patrol or any type of first responder.”
The rodeo has had a relationship with Border Patrol since 2008.
But the agency has been under a spotlight since Trump has pushed forward with his crackdown on immigration. As part of his focus on his signature election campaign issue, Trump signed a law last summer mandating the hiring of 3,000 new Border Patrol agents. Just this month, he signed another bill allocating $70bn (£52.9bn) to border security for the remainder of his time in office, including $26bn specifically for Border Patrol.
Much of that money has been earmarked for recruiting and retention, and the agency announced this week that it has surpassed 21,000 agents for the first time since its founding in 1924.
US Border Patrol has been “the Official Federal Law Enforcement Officers of the Professional Bull Riders” since 2008
US Border Patrol has been “the Official Federal Law Enforcement Officers of the Professional Bull Riders” since 2008
Those intensified recruitment efforts were on full display at the rodeo, when a Border Patrol SUV and recruitment tent were parked smack in the middle of the Fan Zone outside the arena. Children lined up for junior rodeo games just a few feet away from Border Patrol officers, as live country music blared from a massive stage.
Cody Price “hadn’t really thought about” Border Patrol, he says, until he spotted the half-dozen recruiters. The 18-year-old has been accepted to University of Colorado Boulder but deferred for a year.
“I looked into the military for a long time,” says Price. “I have asthma, and so I cannot join the military. But Border Patrol does not have an asthma [disqualifier].”
While he doesn’t have a strong impression about Border Patrol, he says, ” I know it’s a huge thing in politics right now and everybody’s debating, I guess, what’s right and wrong”.
The recruiter walked him through the process and the “positives and the negatives,” Price says, and “it was good to see what kind of opportunities are out there”.
Similarly, 19-year-old Grand Junction native Davin – who declined to give his last name – also finds himself drawn to Border Patrol for health reasons. He’d always wanted to join the military like his grandfather and older brothers but unfortunately has a disqualifying heart condition.
“The restriction’s a little less heightened with the Border Patrol,” he says, adding that, after speaking with the recruiter, “I feel really confident in it after that conversation”.
Cody Price, who’s always wanted to join the military, attended the Border Patrol recruitment drive with his mom
Cody Price, who’s always wanted to join the military, attended the Border Patrol recruitment drive with his mom
He finds the sense of patriotism and camaraderie to be attractive, as well as “trying to make a difference for your own country… and trying to do something yourself”.
The teen adds that “most” of his male friends and contemporaries are considering careers in the military or similar – and recent recruitment numbers back up that surge in interest.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, Border Patrol received 34,650 applications between January and April 2025 – a 44% increase over the same four-month period in 2024. DHS credits the “historic spike” to Trump administration policies and has received significant funding for incentives.
Potential recruits left the tent with flyers advertising signing bonuses of up to $60,000 and salaries starting at $50,741, which can climb as high as $110,563.
Weeks before the rodeo, an Army veteran at another Colorado Springs Border Patrol event outlined similar motivations for exploring joining up. Mike, 40, feels “stagnant” in his current job as a corrections officer and misses the sense of “belonging” he had in the military.
“Even though I hung up my uniform, I never stopped serving, and I just feel like I have this duty to protect the citizens of the country,” he said, adding that he liked the idea of securing US borders.
“I see a lot of things on the news… people just not being nice, human trafficking, drugs being smuggled in,” he said.
He says he’s drawn to Border Patrol over an agency like ICE.
“Instead of just deporting people, I want to actually know that I’m protecting the country.”
But Border Patrol must compete for new recruits with their counterparts from Space Force and the Air Force National Guard – the latter of which trotted out a trampoline that drew great interest from the crowd.
Space Force, which was created by Trump in 2019, is tasked with securing US interests “in, from and to space”. It has also been in the midst of a recruitment surge, surpassing targets.
“The service is looking to double in size over the next five years,” a spokesperson told BBC News. In February, Space Force exceeded their annual recruitment goal by 125%, they said.
Space Force and Air Force cadets are sworn in before the PBR Space Cowboy event
Space Force and Air Force cadets are sworn in before the PBR Space Cowboy event
Space Force competes “with Silicon Valley and major aerospace firms for top-tier talent,” the spokesperson said. The rodeo afforded a chance to introduce Space Force to young adults and their families, “showcasing the vital role Guardians play in our national security and the outstanding career paths available to the next generation”, the spokesperson said.
In addition to the bull riding and flyovers, the rodeo included a performance by country superstar Tim McGraw and a drone show lighting up the sky with images of a bull and rider, a cowboy hat and the Space Force logo. When one performer asked active duty military and veterans to stand up, nearly half the stadium appeared to rise.
The levels of spectacle and attendance were testaments not just to the growth of Space Force but also PBR itself.
“Year after year after year after year, we’ve seen pretty exponential growth,” says Gleason.
An extravaganza at the Air Force stadium, he says, was his idea – and took years to make happen. He’s “elated” now that it finally came to pass.
“Space Force, those guys are literally charting the next frontier of space,” he says. “The cowboys tamed the West, and Space Force is going to tame… space.”
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