Buckoffs and Broken Barriers: Rodeo Poems

Buckoffs and Broken Barriers: Rodeo Poems is the result of decades of experience as a rodeo competitor and spectator. The poems capture the thoughts, feelings, actions, and excitement of life in and around the arena. From comedic accounts of wrecks to thoughtful musings on the tragedy and despair sometimes associated with the sport, you’ll get a taste of rodeo as vivid and memorable as a mouthful of arena dirt following a buckoff.

“Rod Miller is a very talented wordsmith who brings out the humor, danger, mystique and drama of cow people and their sport. After reading many of his poems that depict his experiences as a rodeo cowboy, it’s a damn good thing he’s a hand with a pen.” —Ty Murray, 9-time World Champion Rodeo Cowboy

"Rod Miller first crossed my radar when I became the editor of Western Horseman magazine, for which Rod had been a frequent contributor, authoring poems and feature articles of rodeo athletes, musicians, artists, and frontier history. His poetry is infused with a genuineness that elevates his work above the medium’s predictable yarns and gives the reader a front-row seat at a captivating reality-based dramedy." —A.J. Mangum, former editor Western Horseman and Ranch & Reata magazines

"A true westerner to the core and one who’s 'made a hand' as a scribe as well, Rod Miller is that rare breed who blends artistic sensibility with cowboy attitude. He’s funny and serious and hits all the marks in-between, and always in that high-quality, polished verse he writes—the kind that looks as effortless as a great bronc ride, but is every bit as tough to pull off as that ride was." —Jesse Mullins, Jr., founding editor American Cowboy magazine

"Miller’s work stands out like a Thoroughbred in a pen full of ponies. His wry humor works the same way that Baxter Black’s does—it saves us from taking ourselves too seriously." —Gary Vorhes, former Editor-in-Chief Western Horseman magazine

"Rod Miller is a talented man. Writer. Cowboy. Poet. He’s the real deal among cowboy poets. He has earned respect." —C.J. Hadley, Publisher/Editor RANGE magazine