“Mum made me do it.” That's how young Wonga Beach bull rider, Oliver Morana, explains his entry into the rough and tumble rodeo ring.

The 16-year-old was introduced to the sport at the encouragement of mum Tarryn at the Laura Rodeo three years ago… and he’s not about to now take her advice to stop.

“We were at the Laura Rodeo and mum asked if I wanted to get on a steer… now she wants me to stop it but I won’t,’’ he laughed.

Through the season, Oliver attends a rodeo across the region almost every second week, riding in the Novice and Junior classes.

“As I improve my technique, I’ll get better and that’s what I am looking to work on,’’ he said.

A full time boiler maker apprentice in the family business, Aussie Campfire Kitchens, Oliver doesn’t seem to share his mum’s now concerns over the dangers of the sport.

He said the bull he first rode time on was “an old bull that was alright, just a bit slow’’.

“I’ve been to nearly every one from Cairns up,’’ he said.

“It’s a bit of a rush and something to do… I just like doing it.’’

Oliver gets plenty of family support and a school mate also had taken on the sport around a year before he started riding bulls.

He does some training on a barrel bull built for practice and reckons he is “definitely getting better’’.

He has twice ridden time - staying on the bull for 8 seconds - at the Weipa and recent Mossman bull riding events, both times placing fourth in his class.