Dad throws himself on 18-year-old son to shield him from a bull charging at them at Texas rodeo
A dad is being hailed a hero for falling over his son's after the latter was thrown from the back of a bull during a Texas rodeo.
A video posted last month recently went viral, where Cody Hooks can be seen being bucked from the back of a bull during a rodeo in Belton, Texas, soon after entering the ring. Handlers nearby failed to subdue the animal and it charged right back at Hooks, but before the bull could harm him, his dad, Landis Hooks, lay on top of his son, covering his son's face and head with his own, per PEOPLE.
In the video, the 40-year-old father formed a human shield over his 18-year-old son and even took a hit from the bull's head as it charged towards the pair. The crowd roared in shock, but Landis kept his body pressed firmly down while the bull rampaged about.
Thankfully, the bull's subsequent charge on the pair "could've been a [hell of a] lot worse," according to Hooks. He shared in the caption that he was usually "not one to post falling off" footage, but made an exception due to what happened in the ring.
"Big thanks to my dad @hooks.landis and the bullfighters last night in Belton, Tx," he wrote, adding the hashtag, "#blessed."
While people are lauding Landis as the father of the year, the brave man doesn't want to be praised for his actions, he says he just did what any father would do. "No matter what, I'm gonna do what I gotta do for him," Landis said in an interview with Good Morning America. "Right out the gate, he fell off."
"That's just part of the everyday cowboy life where I come from. Somebody gets down, you gotta help them," he added. "But I am glad I was there though."
Landis recalled that "everything just got quiet" when he saw his son fall off the bull just moments after starting to ride it. "I just wanted to make sure that sucker didn’t come back and get on top of him like he was about to," he shared.
When reporter Kaylee Hartung if anyone could've stopped him, he immediately said no. "No ma'am. Not at all. He knows how I am and nobody could've stopped me." In the same video, Cody emphasized that he's aware of the dangers that come with bull-riding. "I think about it all the time. A lot of people don't like to think about the injuries that happen in bull riding, especially after they get on," he said.
This video shows how pure and true a parent's love is, and proves that they wouldn't hesitate even one bit to put their lives in danger if it means they'd be able to save yours.