HOLLY POND, Ala. – Holly Pond first grader “Hot Rod” Lincoln Gibbs, 7, turned heads in Biloxi recently during the 30th annual Professional Cowboy Association Rodeo Finals.
Father Adam Gibbs said his son has worked as a little funnyman and hype guy at many sanctioned events in the Professional Cowboy Association.
“He has worked in Freeport, Florida; Evergreen, Alabama; Foley, Alabama; and Cullman, Alabama; which are all sanctioned events in the Professional Cowboy Association,” Gibbs said. “Each year the Finals committee decides who gets the opportunity to perform at the finals in Biloxi, Mississippi. This was the second year for him to do so.”
Gibbs said his son was also the entertainer during the High School Finals Shootout in Biloxi.
“He performed his ‘kid in the box’ act and talked on his microphone throughout the 90-minute performance,” Gibbs said. “He was raised on the road in a bus, out on the road for weeks at a time until he started kindergarten in the fall of 2023. We used to go from Miami, Florida to the Canadian border and west to Oklahoma. We worked about 100 per year.”
The adventure started because Gibbs has announced rodeos for a living since 2013.
“His mom and I were together until he was 3 years old,” Gibbs said. “She was a production and music person. He and I continued to rodeo until he started school. I decided that him getting a good start in school was the most important thing. We still go to one rodeo every month and every weekend during May-August, just not every weekend year-round now. He grew up in a playpen at some of the largest rodeos in the country. He loves the rodeo, but has fallen in love with life outside of it as well. He has friends at home and loves sports. He makes straight A’s and he averages six points per basketball game on a first-grade team at Arab.”
When asked, Lincoln Gibbs said he loves to tell his “Snowman” joke, “Call the cops” joke and sign autographs.
“As his dad, I tell him, ‘This is all you,” Gibbs said. “If you want to go out tonight, I just need a couple hours prior to the show starting so I can get him ready. Sometimes he’ll work a while then play with friends, sometimes he’s in all night (two hours) and then sometimes he says, “I’m not working tonight; I’m playing. Most parents want their kids to live their dream, but if he decides to quit today, it’s okay. Whatever makes him happy is all that matters.”
