Bull riding would seem to be the kind of sport that could lead a man to drink. In the case of Dean Suzuki, of Waimanalo, however, it's helping him stay on the straight and narrow.

Suzuki, who terms himself a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, says, "When I got clean and sober, I didn't have no activity that took me where drugs and alcohol took me, but when I jumped on that first bull, that's pretty much what I got. It's the adrenaline, but it's not the same adrenaline with other things. ... When I did drugs, yeah, I got a rush, but a lot of stuff was dangerous, and I was getting into fights and stuff li' dat."

Suzuki credits Patrick Ching, owner of Naturally Hawaiian Gallery and a rodeo clown, and Bud Gibson (whom he calls "Uncle Bud"), owner of Town and Country Stables in Waimanalo, with changing his life and getting him into bull riding three years ago. "I told Uncle Bud, 'Working with you guys is helping me to become a better man,' " he said. "When we're at the ranch, you act like a gentleman. There's no swearing; you respect the women. You cannot be a trouble maker or a punk. Those guys never last if they come to ride."

Naturally his girlfriend, Renee Ane, owner of the new Pulelehua About Face Medi-Spa in Kapahulu, is not always thrilled with Suzuki's new interest. The dangerous sport makes her nervous — but it's really kept him healthy, she said.

"I grit my teeth every time he goes out, but he loves it," Ane said. "He's come home with a hoof print on his hip and a big smile on his face. It's like a trophy."

Injuries are de rigueur in bull riding. Suzuki has been stomped on and hooked in the ribs by a bull's horn. Once, he was flat on his back for nearly a month due to injuries from a bull ride gone awry.

So why does he do it? "I ride 'cause I have a passion for riding," he said. "I ride for myself, not to impress anybody. If I did it when I was younger, I would have done it for the wrong reasons — to impress the girls or my friends."

Suzuki grew up on Maui, around a lot of cowboys, he said.

"I went to Maui High School and was exposed to bull riding but never tried it. Then I met Patrick Ching, and he said meet him at the Town and Country Stables in Waimanalo. They started putting spurs on me, and I was thinking 'What did I get myself into?'

"Bud (Gibson) put me on the Cookie Monster, the first bull I ever got on, and that was it. I got on two more bulls that night, and I got stepped on and temporarily knocked out. I just loved it. After that night, I was hooked."

DEAN SUZUKI

Age: 41

Profession: Construction

Height: 5 feet 9

Weight: 165 pounds

Workout habits: "I am very physical in my work — carpentry. We're a small crew of three, so we do it all. It's physically demanding. In order to preserve my body for bull riding, I don't do a lot of other stuff. Both of my shoulders have been messed up for about a year, and with riding every other week, it wouldn't get better, so I have to sacrifice working out. I just do light weights, almost like physical therapy, for the rotator cuffs. For training, I go on the bucking dummy, a bull simulator. Then I do sprints up and down stairs at Bud Gibson's ranch. I'm willing to put up with the pain for the bull riding, but not for other forms of exercise.

Good foods/bad foods: "I eat healthy so I can eat bad. I love junk food, but as long as I keep my metabolism high and eat healthy the majority of the time, I'm OK. When I do eat junk, I really go off the deep end and eat half a box of ice cream and chocolate and cookies — and then I'll eat dinner. For breakfast, I eat healthy cereal or oatmeal with soy milk. I hardly eat eggs and breakfast meat unless it's after we buck out. It's always brown rice — no white rice. Lunch is really important — usually a huge salad and a can of tuna. After a bucking event, I'll eat some kind of meat or fish or chicken, and a cup of brown rice. As far as fruits and vegetables, I just make sure I eat them in every meal. The diet helps me keep lean, and I gotta stay lean because in this sport the extra weight will make me get injured more easily."

The hardest thing about being a bull rider? "Focus. The mental game. Putting myself in the zone. I visualize what I'm going to be doing, going through everything in my head. Balance plays a big part, too."

The easiest? "Giving them the nod to open the gate. After that, sometimes I don't even remember the ride — it's a blur."

Reach Paula Rath at paularath@aol.com.