Riding bulls is only slightly more dangerous than what Hice does for a day job.
Like his father, Freddie Hice, 16-year-old Dylan is a motion picture stunt man. And though he's not the first youngster to follow in dad's footsteps, one has to wonder what appealed to Dylan. Was it the burning cars or the broken bones?
Or both?
"When I was young, I always wanted to do the stuff that he did," Dylan said while seated casually on a bench at McGee Park on Wednesday evening. "He's got pictures at our house of him doing motorcycle stunts and car stunts, and I always pictured myself in that car or on that motorcycle doing that stunt."
Dylan, who hails from California, is in Farmington this week for the National High School Finals Rodeo. An accomplished bull rider, Dylan's future was pretty well mapped out for him at a ripe age.
Freddie's stunt man career dates back to 1973. It was a natural means to a paycheck given his family history, and he beams when asked
"I'm happy about it," 53-year-old Freddie said. "I did it, my grandfather did it, my mother did it, my father did it — I'm really proud of him."
Father and son were outfitted with matching pink shirts Wednesday — the theme for the evening NHSFR performance was "Tough enough to wear pink." Clearly, this duo is tough enough to wear whatever color they choose.
It's a perilous profession, the stunt man business. Asked to describe his favorite role, Freddie responded nonchalantly: "I like turning horses over and I like turning cars over, jumping motorcycles, setting myself on fire — it's just what I do. I've done everything under the sun."
His son sports a similar aw-shucks demeanor, which helps to mask the fact that he's a bona fide thrill-seeker. Dylan's NHSFR bio lists jumping bikes, surfing and riding bulls as his primary recreational pursuits.
He's not all fun and games, though. Dylan, who has been doing stunts since he was 8, is a natural on camera. His film credits include "3:10 To Yuma," "American Outlaws" and "Spy Kids." More recently, he landed a role on "Step Brothers," where he took a fake kick to the face from megastar Will Ferrell — "On set, off set, he's a funny guy," said Dylan, who added that his dad's experience and polished resumé has made it easier to land big roles.
"My dad has been in it, so it's kind of like a jumpstart to get to the top instead of starting from the lower ranks," he explained.
It's only fitting that Dylan is at the national rodeo finals as a bull rider. The two trades, executing stunts and riding bulls, appear to go hand in hand.
"I think so. I think the same chances of getting hurt in bull riding also (exist) in stunts," said Dylan, who because of his age, hasn't yet performed any stunts that are over-the-top dangerous.
Dylan has been riding bulls for three years and rough stock since he was 5. He said his mother, Erin Hice, is incredibly nervous when he's aboard the 1,000-plus-pound animals, but not so much when he's on stage.
Then again, "She's the same, she's done stunts herself," Freddie said. "If she would have started earlier, she probably would have been one of the best stuntwomen in the world — no doubt in my mind."
Dylan's long-term plan is to keep doing stunts, and his father believes it's a smart choice.
"With Dylan, he has an uncanny way of picking up what's happening in the situation, where I don't really have to jump in there and say, look, you got to do it this way,'" Freddie concluded. "I treat him like I treat any other stunt man that I work with or that is working with me. If I see that there's something that could get him hurt or possibly even killed, I'm going to say something. But with him, he's got it pretty well figured out already."
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