This is where I want to hear back from those who are involved in the sport of rodeo.  Where did you learn your event?  Was it passed down through generation to generation?  Did you attend a school?  Or, like myself did you just decide to give it a whirl and learn through the school of hard knocks.

If I was able to turn back the hands of time I would for sure attend a rodeo school.  There are several schools out there that are designed especially for whatever event you want.  This ranges from bullfighting to calf roping.  Most of the times these schools are run by former contestants.  A great majority of them being world champions or atleast a strong competitor in their event.

So, where did you learn your art?  If your looking to get into the sport of rodeo let me know.  I can point you in a few directions that will help you.  You will not be disappointed, I look back and wish that I was still on top of a bull every day of my life.

Well it does not happen very often up in my neck of the woods, but a rodeo is coming to town.  The professional bull riders will be coming to town to entertain the people in the north country.  I would be fairly safe at betting the majority of those in attendance have never seen a real life rodeo, they are just not common up in this area.  My wife has warned me that I will need to sit with her in the stands and not end up behind the chutes with the cowboys.  My wife and I have been to a few different rodeos since my retirement and it seems I always end up leaving her stranded in the bleachers alone while I go pull some riders rope or talk “shop” with the boys.

If you are looking for a good time and some great fun, stop by the Bangor State Fair and take in the rodeo action.

If you can make it out to your local rodeo for a great night with the family, go for it. There are so many great aspects of rodeo. The cowboys, cowgirls, bullfighters, and the rodeo acts. Here is a rodeo act that I have seen.

The ROUGHSTOCK EVENTS consist of Saddle bronc riding, bareback bronc riding and bullriding. In these events, the cowboy must ride for 8 seconds in order to have a qualified ride. He may only use one hand to secure himself to the animal, and may not touch the animal with his other hand. Only in bullriding does the cowboy NOT have to spur the animal he is riding. In saddle bronc and bareback bronc riding, the cowboy must also spur the animal in time with his rhythm of bucking. If he spurs the bull while riding, he gets extra points, but he doesn’t have to. The cowboy is scored by two judges. The judges score the cowboy on a 100 points basis. Each judge scores the cowboy from 1 to 25 points for how well he rides and they also give the horse or bull from 1 to 25 points for how well he bucks. The harder the animal bucks, the higher the cowboy’s overall score. There has been only one 100 point bullride in the history of rodeo.

My son is now two years old and next year at the ripe old age of three will be his first experience doing some mutton bustin. This will be a great way to get him involved in rodeo and see what he thinks about the prospect of continuing on. My son loves to ride horses currently.

Mutton bustin is a great way for young girls and boys to experience being on a “wild” animal. The adrenaline rush that flows through their little bodies will

When I used to ride I heard the question, “aren’t you scared when you ride?” My answer was quickly “no”. I never was scared riding a bull. There was everytime that I was nervous and anytime you failed to respect the bull you was getting on, that’s when you would get hurt. Still today people tell me “your crazy for riding them things.” Sometimes now that I am a little older, I think that myself.

In all actuality I miss this part of my life tremendously. Those were some of the best times I ever had in my life. As I look at my two year old son, I think what if he wanted to become a bullrider. I would support him if he wanted to do that for sure. Although, as a dad I will not be disappointed if he doesn’t.

Here is a video that shows the dangers of bullriding. The old saying “it’s not if you get hurt riding bulls. It’s when and how bad”, is a true statement.

I hope you enjoy the video.

A practice pen: This is where the cowboys gain a very important tool in their bullriding careers……EXPERIENCE!!!!!

This is how my career in bullriding started. At the age of 19 I moved from the east coast state of Maine to the great state of Colorado. I was moving in with three guys that had grown up in Colorado and had been bullriding for several years. In fact all three of them had rode bulls for the Colorado State University rodeo team. I had never at this point in my life seen a rodeo. I had grown up with harness racing, so had lots of experience with horses.

So the boys were off one Tuesday night to a practice pen in Greeley, Colorado. They invited me along. So the deal was each rider would pay 10 dollars to Billy, the owner of the pen and former PRCA cowboy back in the 70’s. I watched Danny, Dan, and Jim get their gear ready and jump on their bulls. Then Danny asked me if I wanted to give it a try. After a couple minutes of thinking in my head, I thought…why not. Danny let me borrow his gear and before I knew it I was on board a polled black bull. Danny pulled my rope and Billy was waiting at the gate. Billy was giving me instructions and told me when I was ready to let him know. The last thing I remember hearing is Danny saying “If you get in trouble just open up your hand and let go of the bullrope.” Then I told Billy “go ahead.” I remember the gate swinging open and the bull taking a big jump out. Then landing on the ground just in time for another big jump. At this point I was expecting to already be on the ground. I began to think to myself, wow, I’m still riding this thing and I’m in good position. Then that bull as though he was reading my mind turned back to the left. Well my body started to go down the right side of the bull. I began to attempt to pull myself back up and found myself completely sideways on the bull. My hand was still in the bullrope and I was not ready to give up. I could not hear anything at this point, but apparently everyone watching was telling me to let go. Finally, I realized I’m going to end up on the bottom of this bull and there is no way I’m going to pull myself back up. I remembered what Danny told me and I opened up my hand. I hit the ground, that’s it my first attempt to ride a bull was over. I jumped up and began to shake my head. Billy came over and said “what you didn’t like it?” I said “no, that’s not it. I’m just mad that I didn’t cover him.” I remember Billy chuckling to himself and saying “I would be rip roaring mad if you rode one of my bulls on your first attempt, nice job.”

So after a bunch of guys congratulated me and said that it looked good for my first attempt, my pride began to recover. On the way home I told the guys to stop at a shop that sold the basic bullriding gear to get started.

Then I was hooked. I went to a few more practice pens and decided shortly after that to enter up into a jackpot rodeo that was close by. That was the start of my career. The next 8 years I would spend rodeoing all over the midwest and western states.

I came upon this you tube video that showed cowboys riding in a practice pen. It brought back some great memories that was had by all at Billy’s in Greeley, Colorado.

Yesterday the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) updated there standing in all of the rodeo events.

As with most people there are certain events that I watch closely to see who is in the running for the money.  Bull riding ranks amongst the top of this list as I spent 8 years of my life associated with this event.  As each year passes by I recognize less and less of the names that are aboard the leaders.  Here is a run down of the top 15 bullriding cowboys currently:

•   B.J. Schumacher
•   Chance Smart
•   J.W. Harris
•   Luke Haught
•   Cody Hancock
•   Cooper Kanngiesser
•   Kanin Asay
•   Brian Richardson
•   Brad Pierce
•   Jarrod Craig
•   Richard Echols
•   Fred Boettcher
•   Clint Craig
•   Dave Samsel
•   Steve  Woolsey

The amount of money these guys have pulled in already this year is amazing.  The sport has sure changed a lot since my riding days.  Upon the top 15 there are still some guys that I am very familiar with and will continue to cheer on throughout the year.

To all the cowboys and cowgirls out there, may you have a safe season and stay focused.

If you are looking for a rodeo in your area then maybe this schedule will help you.  A rodeo is a great way to spend your afternoon or evening.  A great family event that will bring lots of action and well worth the bucks.

Here is a run down of some PRCA rodeo events that are taken place:

My hopes is that through this blog people will become familiar with rodeo.  I realize everyone that lands here will not follow rodeo and know all there is to know.  As I posts there will be words associated with the sport of rodeo that I will use often.  I have compiled a list of these words and definitions in order to help those who may not understand the terms:

ADDED MONEY —An additional amount of money, which is provided by the rodeo committee or another sponsor, which is combined with entry fees as total prize money for each rodeo event.

BARREL MAN — Clown that entertains the audience from his barrel in the arena – this person also assists the bullfighters during the bull riding event, using the barrel as a distraction & shield.

BARRIER — A rope, which is stretched across the front of the timed event area, that allows a calf or steer a head start. The contestant’s horse cannot cross the barrier prior to the stock crossing the score line. A 10-second penalty is added to the time of a contestant who breaks the barrier.

BREAKING THE BARRIER — When a contestant rides across or breaks the barrier before the animal has a head-start. Breaking the barrier adds a 10-second penalty to the contestant’s time.

BRONC REIN — A thick 1-1/2 to 2 inch rope that is attached to the halter of a saddle bronc horse. The rope can be no longer than 6-1/2 feet, and is used to provide a place to grip and assist with balance for the cowboy during the saddle bronc riding event.

BULL FIGHTER — The person in the arena during the bull riding event with the job of protecting the cowboy and distracting the bull to either help the cowboy get a higher score or to help the cowboy safely dismount the bull and exit the arena following the ride.

BULL ROPE — A flat rope with a bell attached to it. The bull rider holds on to this rope, which is wrapped around the bull’s body and just behind the front legs of the bull.

COWBOY-UP — The term used by cowboys to indicate the need to increase an individual’s efforts and ability in order to overcome a particular obstacle or challenging situation.

CROW HOPPER — An animal that does NOT extend their hind legs out as they jump up during a ride, but kind of just hops around the arena like a crow.

DALLY — Looping the rope around the saddle horn after the animal has been caught.

DINK — An animal that runs around the arena without bucking.

ENTRY FEE — The amount of money paid by the contestant for the right to compete at a rodeo.  Entry fees from each cowboy in an event are combined to form the prize money at a rodeo.  Some entry fees are combined with added money to increase the prize money for a rodeo.

FIGHTING BULL — The type of bull that is used during free-style events at a rodeo and these bulls are usually smaller and faster than the bulls used during the actual bull riding competition.

FLANK STRAP — A padded strap placed in front of a horse or bull’s hind legs to create a slight irritation to initiate bucking action. A flank strap would be similar to a belt worn by humans.

GO-ROUND — Term used to signify - each contestant in an event has had a chance to compete.

HAZER — The cowboy that rides on the opposite side of the steer and keeps the steer running straight down the arena to assist the contestant during the steer wrestling event.

HEADER — The cowboy that ropes the steer around the horns, head, or neck in team roping.

HEELER — The cowboy that ropes the hind legs of the steer in team roping.

HOOEY — The knot used with a piggin’ string by calf ropers to tie three of the animals feet together and stop the clock. This knot is also commonly called a half hitch.

HOOKY — A bull that is consistently recognized for going after cowboys with their horns.

HUNG UP — A rider that is still attached to a horse or bull after dismounting from the animal.

JERK DOWN RULE — A rule that penalizes a cowboy who, after roping the calf, the rope flips the calf straight over backwards.

NO TIME — The term used in rodeo to indicate that a cowboy/cowgirl has gone of course, broken a rule, or exceeded the time limit for an event and therefore will not receive a time for that event.

OVER THE DASHBOARD — When the rider is thrown over the front end of an animal.

PICK-UP MAN — The cowboy on horseback who assists the bareback and saddle bronc riders to safely dismount their horse following a qualified 8-second ride.

PIGGIN’ STRING — A six-foot piece of rope that is used to tie three of the animal’s feet together.

PRIZE MONEY — The money paid to the winner of each rodeo event. The total of entry fees combined with any added money.

RE-RUN or RERIDE — A second run by a contestant - after a rodeo judge has ruled the
contestant did not have a fair chance to score points the first time out.

RODEO SECRETARY — The person responsible for collecting entry fees, recording official times/scores, paying prize money to contestants, and reports the results of the rodeo to the organization that sanctions the rodeo. Secretary usually also works as a timer.

ROUGH STOCK EVENTS — The three events at a rodeo, which are judged by two official
judges and consist of saddle bronc, bareback, and bull riding events.

SEEING DAYLIGHT — The term used when a cowboy separates from a bucking animal far enough for the spectators to see daylight between the cowboy and the animal.

STOCK CONTRACTOR — The person or group that provides the livestock used at the rodeo.

TIMED EVENTS — The four events at a rodeo, which are timed and ranked according to the
fastest time and consist of calf roping, team roping, steer wrestling, and barrel racing

TIMERS — Two people officially designated for recording a contestant’s time for (Timed Events) calf roping, team roping, steer wrestling, and barrel racing. The timer blows the whistle or horn to signify eight seconds during the (Rough Stock) saddle bronc, bareback, and bull riding events.

There will be others as we go along.  When those arise, I will take the time to explain what is meant by them.  This will give us a good start though.

To everyone who is out rodeoin this weekend, stay safe, God bless, and ride hard.