YOU USUALLY CAN'T SEE
THEM....BUT THEY'RE HERE
It's easy to focus on
the cowboys making the rides and throwing the ropes, but none of it
would happen without the invaluable help of rodeo's contract personnel.
These hard-working,
dedicated people are the backbone of any rodeo production. They are the
stock contractors who provide the bucking animals, the clowns who
generate the laughs between events, the bullfighters who rescue fallen
bull riders, the secretaries who keep track of the money and put out a
variety of fires, and many others.
Some of these folks are easy to recognize, such as the clowns, bull
fighters and rodeo announcers. But others are rather obscure. PRCA
pickup men are rarely noticed because they are so adept at their job of
helping bucking horse cowboys dismount. The chute boss keeps the rodeo
stock flowing through the chutes in order, but he is virtually
invisible. And the flankman, who prepares the animals for competition,
is often a key player whose existence goes unknown to spectators.
There is much more
happening at a rodeo than meets the eye. It's fun to observe all of
these elements mixing together to create this exciting form of
entertainment.
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