ABOUT RODEO
Rodeo has a unique quality of origin to which no other professional sport can lay claim. It emerged from an industry... from the daily routine and tasks of a low paying job with long hours performed by ranch hands who came to know very well the animals with which they lived.

If it were any other kind of job, leisure hours might have produced another kind of ball game rather than a recreation involving the very animals one had already spent long hours tending. But cowboying has always been more of a way of life than a job or an opportunity to get rich.

Critics speak of an inherent cruelty in rodeo... that rodeo can't exist without being cruel to animals... that there is something in the very nature of rodeo that is harmful to animals. Those kind of comments are contrary to a rodeo's origin.

THE CONTESTS
Rodeo contests are divided into two categories:

1. Those which are scored by a judge... the rough stock events of bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, and bull riding; and
    

2. Those which are timed for speed... cowgirls barrel racing, steer wrestling, and the roping contests.

Riding broncs and roping calves are the events that were born on Western ranches.

Being able to rope a calf or steer on the open range was a necessary skill if an animal required attention.

Riding a bronky kind of horse was part of the territory, as many horses were green broke at best.

The contests of riding and roping require only two things of the horses and cattle... either to buck or to run, actions that are natural.

If you think about all the different disciplines in which horses are used... showing, racing, jumping, pleasure riding, etc.... some kind of equipment is worn by the horse and something is used to communicate instructions to the animal.

HOW TO WATCH A RODEO
Bareback Bronc Riding — The event is judged according to the performances of both the rider and the bucking horse. It is a single-handhold, eight-second ride which starts with the cowboy’s feet held in a position over the break of the horse’s shoulders until the horse’s front feet touch the ground first jump out of the chute. The rider earns points maintaining upper body control while moving his feet in a toes-turned-out rhythmic motion in time with the horse’s bucking action.

Steer Wrestling — This event was originally called "bull dogging" and requires the cowboy to lean from the running horse onto the back of a 600 pound steer, catch it behind the horns, stop the steer’s forward momentum and wrestle it to the ground with all four of its legs and head pointing the same direction. The bulldogger is assisted by the hazer, who rides along the steer’s right to keep the animal running straight.

Saddle Bronc Riding — Known as rodeo’s classic event, saddle bronc riding is judged similarly to bareback bronc riding but there are additional possibilities to being disqualified; that is, losing a stirrup or dropping the thickly braided rein that is attached to the horse’s halter. The cowboy sits on the horse differently due to the saddle and rein, and the spurring motion covers a different area of the horse. Saddle broncs are usually several hundred pounds heavier than bareback horses and generally buck in a slower manner.

Calf Roping — Calf roping is an authentic ranch skill that originated from working cowboys. Once the calf has been roped, the cowboy dismounts and runs down the length of the rope to the calf. When the calf is on the ground, the cowboy ties three legs together with a six-foot pigging string. Calves are given a head start, and if the cowboy’s horse leaves the box too soon, a barrier breaks and a 10-second penalty is added to the roper’s time. In all of the timed events, a fraction of a second makes the difference between winning and losing.

Cowgirls Barrel Racing — This event is a horse race with turns. The cowgirl’s time begins as she rides her horse across the starting line in the arena. She makes a run around three upright barrels, which are in a cloverleaf pattern, and back to the starting line where the clock stops. Tipping a barrel is permitted, but if it is knocked to the ground, a five-second penalty is added to her time.

Team Roping — Team roping is the only rodeo event that features two contestants. The team is made up of a header and a heeler. The header ropes the horns, then dallies or wraps his rope around his saddle horn and turns the steer to the left for the other cowboy who ropes the heels. The heeler must throw a loop with precision timing to catch both of the steer’s hind legs. The time clock stops once both ropers have made a catch and brought the animals to a stop, facing each other.

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