The sport of the West: rodeo

Some claim rodeo is the only true sport of individual athleticism. It’s just one contestant pitting their skill against an animal, or just him or her and a horse working to top the scoreboard. The contestant is also on their own for expenses and getting to rodeos to make the points that earn them membership in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), opening the door to those sanctioned rodeos with the high dollar purses. 

Blingy belt buckles and the occasional saddle don’t cover the medical bills, physical therapy, stolen or damaged equipment or the skyrocketing costs of travel, not to mention acquiring the best of the best in horseflesh that gets them even closer to top winnings. If they can’t raise the dough, the whole thing can fizzle out. Succeeding in the rodeo world truly is all on that one set of shoulders. So, yeah, it’s a tough gig mentally, physically and financially thrust upon each cowboy or cowgirl hoping to make their mark.

Rodeo is very misunderstood by a majority of the populace (i.e. tourists, animal activists, etc.). First of all, with rough stock events (bronc and bull riding), for someone looking at this with no real experience within the sport, sure, it looks like a brutal thing could be happening out there in the arena. Poor horsey. Poor bull. Uhmmm, not really.

Some of the bucking stock are valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars, especially if they’ve been to the National Finals in Vegas. They get the best vet care, best feed and are babied as much as they’ll let humans baby them. They have to buck for an 8-second bit of work every other night or so, maybe just once a week. I’ll take that salary-to-work ratio any day.  

But more than that, they love to buck. They have to. They are screened and bred meticulously for that trait. The bucking strap wrapped around their bellies is fleeced-lined and wide to make sure it doesn’t cut them. It’s uncomfortable, like you cinching your belt down a hole or two after a big meal, but it doesn’t cause any damage. Some people doubt that. Are you kidding me? Would you risk ruining a half a million-dollar bull’s career longevity and earning capacity?

All that aside, the basis of rodeo originated in the old West. Back in the day of cattle drives, a ranch had to round up all their horses that had been turned out on the land after the fall branding and pull the calves off the cows after summer. Come spring, the cowboys worked the kinks out of those horses that hadn’t been saddled or borne a rider for several months. They’d buck them out in a sturdy corral to contain them so the cowboy didn’t get taken for a ride and dumped miles away from the homestead.

That fenced enclosure likely inspired the Spanish word “rodear” (meaning “go round”) to morph into the name rodeo for this activity. It was the preparatory work needed to make sure each cowhand had dependable, rideable horses in the remuda (what a string of ranch horses is called) to push a bunch of cows from the land they didn’t want to leave toward new feeding grounds. Some horses were harder headed than others, and probably a handful never gave up trying to throw the rider off their backs. That’s the trait rodeo stock contractors covet today.

As an EMT, I’ve seen a lot from behind the chutes and been on the fence right next to the bucking chutes -- at the ready in case a contestant is injured. I don’t think an outsider understands the very dangerous, personal choice these athletes make to pit themselves against a pissy bull or horse. These bulls and horses are supremely bred to spin, twist and buck. It’s getting harder and harder to hang on for that eight-second buzzer and score.

Even wearing helmets, protective vests, chaps and taping up their arms and shoulders to help withstand the jerk of that rope, injuries can be horrific. Medical costs are catastrophic, because there’s no insurance that covers these athletes. None. The cowboy or cowgirl is responsible for the whole bill: ambulance, ER, hospital and rehab charges. One bad wreck can saddle them with insurmountable, lifelong debt, not to mention perhaps crippling them for life, as well.  

Sadly, the Cowboy Way and the West seem to be losing their romantic pull on today’s masses. Attendance at rodeos is struggling. They’re competing with a generation or two focused on social media, video games and streaming digital content for their entertainment diet. Rodeo just doesn’t have the appeal it did a couple decades ago. We may be seeing the end of an era. If you’re a fan, go to as many rodeos as you can in the next season or two or three. Just saying.