Wednesday, June 3, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
19
Rodeo is sport, entertainment, cultural heritage rolled into one
Rodeo is a unique sporting
culture. It9s not a game with
a winner and a loser, and the
contestants have to pay entry
fees and are only paid with
prize money for placing suc-
cessfully. It9s not an invented
ball game 4 the events
that a rodeo is comprised of
evolved out of everyday work
activities of ranch hands and
drovers, and part of rodeo9s
purpose is to honor and pre-
serve that ranching legacy.
And the entertainment
component 4 a rodeo clown
and intermission specialty
acts 4 are a major part of the
action.
As the Professional Rodeo
Cowboy Association lays
it out: <Professional rodeo
action consists of two types
of competitions 4 rough-
stock events and timed events
4 and an all-around cowboy
crown. Each competition has
its own set of rodeo rules and
order of events.=
In the roughstock events
4 bareback riding, saddle
bronc riding and bull rid-
ing 4 contestants are scored
by judges. The rider9s per-
formance and the animal9s
performance are equally
important. As PRCA notes:
<To earn a qualified score,
the cowboy, while using only
one hand, must stay aboard
a bucking horse or bull for
eight seconds. If the rider
touches the animal, himself or
any of his equipment with his
free hand, he is disqualified.
The timed events are steer
wrestling, team roping, tie-
down roping, barrel racing
and steer roping; cowboys
and cowgirls compete against
the clock, and against each
other.
Many of the events can
clearly trace their lineage to
practical ranching practices,
like roping or working the
kinks out of a cranky horse
(see related story, page 14).
Others owe their existence to
the wild, daredevil spirit of
the young men who turned
the cowboy into an American
icon.
Steer wrestling is a little
wild, but bullriding is just
plain crazy.
As PRCA notes: <Bull
riding, which is intention-
ally climbing on the back of
a 2,000-pound bull, emerged
from the fearless and pos-
sibly foolhardy nature of the
cowboy. The risks are obvi-
ous. Serious injury is always
a possibility for those fearless
enough to sit astride an ani-
mal that literally weighs a ton
and is usually equipped with
dangerous horns. Regardless,
cowboys do it, fans love
it and bull riding ranks as
one of rodeo9s most popular
events.=
In fact, bull riding is so
popular that in recent years,
the Sisters Rodeo has added a
PHOTO BY CODY RHEAULT
Bull riding is perhaps rodeo’s most popular event — spinning off stand-alone competitions.
Wednesday night event titled
XTreme Bulls dedicated
solely to watching cowboys
trying to stay aboard for a
few seconds as a ton of mus-
cle and attitude bucks and
spins in the dirt of the Sisters
Rodeo arena.
It9s not an even competi-
tion: There are some sessions
where not one rider stays on
a bull for eight seconds. And
that9s part of what makes it all
so exciting.
While nothing rocks the
arena like bull riding, for
some folks the true essence of
rodeo is in watching the team-
work of horse and rider in the
roping events. Team roping is
a ballet of header and heeler.
Tie-down rewards perfect
timing and coordination.
<A cowboy9s success in
tie-down roping depends
in large part on the precise
teamwork between him and
his horse,= PRCA notes. <The
calf receives a head start that
is determined by the length
of the arena. One end of a
breakaway rope barrier is
looped around the calf9s neck
and stretched across the open
end of the box. When the calf
reaches its advantage point,
the barrier is released. If the
roper breaks the barrier before
the calf reaches its head start,
the cowboy is assessed a
10-second penalty.=
A cowboy has to be quick
on his feet to get to the calf,
then dexterous and quick in
getting it tied down securely.
The horse has to keep the
rope taut so the calf can9t slip
it.
Sisters Rodeo has hosted
legendary ropers like Hall-of-
Famers Joe Beaver and Fred
Whitfield showing the speed,
grace and equestrian team-
work that makes rodeo events
special 4 and keeps people
coming back to Sisters to see
it all unfold again.
HAS HOSTED THE OFFICIAL
SISTERS
RODEO
AFTER-PARTY SINCE 1985!
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