It's About the (RV) Journey....: Momas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys............

And now for a little something different! The Jackson Hole Rodeo!! Being from NJ and all, this is only my second rodeo. Its quite something to see. We don't really know how the rodeo circuit goes, but in this one there were different events, ranging from wrangling a little cow (by the horns and the feet), to riding a bucking bronco. For more information, click here.

We got there early to get good seats in the "cheap seat" section (hahahha). It was a Wednesday night at the end of the season, and there was no need to fear not getting a seat. Who knew? There were plenty available.

waiting for the rodeo

this is going to be fun!

Before the rodeo events officially start, there are "trials" for those cowboys that want to participate. Two cowboys (a team) try to wrangle the cow by the horns and feet before reaching the other side of the arena. They are judged on the time to do this, and it is a team effort. One guy lassos the horns, the other the feet. Kinda fun to watch. It doesn't hurt the cow at all. And its amazing that cowboys can stay on the horse and "drive" it while swinging around that lasso. Think about it!

practicing

cowboys hanging out

getting ready for the rodeo

Once the sun started setting behind the mountain, and it started to get a little dark (and cold), the rodeo began in earnest. The announcer was so enthusiastic, and made the rodeo really enjoyable! Even though we weren't quite sure of the rules of each event. Hahaha. Its a whole 'nother world out here!

lots of action behind the gates

The beginning of the rodeo was a tribute to the rodeo, the state of Wyoming and of course, the National Anthem. Its quite an honor to be the cowgirl holding the flags. The girl in the green shirt holding the state of Wyoming flag is Dick Cheney's granddaughter. She was also in the barrel-racing event, later in the program. The girl holding the American flag is an Olympic hopeful. She was amazing.

Cheney's granddaughter

this horse is booking!

she is a great rider

The first event was interesting. A group of businessmen from Nashville decided they would "compete" with each other by riding on a bull and seeing who could stay on the longest. We are talking seconds. Apparently they do something extreme like this every year. Oh boy! What did they get themselves into? They practiced during the day on the mechanical bull and also at a local ranch. Some were better than others, but honestly, they should stick to cards, or horseshoes for their own safety. One guy came real close to going out on a backboard. I think he landed on his tailbone....he crawled off and the medics were with him for a bit. Ouch!!

the boys from Nashville behind the gates

yikes...hang on

oh boy

Another actual event is the wrangling of the little bull. As I described before, its a team effort and its very quick. These guys won the event....having completed the job in the blink of an eye!

yippee-i-oooo

these guys were good!

There are safety riders on the arena during all the events. These guys are really talented. They are the ones that get the cowboy off the bucking bronco and also get that horse back into the gate. There were 3 of these guys on the arena, just hovering in case they were needed.

a true hero in the rodeo world

The bucking bronco competition was interesting too. Slightly different than the bulls. Some cowboys just leap onto another "safety rider" to get off the horse, and some just slide off. Like I said, this is a whole different world with a whole different skill set! HAhaha.

bucking bronco!

yikes!

a different style

hang in there

this guy was the champ

he looks like a performer

A little more lasso-ing was in the program. Not sure what the difference was between this event and the one earlier. There seemed to be different age groups of cowboys, so maybe that was it.

honing in on the calf

a team effort

In the middle of the rodeo, they invited all the kids 12 and under down to the arena. The idea was to let 3 sheep loose, wearing bandannas, and the winners would be the kids that were able to get the bandanna off the sheep. Those poor sheep!! They ran like crazy with all those little kids chasing them. I really think the parents rallied to add this event just to knock their kids out so they would sleep quickly and soundly:)

run sheep run!

There was more bull riding.....

hold on

And then the barrel racing started. The object is to run the horse around 3 barrels and the one with the fastest time, wins. You all may know what barrel racing is, but its new to us! Hahaha.

so fast...and such sharp turns

fun to watch

go go go

These girls seemed to be having a great time. Again, the one they announced as an Olympic hopeful, the other was Dick Cheney's granddaugter.

pretty good!

faster!

go go go

a real cowgirl!

nice jewelry on the horse! ahahahha (bridal?)

pretty good!!

They start them young here! I'm not sure how old this little girl was, but she didn't do too badly on her attempt at barrel racing. She got the horse around the 3 barrels and then galloped back to the start. Impressive!

I think this cowgirl is about 4 years old

And then, more bull-riding. This was the younger group, high school age. I think it is a sport in the western high schools. Either that, or I misunderstood. These cowboys were impressive! Fearless as most teenagers are! Hahaha.

more bull

whew!

At one point, a bull got out of control and had to be dealt with by the "safety" committee.

out of control bull

More bull riding.....and the night was over. Very popular and enjoyable family activity. We liked that it was a small venue so you could see the action! Yeee--Haawwww.....what a fun night!