Bob and I went to our first rodeo today! After several stupid questions on my part (bulls and horses get along well enough to be in the same holding pen? When you mate a bull and horse do you get a mule? Do the horses get kicked in the butt to make them buck?), I finally shut my trap and started paying attention. Yes, bulls and horses get along. You get a mule when you mate a horse and donkey. There is a rope tied around the back end of the horses and bulls to make them buck. First, the cowboys rode the horses, and there were 2 official men that were there to lasso the horses after the cowboy fell off. They were on horses the entire time.
After a few rounds of that, it was time for the children to partake in the mutton riding contest. Yes, folks, I said mutton. The kids, about 4 years old, were equipped with a safety vest and helmet, thrown on sheep, and told to hold on for dear life. Those kids were determined to get a trophy and were probably ripping clumps of fur (or wool) out of the sheep. They also got to chase chickens around and whoever caught one got a trophy.
After the kids had their shot at fun, it was time to bring out the big bulls instead of the horses. I was hoping they would go after the rodeo clown because he kept making terrible jokes (why won’t the bulls eat clowns? Because they taste funny!). Alas, the rodeo clown survived. The bulls weren’t as mean as I thought they would be. Their horns were cut down a lot and there were 2 people with a combined IQ of 62 that volunteered themselves to be the distractions when the cowboys fell of the bulls. Why anyone would put themselves in the line of a bull is beyond me. They weren’t even on a horse- they would just jump in front of the bull. At the end of the day, nobody was hurt (except the egos of some of the sheep), and a cowboy went home with a grand prize of $3,000. I was wondering how cowboys made enough money to do that for a living, so I googled Tony Mendes, who was at the rodeo. He is only 31 years old and made over $750,000 bull riding so far. Not too shabby!
