The Bull Riders

I had an opportunity on Saturday night to be near the bull riders' prep area. It is a reminder of the dangers of the sport and the age of these young men. A couple of riders are in their 30s. Jess Lockwood, from Montana, is only 19 and has 2017 winnings of $189,000 and some change. Six-Eight of the 35 are from Brazil and two riders are from Australia. One was a South Dakota boy.

I found a web site that explains the role of the bull rider's apparel & equipment, the role each plays in his safety: PBR Guide to the Gear

Alex Marcillo, Brazil, the rider

knocked out cold after landing

EMTs, PBR staff, protecting him from the crowd

he required 13 stitches which were done at the rodeo grounds

he later appeared and was awarded a helmet

he is one of the few who wears a cowboy hat

the role of the man standing on the gate

is to pull on the braided leather rope used by the

bull rider to stay on the bull

he pulls and pulls it tight and hops off the gate

 before the rider shimmies forward

one hand holds the rope, keeping him on the bull... maybe

notice the red mouth guard

he wraps it around his gloved hand a couple of times

then he shimmies forward closer to the front strap

nods to the gate man

and he is off for an 8 second ride

the ungloved hand is held in the air and can not

touch any part of the bull during the 8 seconds

Here are few videos of the rides from Friday and Saturday night:

Stormy Wing on Friday night's 8 second ride

unknown rider

watch the dismount

this ride got Gage Gay to the Championship Round

again, watch the dismount

Gage Gay rode all 3 of his bulls

his Championship Round ride

he won first place at this PBR event, $7100

The videos show what these men go through each time they get on their bulls. It is not a sport for old men. You also realize it is a sport for younger men based on their names: Koal, Slick, Cody Rodeo, Keyshawn, and Stormy. Those are the US riders!

I have one more post about the rodeo. This one is a human interest story. No, the romance writers were not back in Deadwood. This story is about the Safety Man.