January is a slow month for entertainment. So let’s go out to the local bull riding arena on a Saturday night.
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With an open mind and an appreciation for alternative sports, I found amateur bull riding to be an interesting night out.
The XB Arena in Manton, Kentucky is dedicated to this grueling sport. These amateur cowboys were serious competitors, and the crowd was attentive and a little worried.
During the limited winter season, brave young men test their mettle on the back of a 1200 lb. beast. They need to hold on for a bone-jarring 8 seconds to win points and prize money.
It’s an old sport, harkening back to the Wild West, where meeting danger head-on is testament to the strength of a man’s character.
Moments of comic relief were provided when tiny tots chased piglets and chickens.
All fun and games aside, this sport is serious as a heart attack.
There’s a huge risk of injury and broken bones.
That’s the cowboy life. All risk, some reward.
And who says there’s nothing to do around here in winter!
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For me it was going to the rodeo in Tucson which is held every March, La Fiesta de los Vacaqueros. Starts with school being out on parade day because there’s the (I believe, or it was when I lived in Tucson in the 1970s) largest horse drawn parade in the country. No motor vehicles allowed, not even antiques. They have a huge barn where all the historic wagons and, I think, stagecoaches are stored and kept in shape for the parade. Lots of school bands walking the streets between the wagons, too. Likely the reason schools are out. Also, the cowboys, cowgirls, and clowns (a very important part of the action in the arena). The rodeo events run for three days. I was between husbands and boyfriends when the rodeo rolled around one year. Had a girlfriend who could take off work for a day along with me, and we were both in the stands (wearing jeans, boots and off brand Stetsons). Of course, the reason we’d come was to admire the many cowboys leaning on the arena fence, their backs turned to the stands. Long legs, tight jeans, and cowboy hats everywhere we looked. That’s what your shots of this smaller and specialized rodeo sport event brought back to mind for me.
The mechanical bull was more than I wanted…back in the day.
I’ve never been brave enough to try!
Wow. Dangerous, no kidding. I had no idea we have a bull riding arena in Kentucky. We watched a competition in Fort Worth last year. Even if you’re not a fan, it’s an experience for sure.
A thrilling sport, for sure!