Bull riding is the most commonly watched rodeo event with a couple large associations that are solely dedicated to bull riding. To truly understand bull riding and to be able to appreciate the skill of the participants, understanding the event in its entirety is helpful.
Bull riders have a lot less equipment then the competitors in all of the other rodeo events but the event is still rather complex. Before the rider gets in the chute they start by putting rosin all over their rope, and warming up the rosin that was previously applied. Rosin is a compound that makes the rope very sticky.
Once this is completed the rider then goes and waits for their bull to be loaded. Unlike, the timed events the stock in the rough stock events are not loaded in the order that the competitors are listed on the day sheet. So the each rider must wait until the bull they drew is loaded in the chute. In all most all associations the riders must wear a Kevlar vest for safety and can if they choose wear a helmet. When the rider enters the chute they get on the bull and then they wrap the rope around their riding hand. On their riding hand they also have a glove that is covered with rosin.
After the rider is on the steer and is ready, he or she nods and the gate men open the gate. The eight seconds that are required for a qualified ride starts when the bull breaks the plane of the gate. During, the ride the competitor must not touch the bull or the ground with their free hand. If the rider can spur or kick the bull and not just hold on the rider gets a better score. This event is scored by two judges each scoring the bull one to twenty-five and the rider on the same scale, these score are then added together to get the riders final score. The clowns or bullfighters serve two purposes in this event. Their first purpose is to increase the safety of the rider by helping them if they get hung up or in some other predicament. Their second job is to help keep the bulls active and help increase the riders’ score by keeping the bull moving.
In the bull riding the bulls are not hut and the flank strap that is placed around them to make them buck better does not touch or constrain their genitals.
The bulls used for bull riding are treated exceptionally well and not all of them are mean it is simply their job and is what they are raised and bred to do.
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