Breakaway Roping

Breakaway Roping is an event originally introduced through the high school and college rodeo ranks, and is now accepted as a standard event at all PRO-WEST rodeos. Ladies of all ages and boys under sixteen years old are allowed to enter.

Breakaway Roping is a timed event in which the calf gets a head start on the contestant and her/his horse, if the roper doesn’t allow the calf a proper head start and breaks the barrier, the time will get a 10 second penalty.

The roper’s partner is a good horse which is fast enough to stay behind the calf at the proper distance and speed, even when the calf turns and ducks.

The contest is similar to (tie down ) calf roping, but the rider does not dismount and tie the calf.

The tail end of the rope is tied to the saddle horn with a light string. As soon as the loop is on the calf, the horse comes to a sudden stop and the calf breaks the rope away from the saddle horn, which stops the time.

Breakaway Roping is a rapid event and the roper with the fastest time wins. A time under 5 seconds is respectable, but at many PRO-WEST rodeos this season, anything over 3 seconds did not even place.

Bull Riding

The most popular rodeo riding event, and the most dangerous, is the Bull Riding.

The bulls are amazingly fast, powerful, agile, and can weigh as much as a ton. Not only does the bull rider have to stay on for 8 seconds, but he has to escape on foot once he gets off.

Bull Riding requires guts, balance, coordination, strength, quick reflexes, flexibility and, perhaps above all else, a positive mental attitude.

Riders use a specially designed flat braided rope. A dry powdered resin is applied to the gloved hand and to the bull rope, allowing for a more secure grip. The tail of the bull rope is laid across the bull rider’s palm, looped around the back of the hand and returned to his palm where it is gripped in a tightly clenched fist. Then sliding up tight against his hand, the rider rides for the gait to open. The rider tries to remain forward, or "over his hand", at all times. Leaning back could cause him to be whipped forward when the bull bucks. To keep his position and balance, a bull rider is constantly pulling up on his rope.

As in the other rodeo "rough-stock" events, the bull rider is only permitted to hold on with one hand and cannot touch himself or the animal with his free hand.

The more powerful a bull bucks and the faster he spins, the more points the ride is worth. If the rider manages to stay aboard for the required eight seconds, the tow rodeo judges will combine scores to award up to 50 points for how well the bull bucked and 50 points for how well the cowboy maintained control during the ride

Calf Roping

One of the oldest events in rodeo is Calf Roping, which evolved directly from work on the ranch. Calves had to be roped by a single cowboy for doctoring and branding, a must on the range.

In the rodeo arena, a PRO-WEST Calf Roper teams up with his highly conditioned Quarter Horse in a contest of split second timing and uncompromising teamwork between human and animal athletes. One misstep by either man or horse can cost a fraction of a second, which separates winners from losers.

Luck is always a factor in rodeo, of course, but in Calf Roping it’s the most prevalent in the draw. In every pen of calves, there are a few :rank ones:. These are the calves that just naturally have a little more spirit … they’ll kick and fight. You can’t often win on calves like that, which makes the luck of the draw so important.

The calves used in competition get a designated head-start into the rodeo arena and must rip a barrier string before the cowboy and horse can begin their chase. The cowboy who "breaks the barrier" by leaving the "roping box" too soon, has a 10 second penalty assessed to his time.

Now, about those horses! What they have in common is consistency. The cowboys who ride them know exactly what to expect of them, and this is essential. A horse that makes a great run one time and a sorry one the next (stops differently or takes two steps backwards one time, then perhaps only one step the next time) will dive a man crazy and also leave him broke.

Once they get in the arena, the roper must catch his calf with a 325 foot lariat rope, dismount his horse, run down the rope and drop the 300 pound calf to the arena floor. Then it’s time to make the tie. The cowboy gathers three of the calves legs, ties them together with a six foot "piggin" sting and throw up his hands to signal the end of his competitive run.

If the field judge has not noted any rule infractions and if the "tie" holds for 6 seconds, this contestant’s time becomes official. It often takes a time of 10 seconds or less to win a hotly contested Calf Roping competition.

Saddle Bronc Riding

Saddle Bronc Riding is the "classic event" of rodeo, having evolved directly from actual ranch work. Whenever cowboys from different outfits met on the trail, the best from each competed against one another in bronc riding.

When everything goes right, no sight in sports can match the grace and beauty of a saddle bronc ride. But if something goes wrong, a rough and potentially dangerous wreck is sure to follow.

Saddle bronc riding requires a combination of skill, grace and style. The rifer keeps himself in the saddle and his feet in the stirrups by lifting on the "bronc rein", attached to a halter on the horse. Since there is nothing solid to hold on to, a cowboy can only stay in the saddle through near perfect timing and balance.

To score a successful ride, the saddle bronc rider must get "in time" with the horse. To do this, he synchronizes his rhythm with the movement of the bucking bronc beneath him, making the whole ride appear smooth.

As in the bareback riding, if a saddle bronc rider fails to have his feet in place on the initial move out of the chute he will be disqualified. The bronc rider can also be disqualified for touching either the horse or any of the equipment with his free hand, for dropping the bronc rein, for losing a stirrup or being bucked off before the eight second time limit. Another danger is not only being bucked off, but also having a foot caught in the stirrup as the cowboy is thrown.

Both the horse and the cowboy are scored by two judges. There is a 25 point maximum for both the horse and the rider from each judge for a possible total of 100 pints. The horse is judged by how hard it bucks while the cowboy is judged on his form and ability to maintain control during the ride.

Steer Wrestling

Steer Wrestling is one rodeo event that does not have roots in ranch work, invented some 75 years ago by the famous cowboy Bill Pickett. Steer Wrestling was simply referred to as Bulldogging. Most of the cowboys even today simply call the vents "Doggin".

Normally called "The Big Man’s Event" , brute size and strength has give way to finesse and leverage, allowing "average" size cowboys to get into the money, if their technique is well honed.

The "run" begins behind a barrier. After the steer has been given a head start, the bulldogger gives chase. If he breaks the barrier, his is assessed a 10-second penalty.

The contestant positions his horse beside the steer and while racing at top speed, slides onto the running steer, "getting down" from his horse. His horse runs past the action which allows the contestant a clear area to stop the steer and throw him to the ground.

The Steer Wrestler has a partner called a "hazer" to aid him in keeping the 5000 pound horned steer running in a straight line. The hazer is the key to a successful run. He rides to the right of the steer to keep it from veering away. If he starts the chase too early, or too late, the steer moves away from the contestant, who then is too far away from the steer to make a safe reach.

As the Steer Wrestler’s horse catches up to the steer, the bulldogger begins to slide out of the saddle, reaching for the steer’s horns. He hooks the steer’s right horn in the crook of his right elbow, and grabs the left horn with his left hand. Then he digs his heels into the dirt, turns the steer and uses leverage to drop the steer to the ground.
The time sops when the steer lying flat on its side with all four legs pointing in the same direction.

With lots of practice and a good team of horses, cowboys can make a run in less than 5 seconds.

Team Roping

Team Roping is another event which has its roots in the very day work of the range cowboy, cattle often must be caught in order to be doctored, or to relocate an escapee. This is the only rodeo event where two cowboys compete together for a timed score and share prize money.

Because of the teamwork involved, and the fact that both sexes can enter, this contest is a favorite of many. Team Roping requires not only teamwork between the two contestants, but also between each cowboy and his horse.

The roping steer is given a designated head start into the arena before the contest begins. As in the other timed roping events, leaving too early and breaking the "barrier" by the header will draw a 10 second penalty assessed against the team.

Ropes (lariats) are loose from the saddle horns and once the "header" has roped the steer (around both horns, one horn and around half the head, or around the neck), he "dallys" (wraps) his rope around the saddle horn and turns his horse to the left.

Good headers help make good heelers, by "shaping up" the steer into position, allowing the "heeler" a good opportunity to "set a trap" with his loop, for the steer to step into with both back feet, then dally his rope.

The time is stopped when the horses are facing the steer and the ropes secure on both ends.

If the heeler throws his rope before the header changes the steer’s direction, the heeler is said to have "cross-fired" and the field judge disqualifies the team.

If only one hind leg is caught, the team is assessed a 5 second penalty.

Done properly, Team Roping looks easy, but there is danger in this rodeo event also. In going for the fast times, occasionally when dallying, a cowboy’s thumb gets caught between the rope and saddle horn. With the momentum of the steer going one way and the horse diving the other direction, the thumb is instantly amputated.

 

Barrel Racing

Barrel Racing is always a favorite event of spectators, combining the elements of a race, outstanding horsemanship, and an opportunity to see some of the best horse in the Northwest ~ not to mention some of the prettiest ladies!

PRO-WEST barrel racers ride horses that are some of the finest athletes to be found in any sport. These animals must be lighting fast, but still agile enough to slow down, turn around a barrel and get back to top speed very quickly. The horses ridden in this event are highly trained and extremely athletic, matching their speed and turns to the "cues" given by their riders.

In barrel racing, contestants ride through an electronic timing eye, race around a clover leaf pattern of three barrels and ride horses in, turn around the first barrel and sprint straight across the arena, then reversing the spin around the second barrel, then the third barrel beginning the full speed charge straight down the arena to the finish line.

The closer to the barrel the racer can get (without actually hitting the barrel), the straighter the line between the barrels and the faster the time. A five second penalty is assessed for each barrel a contestant knocks over, and she can be disqualified for "breaking pattern".

Contestants are competing against one another, but first are racing against the clock, the other timed events are clocked in tenths of a second. Barrel Racing is the only event timed in the hundredths of a second, because the times are so tight.

Clowns / Bull Fighters

After a bull ride ends, the bull continues to be a dangerous and unpredictable anima. That is why some rodeo clowns are more than comic entertainers, and specialize as bullfighters.

The main job of rodeo clowns is to protect the cowboys from the bulls. Whether working as a bullfighter, barrel man or clown, they all try to distract the bull long enough to allow the rider to escape from he arena without injury.

The bullfighter acts the part of the matador but has no equipment, other than his wits. Throughout the rodeo, the bullfighter might do his best to keep things lively, but it’s when the rider is thrown, possibly hurt or maybe hung up in his rope, that a bullfighter becomes a lifesaver. The clown or barrel man does his best to distract the bull until the cowboy can reach safety or the bullfighter frees a rider’s hung up hand.

For the clown or barrel man, that means at least making himself a "target", and probably pulling a variety of risky stunts to get the job done. Diverting the bull’s attention from his main mark, the cowboy, is no easy task. Bulls are quite fast and agile, and their surprising sudden moves are dangerous.

The barrel man spends much of his time in a padded barrel, which serves as an extra target for the bull and as an island for safety for the bullfighter. The barrel provides some protection but the bull is so string that he can easily tip the barrel over and possibly injure the barrel man by stepping in or striking his horn through one of the barrel’s open ends.

These men are invaluable and without them there would be a lot more injuries to the cowboys.

Judges

You make the call.

A calf roper has just caught his calf by the back leg,. As he begins to flank the calf, the animal makes a wild kick or shakes off the rope. The cowboy, however, manages to hold onto the calf, flank it to the ground, and tie it.

Is it a fair catch, or a disqualification? The officials who judge the PRO-WEST rodeos each wee-end would declare a fair catch.

Because accuracy is a priority, all PRO-WEST judges are regularly trained in both the rough stock and timed events.

In the bucking horse events, the two judges watch for the "mark-out", or feet placement, at the beginning of the ride, then follow the ride into the arena where they can clearly view the entire ride.

Although there is no mark-out rule in the bull riding, the judges take similar positions to provide optimum visibility.

When the action shifts to the timed-event end of the arena, the judges watch for infractions that could disqualify or penalize a run, such as fouls, broken barriers and improper catches.

The horseback judge, or flagger, also signals to the timers when the run is officially complete.