With Summer in Montana brings rodeos almost every weekend. Corey and I went to the annual Bozeman Stampede Friday night.
They always start out with a tribute to the great country we all live in.
And of course the Montana State Flag.
And our defenders.
The Cowboys behind the chutes get ready for the first event, the Bareback Riding.
They ride the horse with what looks like a suitcase handle and need to stay on for 8 seconds.
This guy is about to have a very bad evening.
He is now hung up……fallen off the wrong side of the horse and his hand is stuck in the suitcase.
So the pickup me (they are riding the broke horses with the saddles) and the other cowboys get the horse slowed down enough that they can get him
back on his feet and his hand out of the rigging. He was fine, no worse for wear………..although his left arm is now 2 feet longer than his right !!
Next is the steer wrestling……..ride your horse like a bat out of hell while your hazer (on the opposite side of the steer) guides the steer
towards your speeding horse. Now jump off your horse onto the steer, grab his horns, and wrestle him to the ground, the time stops when the steers on his side.
It doesn’t always work out.
In between the events we have a little entertainment.
And a little food.
And of course you need to have the correct attire to attend the event.
And we picked our seats based on the company we would have (he was 1/2 corgi so it was meant to be 🙂
And what better after the delicious meal (do you hear the sarcasm in my voice?) than a pinch between the cheek and gums…………
So on to the next event, Saddle Bronc riding. No suitcase handle here, you have a special saddle and a bronc rein, stay on for 8 seconds…..good saddle bronc
riders are fun to watch, one of my favorite events.
Next we have the calf roping………rope the calf, have your horse keep the rope tight while you run down your rope to the calf, flank the calf,
tie him, go back to your horse…….the calf has to stay tied for 6 seconds.
Barrel Racing was next………..run your pony at high speed around 3 barrels in a cloverleaf patten, don’t knock the barrels down
or you will get a time penalty.
On to the team roping…… the header ropes the horns and the heeler ropes the hind feet…….our friend Bob was doing the heeling here.
And finally the Bull Riding……..stay on for 8 seconds and then run for your life.
It was a fun evening, perfect weather and lots of good friends.
The bucking horses and bulls behind the chutes.
