Going to the rodeo can be very exciting. There are many different events in a rodeo, but among the most popular are the riding events. In these events, riders are scored on style and their ability to stay on either a horse or a bull. The three main riding events are saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, and bull riding.

Riders competing in saddle bronc riding try to stay on an untrained, or “unbroken,” horse for eight seconds. The horse has a saddle that the cowboy sits in. The horse and the rider are kept in a chute—a small pen that holds them in position—until the gate is opened. The rider must stay in the saddle for eight seconds while the horse tries to buck him off. The rider must keep one hand free. He cannot touch the horse, the equipment, or himself with that hand for the entire eight seconds. His feet must stay in the stirrups, and he must hold the reins in one hand.

In both saddle bronc and bareback riding events, riders must use spurs. Part of their scores are based on their spurring action. Cowboys who compete in bareback riding, however, have no saddle to sit in. They must stay on the horse for eight seconds using only a leather handhold called “rigging.” The horses used in bareback riding are usually lighter, and they tend to buck more than the heavier horses used in saddle bronc riding. Otherwise, the two horse riding events are generally the same.

Bull riding is much the same as bareback riding in terms of rules and scoring. For instance, cowboys must stay mounted for eight seconds, and they must keep one hand free. Cowboys are not required to use spurs in bull riding, but they can do so, and it is usually good for their scores. Riding bulls is also different because bulls can move their bodies in different ways than horses can. Additionally, when bulls are able to buck a rider off, they are more likely than horses to be angry. A bull is likely to go after the thrown rider to try and stomp on him. That’s when the rodeo clowns come in handy. They distract the bull, so that the rider can get up and out of there fast!

Truly, rodeo events can be very exciting!

• ✔The riders must stay on their bucking mounts for at least eight seconds.


• ✔The riders and their mounts are kept in a chute until the gate is opened.


• ✔Riders must keep one hand free during their rides.

Rodeo Clowns

Rodeo clowns are one of the most important players at a rodeo. They do not compete in bull riding, steer wrestling, or roping contests. However, they probably have the most dangerous job at the rodeo. Also known as “bullfighters” and “rodeo protection athletes,” rodeo clowns are responsible for both entertaining the crowd and protecting the cowboys. They play an especially important role in protecting bull riders who have been thrown from or caught on the bulls they were riding.

Because they have such an important job, rodeo clowns often work in teams. Some rodeo clowns focus on entertainment, and others focus on protection. Usually all of them, however, wear bright, loose-fitting clothing that looks very “clownish.” They wear protection underneath their baggy clothes. They often wear white makeup around their eyes and mouths, and red on their noses. They serve as distractors for angry bulls who are determined to “punish” the bull riders who tried to ride them.

At most U.S. rodeos, one of the clowns is a barrel man. The barrel man is usually a comic, but he can also play an important protective role. He uses a large, padded, steel barrel that he can quickly jump in and out of. A barrel man can provide an alternative target for a downed bull rider and then jump into the barrel for protection. This gives the bull rider time to get up and get out of the arena.

Rodeo clowns must be fast, agile, and bull savvy. They know how bulls are likely to behave under certain conditions. In fact, rodeo clowns are so skilled that there are now some professional rodeo clown competitions! Competing clowns show off their bull-handling and barrel skills. Some perform tricks like jumping over the running bulls! They usually spend about a minute or so in the ring with the bull. That’s a lot longer than the eight seconds that a bull rider needs to ride the bull! Rodeo clowns do indeed play an important rodeo role.