Charters Towers - Rodeo July 18, 2015

We went to our first ever rodeo. Not really sure what to expect, we found a great social night out for the families and a fine spectacle for entertainment. The action never stops for 3 hours and you just have to admire the skill of the cowboys and girls, and appreciate the beauty of the horses and cattle.

I had to go back and get the camera from the car. On the way back I couldn't help but grab some snaps of them warming up in this floodlit arena

The warm up paddock. Rodeo. Charters towers Qld

. Rodeo. Charters towers Qld

 First event we saw was like a motorkhana for horses. You bolt out of the gate, swing to the right around a barrel, across the other side and around another, then down to the end and around the third before full gallop back past the start line. Fastest time tonight was 17.3 seconds

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

In this one, the two riders chase the animal out of the shute. The one on the right has to lasso it around the horns and bring it to a stop, swinging the back legs up so the second rider can get a loop around them, then they stretch out the steer between the two horses (i assume that in the wild they would then brand it or mark it or jab it or something)

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

 This event sees them riding the horses bareback, the horses of course have a strap around their nether regions making them a bit tetchy. The good ones stay on and get extra points for digging spurs in and making the bucking bronco really get excited

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

It mostly doesn't go the way they would like. Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

 here the rider chases the cow out of the shute, is supposed to lasso the thing then use the horse and the rope to bring it to a dead stop, preferable on its back. The rider jumps off the horse, whips over and binds at least three legs to gather with that rope they have been carrying in their teeth. Usual time about 6 seconds

Mostly they got away and bolted for the door. Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

 This event is for heroes only. They chase the cow out of the shute. The rider on the left has to make it run in a straight line. The hero on the right jumps off his perfectly safe horse...

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

 .. and throws himself onto the back of the cow, grabbing madly at the horns...

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld 

... and if they do it right they end up with steer flat on its back

Rodeo. Charters Towers Qld

They also do bucking broncos but with saddles, apparently its all about flair and style as they mostly stay on

None of my bull riding shots are any good. This rodeo snap taking is tougher than it looks. I'm at 6400 asa and 5.6, the resultant 50th of second basically isn't fast enough and the 5.6 doesn't give you good enough depth of field to get more in focus.

So there's your challenge, get to a rodeo and get snapping. Just add them as comments to this post!