Somehow it occurred today that my TV was playing a live round or whatever of the PBR, which stands for Professional Bull Riders Association. This is not an area where I have much expertise, though I have been around many people who throw around a lot of bull, if you know what I mean. But as for riding, no. And it has worked out fine for me.
I was intrigued enough to watch for several moments and realized it is not all what one might expect from the Garth Brooks song (unsure of the title, the refrain is something like "that damned old rodeo"). The riders have sponsors and they wear a lot more protective gear (i.e. they actually wear some) than I would have thought- stiff looking vests emblazoned with their sponsors' names and helmets, not unlike a lacrosse or old school hockey helmet. I applaud this! Safety is where it's at and if you can prevent internal injuries or head trauma, why not? I will admit I had not expected either the protective gear or the sponsorships but they don't bother me. To me, I would much rather watch bull riding than car racing any day, if forced to choose.
Another thing that got me wondering- enough to try and find out via a friend from Texas--is how are the bulls chosen? It's easy enough to figure out how the riders might be selected, but what about the bulls? I doubt the riders are allowed to bring one along and ride that one. Each bull had a name- is there an organization which ranks bulls for their non-rideability? Are bulls them bred for the circuit? If a bull has an easy going nature is he then considered a failure? Is there any bull-baiting behind the scenes?
I do not know.
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