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Bareback
Riding
| Steer Wrestling
| Team Roping
| Saddle Bronc Riding
Tie-Down Roping
| Barrel Racing
| Bull Riding
| All-Around
Steer
Wrestling
|
 |
| A
perfect combination of strength,
timing and technique are necessary
for success in the lightning-quick
event of steer wrestling. |
The
objective of the steer wrestler, who is also
known as a "bulldogger," is to use strength
and technique to wrestle a steer to the ground
as quickly as possible.
That
sounds simple enough.
Here's
the catch: the steer generally weighs more than
twice as much as the cowboy and, at the time the
two come together, they're both often traveling
at 30 miles per hour. Speed and precision, the two
most important ingredients in steer wrestling, make
bulldogging one of rodeo's most challenging events.
As
with tie-down and team ropers, the bulldogger starts
on horseback in a box. A breakaway rope barrier
is attached to the steer and stretched across the
open end of the box. The steer gets a head start
that is determined by the size of the arena. When
the steer reaches the advantage point, the barrier
is released and the bulldogger takes off in pursuit.
If the bulldogger breaks the barrier before the
steer reaches his head start, a 10-second penalty
is assessed.
In
addition to strength, two other skills critical
to success in steer wrestling are timing and balance.
When
the cowboy reaches the steer, he slides down and
off the right side of his galloping horse, hooks
his right arm around the steer's right horn, grasps
the left horn with his left hand and, using strength
and leverage, slows the animal and wrestles it to
the ground. His work isn't complete until the steer
is on its side with all four feet pointing the same
direction. That's still not all there is to it.
To
catch the sprinting steer, the cowboy uses a "hazer,"
who is another mounted cowboy who gallops his horse
along the right side of the steer and keeps it from
veering away from the bulldogger.
The
efforts
of
the
hazer
can
be
nearly
as
important
as
those
of
the
steer
wrestler.
For
that
reason,
and
the
fact
that
he
sometimes
supplies
the
bulldogger
with
a
horse,
the
hazer
often
receives
a
fourth
of
the
payoff.
Ivan Coleman won the steer wrestling event at Industry Hills last year with an official time of 5.8 seconds. Ivan won $1,736 in prize money. Russ Weitl placed 2nd at Industry Hills with 6.0 seconds and won $1,436. Troy Dial placed 3rd with 6.7 seconds. Troy placed second in 2007. Charles Harris and Jack Vanderlans tied for 4th place with 6.8 seconds. One second of time separated these five contestants!
The fastest recorded time in Steer Wrestling at Industry Hills is 3.8 seconds, set by Cash Myers in 2006. |
