• April 29, 2016
• Guadalupe Ranch Horseback Riding Vacations in Mexico

Rodeo is an American cowboy sport influenced by the Spanish Conquistadors, because of the proximity with the U.S.A. border; the sport is also widespread in some northern states of Mexico.

The origin of the rodeo in the United States began with the arrival of the Spanish Conquistadors to the Americas. Ranchos began to appear in the north of New Spain (Mexico) with round pens known as El Rodeo where wild horses and bulls were domesticated. The Spaniards, traditionally famous for their ability to work with a lasso when riding, passed the skills to the workers so they could handle the herds more efficiently.  To date, these skills prevail in the cattle industry.

At the beginning, rodeos were amateur competitions in agility, the ability to break in or restrain an unruly horse and lasso bulls.

With the wide development of farms at the end of the XIX century, the need to move cattle from pasture to pasture diminished and the demand for cowboy's services decreased slightly. During that time, Rodeo turned into entertainment as a means to earn money. Today, general rules to protect participants, animals and the public are in place.

There are several kinds of competitions: races on a wild bull, on bareback or saddle horse, bull lasso, lowering of the bull, racing around barrels, and many more. However, more often the word "rodeo" is used for races on a "wild bull" (bull riding), bronc riding --either bareback bronc or saddle bronc. The cowboy must not only keep riding for eight seconds, but also show the potential of the animal, spurring it. If the bull or the horse is not "frisky" enough, the judge may assign a restart on another animal.

Other competitions involve showing the cowboy's skill in handling the cattle. For example, lassoing a bull (calf roping) is required to catch the calf, throwing a lasso around his neck and to hobble it. To get qualified, is necessary to tie the calf legs so that cannot get untied for at least six seconds. In lowering of the bull, (steer wrestling) the cowboy has to jump from the horse on the bull's back and to let the animal fall to the ground by hauling its horns. In the team competition (team roping), one of the participants needs to throw a lasso on the horns or neck of the calf, and another on its hind legs. The winner is the team which accomplished the task faster. In the Single Steer Roping competition, the cowboy shows a mastery of the lasso; throwing it on the horns of the animal, when he stops the horse abruptly, the bull topples to the ground. Today only woman participate in the Barrel Racing competitions; the participants have to gallop between barrels spaced on the rodeo without tipping them, the number of barrels they tip over reduces points.

Any Rodeo cannot be complete without the queen. The choice falls on the girl who shows the best riding skills, knowledge of the rules, and of course, great personality.