Clowns and Bullfighting in Rodeo…No Joking Matter

What do you get when you cross a funny guy with a painted face, spandex shorts, and oversized coveralls classed against a rank bull? In this game we call rodeo, this would be bullfighting at its best.

In rodeo's early days, clowns were entertainers first, protectors of the fallen bull riders second. But in today's sport of professional rodeo, protecting bull riders from serious injury or death is no joking matter. Clowns are dead serious about saving the cowboy, and often will place their own lives in jeopardy.

Because a bull will charge a horse and rider and make every effort to attack and injure anyone in their way, pick-up men cannot be used in bull riding contests. When a 2,000 pound bull decides to go on the rampage, these clown-painted matadors appear to play with the animal, and once a cowboy is on the ground, this distraction allows the cowboy to escape the best way he can to the nearest fence railing or open gate. The men in the funny outfits have honed their skills and methods of distracting bulls, and they know how to get into the bull's face. They can often make the difference between a successful bull ride and a tragedy, all this while making the audience laugh.

About twenty years ago, bullfighters (clowns) started competing among themselves in informal bullfights, pushing each other to the edges of daredevil stunts. Finally, in 1980, Wrangler sponsored the first Wrangler Jeans ProRodeo Bullfight Tour, and the level of competition and prize money continues to grow.

Rob Smets of Shamrock, Texas, has won more Wrangler world bullfighting championships than any other bullfighter. Smets has claimed the title five times, the last in 1994, despite suffering a broken neck in 1992.

But the rodeo breed of bullfighting is nothing like the Spanish event. In rodeo bullfighting, the four-legged contestants always leave the arena alive and unharme--albeit, with their tempers flailing high.

So what is bullfighting? Basically, it consists of exactly what clowns do to distract the bulls in the bull riding event, only to a higher level of aggravation to the bull. The bullfighter must spend at least 40 seconds in the arena with the bull. After the first 40 seconds, the bullfighter has the option to extend the excitement another 30 seconds.

Judges award points based on smoothness of the movement around the bull, how well the bullfighter controls the action, the closeness to the bull, and how many risks he takes. He receives more points if the bull is particularly aggressive. A risk move is the jumping of the bull lengthwise from the ground to the barrel, from a standstill to a running start. A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of watching a bullfighting event where the bullfighter actually ran toward the bull. The bull began charging the cowboy, and at the last minute, the cowboy vaulted over the top of the bull, landing in the dirt on the other side of the bull!

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