Trickster tales abound-stories in which a rodeo man outwits his fellow cowboys, rodeo animals and others, and these tales usually end in comical results. One such story tells of a bull that escapes a Toronto rodeo arena and was pursued in a three week chase by several cowboys through the rodeo grounds, a cemetery, a railroad switchyard, downtown, and the local police headquarters, before finally being "outsmarted" by one sharp cowboy. When locals insisted on shooting "the dangerous beast", the cowboy replies, "Well, they're all dangerous, what do you think we want, a bunch of bucket calves to ride?" Instead, the boys hog-tie the bull, return him to the fairgrounds and set him loose.
What about the tale of the sweet-talking cowboy who wheedled a pilot into landing him in a small rodeo arena so that he wouldn't miss his event? It seems the small plane overshot the arena and landed in a nearby field. That didn't effect the cowboy none. Stepping off the plane, he walked onto the rodeo grounds and won his event.
Although these folktales continue on, the primary focus is that the cowboy hero is engaged in dramatic action. The cowboy is freedom-loving, a drifter, and of course, a real "buckaroo" highly skilled in his line of work. The stories revolving around him may involve superstitions and trickster themes. But almost always they are tales of riding, roping or 'dogging wild broncs, steers, and bulls. The one basic similarities unfold into a cowboy hero who is always courageous and oblivious to pain and injury. The hero who emerges is a "real cowboy", not a drugstore cowboy or some other wannabe. He has withstood the test, and he has earned the right to call himself a cowboy.
And if asked, his philosophy of life might be summed up like this: "There are three kinds of people. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest who have to touch the electric fence for themselves."
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