One has to stay on top of a bucking bull for only eight seconds. What sounds like a simple premise, is arguably the toughest sport around. Every weekend, 45 of the best riders in the world are trying to tame wild bulls. Not even a third manages to stay on top of those 2,000 pounds beasts. Instead, many cowboys leave the arena with injuries. «We can die on every night we're performing, that's the exciting part of bull riding», says one veteran rider.
Facing death is part of...
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One has to stay on top of a bucking bull for only eight seconds. What sounds like a simple premise, is arguably the toughest sport around. Every weekend, 45 of the best riders in the world are trying to tame wild bulls. Not even a third manages to stay on top of those 2,000 pounds beasts. Instead, many cowboys leave the arena with injuries. «We can die on every night we're performing, that's the exciting part of bull riding», says one veteran rider.
Facing death is part of the overall allure of the Professional Bull Riders Inc., the organization that organizes the fastest growing sport in America. What started as a small separation from traditional rodeo has morphed into an event that is watched my half a billion people worldwide. «This is not a rodeo», says PBR-CEO Randy Bernard, «this is entertainment, more rock 'n' roll than country music.» He attributes the success of his sport to the mix of the traditional cowboy culture of the west with modern marketing. Multinational sponsors flock to bull riding, mostly because the sport works very well on television. The cowboys themselves are humble people. Many of them grew up on farms and started bull riding at an early age. Now they can earn millions on the back of bucking bulls. The bulls themselves are treated like stars. Stock contractors own and drive them to the 29 different American cities they perform. About half of the professional riders are devout Christians. They use bull riding to spread the gospel. «This sport has changed the image of a Christian man», says a pastor who travels with the riders. «He can be aggressive and gentle at the same time.»

For full text, please contact writer Peter Hossli : peter@hossli.com
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