Saturday, June 27, 2009

Cowboys still ride




Cowboys still ride

It snowed the other day. June. It snowed in June. Some people got angry. They looked at the calendar and saw the unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day was a week past and now it was snowing. I just withdrew and ignored it. Cowboys though, well, being cowboys, they still ride even in the snow. They’re that way, you know.

It wasn’t just a dusting of snow, or a few flakes in the air, it accumulated and made a muddy mess. But cowboys, they still ride even in a muddy mess.

How do I know? I checked up on them over at the annual Wing Rodeo.

It was cold, much colder than I like to ride. It was only 38 degrees. I left my two wheels at home and caught a ride with Red in her truck over to the rodeo grounds. Those cowboys, even when it’s cold, they still ride.

Wing is a very very little town, almost like a village, a hamlet. It’s about 100 people, but it does have it’s annual rodeo

I wasn’t sure they’d go ahead with the rodeo, considering the weather. I think most would-be spectators felt the same way. So they stayed home. At least Red and I aren’t that skittish of a little cold and snow. Well, I guess I can’t speak much for Red. She pretty much spent the entire time in her truck. The horses didn't seem to mind. I didn't hear any complain...they just kept watching, even if they were wet.

I grabbed my camera and ventured out. It wasn’t very good lighting. The combination of low light, rain, high speed broncs and bulls made it tough to freeze their action. I racked up the ISO to 1200 and then 1600.

There weren’t too many spectators. Come to think of it, there weren’t any. The bleachers were empty. So, I could park myself on them and shoot the cowboys who weren’t moving too fast. Like the young blonde lady with her equally blonde horse. Even after she saw I was snapping her photo, she didn’t seem to mind.

Then, there was the young cowboy getting his chaps on, joking with his buddies. I asked permission to take his photo and he said sure. But his buddy jokingly protested. He didn’t bother to step out of the way after I teased him that he was probably hiding from his probation officer, drinking that beer like he was.

Red and I hung around for an hour or so. She stayed in the truck, I’d go back and check in with her when the cold rain would chill me. It got dark quickly, so we headed back to Wilton for a steak, and to cuss the snow. As we left the rodeo grounds, I could see behind us, that even in snow, rain and cold, cowboys still ride. (Recommendation: Sure those big rodeos are fun and entertaining -- especially the people watching. But if you want to see real cowboys doing for sport what they do for a job, check out a local rodeo -- preferably one in the real west. Sit in the grandstands. Don't be shy. Don't be afraid to strike up a conversation with a cowboy -- ask questions. They're friendly and fun to talk to.)


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1 comment:

  1. Sounds like a cold miserable day to be rodeoin'! Guess some people are made of tough stuff and some...hmmm...like Red are a little softer! Hope you enjoyed that steak!

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