Rodeo Show

Went to the American Royal Pro Rodeo Show at the Kemper Arena at Downtown Kansas.  Plenty of cowboys, stetsons, and product placements.  The show included bareback riding, steer wrestling, tie-down roping, barrel racing, bull riding, team roping, and saddle bronc riding.  For the "aah" factor, there were little boys doing their junior "rodeo" on the back of a sheep, called mutton bustin'.  The cute factor came from the beautiful Clydesdale horses, pulling and turning in unison a cartload of beer. 

For me, the two more interesting shows were team roping and tie-down roping. 

Team roping features a steer and two mounted cowboys; the first ropes the front of the steer, usually around the horns; the second ropes the steer by its hind feet.  Tie-down roping starts in the box.  The calf is released and the cowboy must rope it as quickly as possible.  As soon as a catch is made, the cowboy dismounts, sprints to the calf and tosses it on its side.  With a small rope, the cowboy ties any three of the calf's legs securely, then he saunters back to his horse.

This was a family event.  Even young girls were decked out in stetsons, some of them in pretty pink.  And some of them can emit the loudest screams, to show their support for the cowboys.

Before the show, we went to one of the popular BBQ restaurants along Metcalf Avenue and tasted the most delicious and succulent BBQ meats.  No wonder the Americans are so proud of their BBQ tradition.  This dish is called Jack's best, a collection of BBQ meat.  There was enough food for two,or even four, if you are a size zero gal.