Rodeo 101: Bull Riding
Bull riding stands as the rodeo’s most dangerous event. In the chute, the bull rider positions himself atop the bull, securing a braided rope around the bull’s girth. He then loops the rope around his hand, gripping it tightly in his palm. While spurring is optional, the primary aim for the cowboy is to endure for eight seconds without making contact with himself, his gear, or the bull using his free hand.
The cowboy earns high marks for maintaining central balance on the 2000-pound bull and exhibiting full control throughout the ride. Once the mandatory eight seconds pass, two judges evaluate the ride’s difficulty, considering the bull’s various movements like spinning (recorded up to 5 G Forces on a spinning bull), jumping, kicking, lunging, rearing, and side-to-side motion, alongside assessing the cowboy’s level of control. The Bull Riding is the only event that has a recorded 100-point score.
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2024 Winner: Rugar Piva
Bull Riding: Rugar Piva Takes the Title in a Ride-Off After Two Riders Score 88 Points
The Bull Riding event brought the excitement to another level in the weekend’s final event. Fort St John, BC’s Jacob Gardner had the standout ride amid stiff competition and hard-bucking bulls until Rugar Piva tied the top mark of 88 points in the last ride of the day. Officials conferred and decided the tie would be broken with a ride-off. Two new bulls, including one that had yet to be ridden, were brought out. Jacob Gardner went first and set the bar at 7.1 seconds on Flight Risk. Rugar Piva then took to the ring on Enter the Dragon and made it the full 8 seconds to take home the title.
Rugar was in top form all weekend, and announcer Bob Tallman asked him what this win means to him as he moves into the rest of the season, “If I’m going to be really honest, I was on an eight bull buck-off coming into today. So confidence wasn’t really good. But after today, winning the short round, then winning the ride-off, I feel like about 25,000 bucks!”
Riders and fans alike commented on the quality of the competition. Cloverdale’s volunteer-run invitational rodeo is often hailed by riders as one of their favourite events all year, and Rugar Piva echoed these sentiments in his acceptance speech: “I’ve been telling everyone this is my favourite rodeo of the year. Now it’s really, REALLY my favourite.”
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