Rodeo!

Well, I knew it would be hilarious, but I hadn't dared hope that it would be so much fun and so impressive.  Hilarities included endless ten gallon hats, chaps and big buckles, piped country and western music ("textin' till ma fingers bleed"), burgers, bad beer, and an announcer from Texas who said things like, "he comes from a family of ropers".  Mat was the only man not wearing jeans, and certainly the only wearing a brown corduroy jacket.

Blurry bucking bronco + attendant

The site is a horrendous dust bowl which straddles Interstate 70 in South Denver and the Rodeo took place in, yes, The Coliseum.  We discovered that Cody is a proper cowboy name.

And the cowboys showed some serious skill, strength, horsemanship and courage.  We discovered that bucking broncos used to be wild horses but now are bred to buck and (according to the totally unbiased announcer) love it and suffer no cruelty.  We had a question about a strap that is put around the horse's tummy and removed when bucking is no longer required ...  Any insider knowledge on that anyone?  Hope you can watch the video.

Blurry calf lassoeing

We saw bareback broncos and saddled broncos, lassoeing, racing round barrels, olde worlde 6-horse mailcoach, and, bull riding - BIG bull riding.  Also cowboys leaping off their horses and wrestling down young bulls, and trussing up their legs. And of course mutton bustin - small boys and girls riding sheep until they drop off and are scopped up by their moms in pink sparkley cowgirl hats. Everything!  It was a very slick, professional show, but if you looked at the cowboys just before their 8 seconds of fame, they couldn't hide a pretty tense, concentrated expression.

prize winning golden Highland cow.

We went to a stock auction, and the stock that day was ... Highland cows.  Big thing in the US apparently, and some highland blood in your stock makes for leaner meat, better conversion of poor pasture and easier calfbearing, apparently.  A young bull sold for $6,000.