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RODEO
(1700 - 1910)
The
word “rodeo” comes from the Spanish word rodear (to surround).
It conjures up images of cowboys, cattle, horses ,dirt, blood,
guts, and stands packed with cheering spectators. Rodeo
has come a long way from its roots in the 1860s and 1870s
roundup camps when the annual roundup and branding of cattle
encouraged informal contests among the working cowboys. The skills displayed had a rich history
tracing back to the great horsemanship traditions of the
Spanish conquistadores. During the late 1700s and early
1800s, Spain held much of the land that is now the American
West. When the missions were established, their secular
activities included raising cows for America's flourishing
cattle market. The need grew for skilled horsemen to handle and
manage the herds. These skills were passed on to their workers,
known as “vaqueros”.
After America took these lands from
Mexico in 1848, the vaqueros continued to work the big
ranchos alongside their American counterparts bringing
with them their expertise and traditions. It was after the Civil War, when cattle
herds spread out throughout the West, that the ranks of
the American cowboy grew. They worked for cattle barons
driving cattle to the bustling stockyards of
fast-growing towns. There in celebration of their job
completed, informal competition was common. Cowboys might issue
challenges to each other to see who really was the best at
cutting cattle or throwing a rope. Spectators would inevitably
gather.
The first formal rodeo contest probably was held in
Cheyenne, Wyoming in 1872. Between 1890 and 1910, rodeo
emerged as public entertainment through various Wild
West Shows and performances at Fourth of July
celebrations and cattlemen’s conventions. Clever showmen
like Buffalo Bill Cody began to organize and elaborate on these
events. America's fascination with the "Wild West" was turned
into a business. It was the Wild West shows that led to
the emergence of RODEO as we know it today; and it was
Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show that led the pack.
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CODY'S
WILD WEST SHOW
The storm sure ripped the ranch apart.
The cattle's God knows where.
The windmill's broke. The gate is down.
The line camp needs repair.
There's fixin' up that's needed...
but the fixin' up kin wait.
The windmill ain't goin' nowhere,
and there's no legs on the gate.
I caught the stage for Cheyenne
with some cowboys that I know;
and all of us had tickets
to Cody's Wild West Show.
Buffalo Bill Cody's
famous Wild West Show...
well-known folk were in it...
some names I'd guess you'd know.
That Oakley gal named Annie...
she was good as some folk claim.
Still, I 'd bet I could out-shoot her,
though I ain't got Annie's fame.
And I wouldn't sell no tickets.
I'm beat-up, scarred and old.
My face would skeer a coyote off-
or so I once was told.
Fact is, I've been punchin' cows
for fifty years or more;
and the show, it showed me nothin'
that I hadn't seen before.
But they made it seem romantic,
like some wide-eyed, school boy's dream.
But the handsome scene they painted,
ain't all that it might seem.
They didn't show no cowhands
a' herdin' in the snow;
or freezin' off their kiesters
when it's forty-plus below.
And for sure they didn't show 'em
sacked out in mud and rain;
or tendin' foot-sore cattle
ravaged by some savage plain;
or herdin cattle weeks on end
in sweat-soaked, dust caked shirt,
across some sun-baked nightmare
while eatin' clouds a'dirt;
or drinkin' muddy water
from their cattle's cruddy tracks;
or mendin', like I gotta do,
some windmill, gate or shack.
There's just a lotta hardships
that they left out of that play.
I know that in the real world
the skies are often gray.
Romantic? I don't think so.
Most often, times are lean.
A cowboy's life is rugged
and it's often harsh and mean.
I've had my share of pleasure-
but as often, I've known pain...
and yet with all the heartaches,
I'd do it all again.
I'll go back home..fix up the ranch..
and think about the show.
There's much about the cowboy life
the crowd will never know.
It aint one bit romantic...
at least, it's not to me-
but what it is is better!
What it is is FREE!
A cowboy's like a stallion
that's wild, as wild can be.
His life's a rough and tough one...
but he's out there runnin' free!
by Bette Wolf Duncan
copyright©2001 All rights reserved.
Bette
Wolf Duncan is the webmaster and designer of this web site. She
has three other web sites. For a complete package of cowboy western poetry-
audio, attractive backgrounds and art, combined with cowboy western poetry
of both classic and contemporary poets, check out the following web sites.
Add them to your favorites so that you can come back again with ease :
The
author, Bette Wolf Duncan, grew up in southeastern Montana, not far from the
Wyoming border. This is Rodeo Country; and she celebrates this rich western
heritage with poems and photos of regional rodeo champions. She is the
granddaughter of early Montana and North Dakota pioneers; and she was married to
a former cowboy whose grandparents were among the earliest ranchers in northeast
Montana. She can still hear with her heart the pioneers tales of relatives and
other old-timers. This book is the echo of their tales and of good times
remembered. It contains a collection of poetry and written accounts that embody
much of the history and events that shaped Montana and Wyoming.
The book is $12.95. You can order it snail mail:
B-D Productions; 1755 S.E. 108th St.;Runnells, Iowa 50237 (515)
966-2461
Or by e-mail
wacobelle@msn.com
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