What is mutton busting, you might ask? Well, you take your small-sized person (age 3-6), strap a helmet on the head and a protective vest around the torso, and stick them on the back of one of these...
Okay, not really since that's actually beef, not mutton. These are the mean things that get ridden in the actual rodeo. Let me tell you, they are one ugly bunch of animals! Here's what the kiddos ride for mutton busting:
Signing up is easy and free; simply show up early and get your name on the list. (Okay, somebody has to fill out a liability waver, of course, but that's not too painful). Amelie thought she might have enjoyed riding a sheep, however, Daddy and Mommy thought that getting tossed (okay- jounced) off from the back of such an animal might be a little upsetting for her. Silas, however, was definitely up for the challenge!
Here he is, purposefully striding toward the chute in his gear (all 34-1/2 pounds of him, plus an extra couple pounds of helmet and vest). I think the sheep is trembling... (but probably not from fear!).
The people running the event try to match the kids to the sheep- bigger kids get bigger sheep, and smaller kids get medium-sized sheep (no lambs allowed). Silas got an average-sized sheep.
Here he comes- clinging to that thick, matted wool for all he's worth! The sheep basically makes a mad dash from the chute down to the other end of the arena where it is chased through a gate into a holding pen with all of its friends. Its rider hangs on for all he/she is worth, and usually gets jostled off somewhere along the way. The really small guys got the benefit of the "clown" holding on to the sheep's wool as well as the seat of their pants. He'd run with the sheep down the small arena, and then pull the kiddo off, unscathed. The clown, joking with the announcer, noted that he had once had the opportunity to do some bull riding, but it didn't work out so well because none of the rodeo clowns were willing to hold on to the haunches of the bull and the seat of
his pants!
Announcer: Ready to go again?
Silas: Yes!!!
Silas made it about half-way down the sanded arena, scoring an 82. He was pretty happy about this, since the winner scored an 86. I'm not sure how they do the scoring for this event, but I'm pretty sure it's a bit more relaxed than the scoring system used in the PRCA events! He came up wearing some sand, but didn't have it falling out of his helmet like some of the other kids. Looks like he came away with a pretty good 5-year old adrenaline rush, though. He's already looking forward to next year's event!
