PBR

Okay so not everything we do for fun is exclusive to Colorado.  Case-in-point, this weekend we went to a PBR (Pro Bull Rider) sanctioned event in Castle Rock. 

 

Now here's the back story to this outing (isn't there always with us?).  See, Mark and I have finally figured out that we need to pack for any kind of weather up here even if the forecast says that it should be "nice" outside.  This entails packing up and bringing at least 40 lbs of equipment per person, per event.  Yup, gloves, hats, heavy boots, lightweight boots, heavy jackets, lightweight jackets, medium weight jackets...you get the picture.  The event advertised that it was going to be held at the Douglas County Fair Grounds. We had no idea what kind of facilities there were there so we did a Google Maps satellite search and saw a huge outdoor arena and a few smaller buildings and we figured that it was going to be held at the outdoor arena.  After checking the weather (that said it was going to be in the 50's with high winds) we decided to brave the elements and go anyway because we had already purchased our tickets in advance. We put everything in the truck and headed out, drove to the arena, arrived, and started putting on our 40 lbs of outer wear.  That's when we noticed that everyone else was walking towards one of the "smaller buildings" with lightweight coats on.  Much to our delight this event was being held INDOORS!!  (did you hear the choir of angels sing?) So we ditched the heavy coats, hats, gloves etc. and headed inside one of the heated, wind-free buildings!  In hindsight I guess we should have realized that most "outdoor" events will probably be held indoors in Colorado in February. (head thunk)


About the PBR.  I guess the bulls must have been pretty good because only 4 of the riders managed to stay on the bull for the required 8 seconds. (That's about 9 seconds longer than I could ever stay on one) Here are a few shots of the 45 rides we saw. These guys fell off:

 This guy stayed on:

They also had a mechanical bull, vendors, fair food and a small pony ride for the little kids. 

And unbeknownst to us, they also have something called the Mini Bulls.  This event is apparently a big deal these days.  The bulls are bred to be extra small and very YOUNG kids are riding them.  What shocked us more than anything is that they said these kids compete all over the US and basically follow the PBR circuit with the men.  They start these kids off really early- 8 years old to 9 years are in the Pee Wee Division, 10 years old to 11 years old are in the Junior Division and 12 years old to 14 years old are in the Senior Division.  I don't know about you but with all of the stuff they are finding out about CTE I'm surprised that parents are letting their kids participate in this sport at such a young age. But they do and no shock here..none of the kids made their times either.  It was a fun way to spend a cool, blustery day...INDOORS!

One of the mini bull riders