Summer in California: the Fortuna Rodeo

June through September are the months of summer in Humboldt, but July has the best sun. The Fortuna Rodeo is a fixture of summer, taking place the weekend after July 4. Amanda and Jim are fans, so we went along, and they were right, it’s one of the best activities out here. Our choice was to go on Sunday, to see the barrel-racing. This event seems to be the province of young women, though I’ve read that it is for everyone among younger riders.

Fortunately for us, the Fortuna Rodeo Grounds has a huge set of bleachers, barely occupied when we arrived, where we found seats without having to do much climbing. From our base, we strolled the booths of food, drink, and rodeo souvenirs, returning to perch on the bleachers. We’ll remember to bring cushions to sit on next year.

Events got underway promptly at noon, complete with a rodeo clown between events. The day was cool and sunny when we arrived, perfect weather. A stream of people arrived from the very start and continued all afternoon. More were arriving even as we left in the late afternoon.

The first event was by far the funniest. I’d never heard of mutton-busting, but it seems to be a well-known rodeo event. It introduces small children to rodeo competition. Kids aged 4-7 who weigh less than 55 lbs. try to stay on the back of an adult sheep for eight seconds. The sheep don’t buck, but are terrified to have something on them. They run out of the same gate as the bucking broncos and head for the fence, or the nearest sheep. The kids dig their hands into the sheep’s fleece and hold on for dear life, gradually slipping to the side and off into the dirt (yes, they wear helmets). Some kids hit the dirt just out of the gate, and others hang on for several seconds. They don’t fall much more than 18 inches, so it’s not a big bump, but it is in the middle of the field in front of all those people. The winner of our competition got on the sheep backwards, putting one foot on each side of its head, and digging his hands into the fleecy rear flanks. He stayed on for the entire eight seconds. [Jada, the woman who cuts my hair, turns out to be a rodeo girl. She started with mutton-busting as a kid. I asked whether she wanted to do it and she said her mom had been a high school rodeo rider and insisted she try. They put her on the sheep crying and yelling and her mom said, “Don’t you let go until the announcer says time.” She hung on because that’s what her mom told her to do. She didn’t hear any of the announcements and they had to come and take her off the sheep in a pen around in the back where it had gone to be with the other sheep. She won the event.]

The rider on the right has roped the horns of the calf. The rider on the left is trying to rope a rear leg. He missed.

We saw bronc-riding. At my age all I can think of is how hard it shakes each rider’s bones. Only one of the riders we watched managed to stay on the entire ten seconds, and then he had to get off a bucking horse. There were a few events that involved roping calves. In one, the calf is roped, the rider dismounts and throws the animal on its side. In another, the legs of the calf have to be tied together. In team events, one rider ropes the calf around the horns, while the other has to rope one hoof, a feat that proved nearly impossible. Ribbon-roping was a fun one, as the mounted member of the team has to rope the calf’s horns or head, then the other team member runs out from the side of the arena to pull off the blue ribbon attached to the animal’s tail. That turns out to be more difficult than it sounds, as the runner has to avoid getting kicked.

The best came last, barrel-racing. It’s a timed event where each rider circles three barrels in a set pattern, starting and ending behind a line about 20 yards away. It was my favorite event, and we cheered for everyone. [Jada now competes in the ribbon roping and barrel racing. This year she declined to participate after her partner in the ribbon roping broke his collarbone in another event. She didn’t want to risk bruises on her face when she gets married–the week after the rodeo].