by Jake Morrison

Created on: June 22, 2009   Last Updated: June 14, 2010

Steer wrestling, also called bulldogging, is a rodeo event that consists of a horse-mounted rider chasing a steer, then dropping from the horse to the steer and attempting to wrestle the steer to the ground. The rider does this by twisting the steer's horns back and forth until the steer falls. Like most of the rodeo events, there are concerns from the animal rights community that this may be cruel to the animal. However, the risk of injury to the rider is high as well.

To start the event, a ten foot rope is attached to the steer. When the rider is ready, he calls to the hazer who releases the steer. The hazer's job is to ride next to the steer to make sure that they run in a strait line while the rider tries to catch it. The steer breaks out running and when it reaches the end of its rope, the rope pops off which releases the horse and the rider. The steer has a head start but the horse and rider quickly catch the steer.

Once the rider has caught up to the steer, they must lean over the side of the horse and grab the horns of the running steer. The steer begins to go faster and drags the rider completely off the horse. The rider will then try to slow the steer down by digging his boots into the ground. At the same time, he will grab the nose of the steer while twisting his horns. Eventually, this will throw the steer off balance stopping the steer in the dirt. Once all four of the steer's legs are off the ground, an official will waive a flag. This ends the time and it is recorded. The steer is let go and they trot off.

There are few rules to this sport but here are some off the main ones. The rider's horse cannot break the barrier early. They must wait until the steer's rope has broke, releasing them. If they do take off early, it will result in a 10 second penalty to the rider's time. Because a winning rider's time will be in the three to four second range, this penalty will put the rider out of competition. If the rider misses the steer on their way down, they will receive a "no-time". If the steer stumbles and falls down before the rider has made contact with it, they must wait for the steer to get up.

The steers used today are generally Corriente cattle which weigh in between 450-650 pounds. The typical weight of the riders is between 200-275 pounds, giving the steers that advantage. The riders in this event are injured more that in any speed event but the steers are injured more often.

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