Arizona rodeo

Apache bull riders preparing for their rides. Photo by David Lansing.

Usually they start off with the bareback events but today it’s bull riding because there’s another rodeo in nearby San Carlos and  most of these Indian cowboys will change their dusty shirts and jeans in the truck and head on down the road with their injuries to try their luck again.

An Apache cowboy with a black felt hat tapes up a busted hand while another young cowboy with a broken arm in a sling prepares for his ride by isolating himself while crouching down, like he’s praying, in a corner.

All these cowboys are taped up. Every single one.

As the first bull rider gets into the gate, the announcer says, “Some of these guys have had a dozen surgeries or more. They tape up their strong arm forearm to keep the tendons from getting stripped.”

The cowboys all wear freshly starched and pressed shirts that have rips in the shoulder and thread-bare collars.

Here are the names of the cowboys: Julyan Yellowhair, Vincent Shorty, Richard Billy, Cody Boozer, Wilford Peaches.

Here are the names of the bulls: No Excuses, Nothing Matters, Exit Only, Black Scorpion, Gizmo, Pistol Pete.

Vincent Shorty, who is barely 5 feet tall, gets on top of Pistol Pete, a gate is pulled, and the rodeo has begun.