Rodeo

Chile Sport

Unlike rodeos in other countries, there is no bull riding or using ropes to tie up cattle. In fact, the Chilean rodeo only consists of one event which consists mainly of pinning a cow up against a padded wall.

The riders are called Huasos and they have to perform this sport in their traditional clothes. Each round consists of a two huasos working together to fulfil their task. These pairs are formed before entering and they have usually worked together in other events and know each other very well.

Before the Rodeo competition starts, all of the competitors present themselves in the main arena in front of the crowd. Riders get the feel of where they will be competing. Notice that the main arena is filled with compacted sand.

Huasos work in pairs trying to score points by pinning a cow to a padded section of the arena's wall. If the cow manages to escape from between the two huasos or goes in the wrong direction, points are lost.

Depending on how well the cow is pinned and other maneuvering of it determines how many points the pair of huasos receive or get deducted from the total. Each pair of Huasos start with 13 points and points are then deducting depending on the types of foals or incorrect maneuvers of the huasos or the cow.

Examples of pairs of Huasos at the start of their round having just come out of the warm-up area. It's important to have a huaso on either side of the cow as quickly as possible so that it can be guided in the right direction.

You can sometimes find some stands at a rodeo that sell typical Huaso clothing including ponchos and spurs.

Every official rodeo is held over two days, normally Saturdays and Sundays, though occasionally they will be held on Chilean Public holidays with a great number of rodeos taking place around the 18th of September (the Chilean national day).

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