Brawley Chamber of Commerce
Brawley Cattle Call
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Steer Wrestling
Speed and strength are the name of the game in steer wrestling. Steer wrestling is the quickest event
in rodeo. The objective of the steer wrestler (also known as a "bulldogger") is to use strength and technique to
wrestle a steer to the ground as quickly as possible.
The steer generally weighs more than twice as much as a cowboy and, at the time the two come
together, they're both often traveling at 30 miles per hour. Speed and precision, the two most important
factors in steer wrestling, making bulldogging one of the most challenging events.
As with tie-down and team ropers, the bulldogger starts on horseback in a box. A breakaway rope
barrier is attached to the steer and stretched across the open end of the box. The steer gets a head start that is
determined by the size of the arena. When the steer reaches the
advantage point, the barrier is released and the bulldogger takes
o in pursuit. If the billdogger breaks the barrier before the steer
reaches his head start, a 10-second penalty is assessed.
In addition to strength, two other skills critical to success
is steer wrestling are timing and balance. When the cowboy
reaches the steer, he slides down o the right side of his gallop-
ing horse, hooks his right arm around the steer's right horn,
grasps the left horn with his left hand and, using strength and
leverage, slows the animal and wrestles it to the ground. His
work isn't complete until the steer is on its side with all four feet
pointing the same direction.
To catch the sprinting steer, the cowboys uses a "hazer",
who is another mounted cowboy who gallops his horse along
the right side of the steer and keeps it from veering away
from the bulldogger. The e orts of the hazer can be almost as important as those of the steer wrestler. The
hazer often receives a fourth of the payo .
Mutton Bustin
Due to its origins in the family-run ranches of the 19th Century West, rodeo often is called the
original family sport and the modern events remain close to those roots. In that spirit, the 52nd Annual
Brawley Cattle Call Rodeo will again feature the popular "mutton bustin" competition where youngsters get
a taste of the thrills of being rodeo competitors.
Children ages 5-8 and under 60 pounds will see if they can ride a bucking ewe (female lamb) for 30
seconds. The rides will be complete with calls by the announcer and assisance from the rodeo clown. Each
rodeo performance will have a di erent group of 10 children competing. The children will ride one at a
time and see if they can stay on for 30 seconds.
The children are chosen on a rst come, rst
served basis for sign ups. The winner of each event, the
child who remains on the ewe the longest will be
rewarded a trophy. All competitors will get a partici-
pants ribbon. Mutton bustin is something the crowd
looks forward to every year. It gives the kids a chance to
compete in the rodeo arena and is absolutely adorable
to see.