Rodeo Clowns: The Unsung Heroes In Wyoming’s State Sport

They've been around since the early 1900s, and without them, there would be way more injuries and deaths in the sport of rodeo. Depending on who you ask, they're either the bravest or the craziest people involved with rodeo.

READ MORE: The Perfect Age To Get Wyoming Kids Into Rodeo

The legendary rodeo bullfighters are also known as the rodeo clowns, but these heroes aren't your ordinary circus clowns. Sure, they paint their faces, run around making jokes, and causing mischief in the arena, but they have superhero-like features too.

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They have to have mental toughness, be physically fit, be quick on their feet, and be able to outsmart an animal that outweighs them by hundreds of pounds. Sure, they get their fairshare of bumps, bruises, broken bones, and more serious injuries, but their actions in the arena make them super.

Think about this...one bull ride is 8 seconds, and there can be as many as 40 bull rides in one night. That's a lot of work for the bullfighters in just one night, when you have rodeos like the Central Wyoming Fair and PRCA Rodeo or Cheyenne Frontier Days, they are multiple-night rodeos. These dudes are a different breed, for sure.

READ MORE: How Dangerous Is The Official Sport Of Wyoming?

The original purpose of the rodeo clown was, at first, like the clowns you see at the circus, to entertain the crowd between rodeo events. That's where the face painting, flashy clothes, and funny routines came from. As the bulls got bigger, so did the dangers of the rodeo, and the job of the rodeo clown became more important. They weren't just there to entertain; they're now there to become the cowboy protector and bullfighter.

Here in Wyoming, we're lucky to have some of the best rodeos in the country, and with that, the chance to watch some of the best bullfighters in the country. These dudes, as some bad mamba-jambas. Next time you're explaining to your kids who the real superheroes are, after you mention soldiers and first responders, be sure to throw in the rodeo bullfighters.

Remember, kids, not all superheroes wear a cape; sometimes they wear face paint and big, baggy clothes.