LAKEPORT — All the fun on Saturday was at the 90th Lake County Rodeo, sponsored by the Lake County Rodeo Association at the fairgrounds, especially for a group of youngsters and their parents.
According to Timeline.com, mutton busting, during which children ride or race sheep, has been a main rodeo event since 1980 when it started at Denver’s National Western Stock Show. Many parents of the mutton busters at Saturday night’s event said that the mutton busting helps build character and confidence in their children.
The children have to be between the ages of 4 and 8 and weigh under 50 pounds. There are no rules except the rider with the highest score wins. Rodeo clown Charlie Too-Tall was the judge. At 4 feet 6 inches, he’s the world’s smallest professional rodeo clown/barrel man and entertainer according to moderncowboy.com. He has been working rodeos for 36 years. Dressed in his clown outfit, he made jokes and encouraged the children and entertained the crowd.
During the mutton busting, there is nothing for the contestants to hold onto. There are no flank straps used on the sheep. The only motivation for the sheep is to get the rider off its back, so it runs as fast as it can.
“The best part of the show for me,” said Lloyd Wells, vice president of the Lake County Rodeo Association, “is to watch them [the contestants] when they get on the sheep. Some are ready to go. Some fall early. And the ones who cry, come back next year.”
Four-year -old Thor Gonsalez’s mother Camille Miller, said that, “Thor has never been on a sheep, but he’s been practicing on his siblings.” According to a 2011 article in The New York Times . “Playing make-believe rodeo with sheep has long been a pastime of rambunctious rural children.”
Jeralyn Frost, 5, dressed in pink was riding for the first time. Her mother, Jamie, said they came from Gardnerville, Nevada to participate. “Her father’s a horse trainer so she’s fearless.” Frost’s father, Jim Frost, knelt next to her and told his daughter, “When I put you on the sheep there’s no turning back.” Talking about her gear, he said, “She won’t be wearing gloves because she has to hold on to the sheep’s wool.”
Someone next to him laughed and said, “There is no wool! They’ve been sheared.”
Braelynn Burton, 6, wore a unicorn bicycle helmet. “I’m excited,” she said before the ride. Her father shouted to the crowd to cheer for his daughter, which they did right then, to his delight.
Eli Logan, 4, Braelynn Burton, 6, Brody Stivers, 4, Hazel Phillips, 4, Jeralyn Frost, 5, Olivia Nielson, 6, Thor Gonsalez, 4, Adelyn Edwards, 5, Damian Kennedy, 5, and Robert White, 7, all signed up to ride the sheep on Saturday. However, not all of them made it onto the backs of the sheep. While at the chute, some changed their minds.
Of the ones who did ride, some got thrown right out of the chute. Some held on for one or two seconds and landed in the dirt. Frost came out of the chute and quickly bit the dust. One little girl in a pink helmet fell off in the chute. Her mother rushed to her and gathered her in her arms.
Young Olivia Nielson seemed to have a death grip on her sheep while still in the chute. As the gate opened, the sheep bolted. Wearing a pink helmet, Nielson managed to hold on, her arms clinging to the sheep’s neck. With her black hair flying, her legs wrapped around the sheep’s belly, and her head next to the sheep’s head, she held fast as the sheep flew across the arena. Nielson’s back number flapped wildly as the sheep ran hard to dump her.
The crowd roared.
“She has no fear!” said Angel Purdy, volunteer for the LCRA.
Finally the sheep won as Nielson fell to the dirt.
Charlie Too-Tall congratulated the 6-year-old on the ride and gave her a score of 85.
Johnny Jones, the rodeo’s Grand Marshall announced the next rider; Robert White. White’s father lifted his son onto the sheep’s back. The chute opened. White clung to the sheep. His boots gripped the sheep’s hind quarters. White’s red helmeted head was at the sheep’s black head. The youngster’s arms continued to grip the sheep’s neck. The pickup man ran close by as the sheep bolted around the arena. White didn’t let go. He said later, “I was going for the biggest time.” Finally the youngster bit the dust.
Standing face-to-face, Charlie Too-Tall congratulated White for a great ride with a score of 91.
Thor Gonsalez next rode the sheep for a few seconds before he fell to the dirt in a cloud of dust. One other youngster [black caged helmet, blue plaid shirt] rode last and took a dramatic tumble off the sheep right out of the gate.
The crowd cheered the young mutton busters as they dusted off and lined up in the arena.
Jones announced White as the winner of the coveted silver belt buckle. It was White’s first time mutton busting, however not his first time with sports. “He water skis and is an avid dirt biker,” said his mother Pilar, which she thought might have prepared him to hold on tight.
The next day, his mother said, “Robert wants to ride again next year and defend his title. He was so excited about winning that he slept with his belt buckle in his bed.”
