Denver

The Bull Riders – Part III

January 18, 2012 by Justin 1 Comment

The Gear

The Complete Story of ‘The Bull Riders’

Today we will take a look at the Bull Rider’s gear. Surprisingly, it is not a very gear intensive sport. The rider and the bull are pretty much one…well, at least for 8 seconds if everything goes according to plan. Tomorrow we go behind the scenes and follow the athletes as they prepare for event.

The Boot – The bull rider keeps himself on the bull with leg and core strength. Unlike the horse riders, they don’t have stirrups. They simply use the power of their legs to keep them centered over the bull’s back. That being said, they don’t want their boots coming off. A saddle bronc rider will actually put baby powder in their boot so their foot can slide out easier if they are bucked. A bull rider ties his boot on as tight as he can. If a bull rider gets hung up, the rodeo clowns actually have to run out and cut them free as the bull is bucking.

The Protection – More and more bull riders are choosing to wear both a flack jacket and helmet. I would guess about 80% of them are protecting themselves with a helmet. I can’t blame them. I witnessed a rider take a blow to the head, and walk away with a mild concussion. I’m guessing if he didn’t have the helmet on, things would have turned out much worse. If I were ever to win the PBR championship, and they sent me home with a million dollar check, you bet the next day I would have a helmet on. I would want to enjoy the fruits of my labor for as long as I could.

The Rawl – I didn’t know this, but the spur is what sticks out from the boot, the rawl is spiny thing that chimes when cowboys walk into a saloon. Unlike gunfighters and horse riders, a bull riders rawl is locked down so that they can hold on to the bull better. The rawl is also filed down so that it doesn’t harm the bull.

The Rope – Other than balance and the strength of the rider’s legs, the rope is all they have to keep them on the bull. Some riders tie it tight, others keep it loose. Basically, it is has a small handle where they grip it and a bell to weigh it down so that it slides off when they break free. A bull rider’s rope will last between one and three years depending on the rider. Prior to the event, they coat it in a resin (tree sap) and glycerin to make it sticky and easier to hold on to.

The Glove – It is what it is. It keeps their hands protected and improves their hold on the rope. Most of the riders will tape it tight above their writs. Much like the boot, they don’t want it coming off.

Filed Under: Colorado, Denver, Nik Software, Nikon 24-70, Nikon D700, Nikon D7000, The Bull Riders

The Bull Riders – Part II

January 17, 2012 by Justin 11 Comments

The Event

The Complete Story of ‘The Bull Riders’

Before we get into the story of the individual athletes and what it takes for them to ride bulls, I thought it would be best to understand the competition. The event itself is 3 days long. During the first 2 days, 50 or so riders get a single shot at making it to the finals. They each draw a random bull assignment which they will have to ride. The first 2 days are called the long rounds. If you stay on for 8 seconds, you get scored, if not, you go home. A rider’s score is the sum of his performance plus that of the bull’s for a possible total of 100pts. A good score is in the 80s, a great score is in the 90s. After the first two nights of longs rounds, the top performing riders and top performing bulls move on to the third night. At this point, the best riders are riding the best bulls. Remember, the bulls are considered athletes and scored accordingly. The scores from this round (known as the progressive or short round) are added to the scores of the long round to determine which of the best 15 riders move on to the finals. Finally, the top 15 riders ride the 15 best bulls. Their scores from this round are added to the average score of their two previous rounds to determine the overall winner. (Note: If a PBR official or fan is reading this, please correct me if I’m wrong.)

The bull rider himself can’t be understood unless you understand what they are up against. After interviewing several of the riders and observing them for three days it became clear, they aren’t competing against one another. They are one of the most supportive group of athletes I have ran into. They are competing against themselves as they attempt to ride an animal that can do something like this to you with out batting an eye. Their job is just too dangerous to let ego get in the way.

Also, this story of the professional bull rider can’t be told without a look at the team that tries to protect them. In the image above, bull fighter Lance Brittan takes one for the team as he makes a save. He was slow getting up, but once he did he was back at it. The bull fighters are there to distract the bull once the rider has broke free. These guys put their lives on the line, and as one rider told me “They are part of the team”.

Secondly, the medical staff that is on hand is second to none. They are a specialized group of doctors, nurses, and therapists that support and advise the athletes. However, unlike an NFL, NHL, or NBA medial staffer, they have no say in whether the rider competes or not. Bull riding is unique in the fact that these guys don’t have contracts or guaranteed money. If they want to make a living and go to the next event, they have to compete. Don Andrews best described it by saying the riders are “Athlete, GM, coach, and trainer all rolled into one.”.

Come back tomorrow as we will be taking a look at the gear these riders use day in and day out.

Filed Under: Colorado, Denver, Nikon 24-70, Nikon 70-200 2.8 AFS VR II, Nikon D700, Nikon D7000, Sigma 15mm Fisheye, The Bull Riders
Tagged With: PBR

The Bull Riders – Part I

January 15, 2012 by Justin 5 Comments

The Complete Story of ‘The Bull Riders’

Up until last week, I knew very little about the sport of professional bull riding. For me, it was what came on after the Tour de France on Versus. However, as an athlete, I have always been fascinated by the the bull riders themselves and what they do to train for their sport. When the PBR was coming through Denver, I decided I would set out to do a story on these guys and find out exactly what it takes in terms of training, mental preparation, equipment, and motivation to get on top of a 2000 lbs animal that really doesn’t want you there. Over the course of this week, in my story ‘The Bull Riders’, I hope to share what I found. I spent the week learning about the PBR and interviewing guys like Austin Meier, Ryan Dirteater, Francisco Morales,and Silvana Alves. I quickly discovered these are some of the nicest guys you will ever meet. They were incredibly generous with their knowledge and time. Other than a few issues with language barriers, not only was I able to get all my questions answered, I had some great conversations. I hope that over the next week, I can help shed some light on these guys, so that you too will understand what it means to be bull rider.

Filed Under: Colorado, Denver, Nikon 70-200 2.8 AFS VR II, Nikon D700, The Bull Riders
Tagged With: PBR

Can’t Wait To Visit!

July 26, 2011 by Justin 12 Comments

Today’s Image: A couple of my good friends left Colorado last week to start a new life in Brazil. Before they left, I was able to grab one last image from their balcony. We were bummed to see them leave, but we are pretty excited to take a photo from their new porch. I guess it has a view of the ocean!

New Site Update

Here is a sneak preview of the new site’s footer. It will be a bit of a departure from the current look of LightAsMagic.com. It will also be a bit larger. Based on my stats, 90% of non-mobile users are viewing the site at a minimum of 1280px, so I decided to use that has my base resolution. The site is designed for larger monitors, and therefore will support images close to 950px in width. Over 10% larger than the current images. It is going to be big! Should be here either this Friday or next Monday.

My designer really came through with some very cool social icons to match my frontier vibe!

Continue for Capture/Processing Notes…

Filed Under: Colorado, Denver, Gitzo Traveler, HDR, News, Nik Software, Nikon 17-35 2.8 AFS, Nikon D700, Out My Front Door, Processing Notes

Space Station U2

May 23, 2011 by Justin 3 Comments

When you hear ‘Beautiful Day’ live, you believe it. U2 is currently making their way around the world, and if you have a chance to see them don’t miss it. I know I haven’t seen anything like it, and I don’t know if I ever will. I fear the days of stadium rock are coming to a close. That and the fact there is nothing like U2. They have 2 full stages rolling around in 104 19 wheelers. I’m still dreaming of what it must be like for The Edge to take this stage, his strat in hand, and lay into Sunday Bloody Sunday. Even if it was for just 1 song, it would be a dream come true to be the 5th (well, 6th I think they count Dallas as the 5th) member of U2! Here is a quick video about the stage itself.

I made this image with my trusty Lumix LX5. You can read my review of it here. I would have made a couple additional images, however I pulled a rookie mistake (how long have I been a photographer?) and left my memory cards at home. Yep, I showed up with ready to shoot a U2 show with “built in memory”. Just enough memory to make 3 images, so I had to make it count.

My iPhone Challenge: As we approached the stadium, I decided to play my own creative game. I wanted to see how many images I could make between the gates and our seats. I probably should have queued my wife and friends in on the plan. They are probably still wondering why I kept running off and making them wait. Anyway, these are the images I found along the way. I posted a quick video from inside the stadium as the crowd gathered forces to do the wave.