Hastings College has a rodeo team. For some of you, this may come as a shock. But walking around campus I'm sure you could point out which kids are "rodeo". They're the kids that miss a lot of class (due to those long rodeo weekends) and walk in smelling like manure. Hey, it's hard making it to your 8 a.m. class after feeding your horses. Stereotypes are evident in all groups. Whether you rodeo or you've glimpsed bull riding on TV, here is a list of rodeo stereotypes you may have heard before.
1. If you rodeo, you're automatically a bull rider.
It is ridiculous the number of times someone asked if I ride bulls. I glance down at my paper-cut-out-thin body wondering how I would survive getting launched off one. Once I tell them no, they sigh in relief and lose any interest in what Barrel Racing or Team Roping might be. Bull riding is the most popular event to non-rodeo people, so I guess it's an easy mistake.
2. All girls that rodeo are rodeo queens.
The image of girls parading around on their horses and waving to the crowd is branded into most people's brains. Although I have nothing against rodeo queens, it's insulting. And vice versa, when people assume that rodeo queens don't rodeo. It's a logical conundrum.
3. All of us dip (chew tobacco).
My friends and I watched the NFR (National Finals Rodeo) on the large screen with the whole bar narrated on loud speaker by Joe Beaver. Of course, we got several curious glances. Then a man walked over asking why we were watching rodeo. To his delight, two of us were on the Hastings College rodeo team, prompting his question, "So which one of ya'll dips?" He snickered and waited for an answer, but received none. Why is this an assumption? Rodeo and chew do not go hand-in-hand.
4. We drink. A lot.
Let's just say that not all stereotypes are misconstrued. The Brady Wilson Band says it best, "–our drinkin' team has a rodeo problem."
5. We're redneck.
Some may take offense to these, but there's more to being redneck than the Larry the Cable Guy stereotype. I can guarantee we can all relate in some way. Like tying baling string to the spots for halters on the trailer just in case you might need them later. Heck, I've used baling string as a belt one weekend when I forgot one. And you always have WD-40 and duct tape in your pick up for that emergency quick fix.
6. We only listen to country music.
Please. It's quite the contrary. In a single rodeo "Bad to the Bone", "Thunderstruck," and "Get Low" can be heard. And it most certainly excludes modern country that is currently played on the radio. The only country you'll catch us listening to is Chris Ledoux and George Strait.
7. All cowboys look like Scott Eastwood in "The Longest Ride."
While one can hope, this is only vaguely true. There is something about a man in wranglers, but Nicholas Sparks romanticizes the idea of a cowboy a little unrealistically so with the role played by easy-on-the-eyes, Scott Eastwood. The stereotypes extend within rodeo also, and like any sport there are uncanny differences between each individual. Like a forward is always tall and a point guard is always quick, rough stock riders don't have all their marbles and team ropers are always drinking beer, leading us to our next stereotype.
8. Barrel racers are the cheerleaders of rodeo.
We've all heard the controversy over saying cheerleading isn't a sport, well, barrel racing is the equivalent in the rodeo world. I will say it, barrel racers are at the bottom of the rodeo food chain. The event itself is problematic: there are always hundreds of entries, they rake after every six girls, and there is always, always a handful of horses that will not go through the gate resulting in hours of an event that is won based on the fastest time—no irony there. This stereotype is so strong that a guy named Corban Livingston got famous off his vines mocking barrel racers.
9. Buckle Bunnies—enough said.
You can pick these out because the official rodeo attire requires long pants, a long sleeve shirt and a cowboy hat. Buckle Bunnies wear daisy dukes, pointed boots, and tank tops. The cherry on top is the buckle they wear that they didn't win. Either they bought it or they stole it from some guy.
10. Roughies are dumb.
I mean, would you get on a bull? Not only that, would you pay to get on a bull? I rest my case.
11. Team ropers are "pretty good at drinkin' beer..."
...as Billy Currington put it. Team ropers are known for being the last ones to the rodeo and the first ones with a beer in their hands.
Stereotypes, while humorous, are misrepresentations of a group as a whole. I know I've experienced these before and find the humor in them, and I hope you can, too!
