Willits Frontier Days Part 2

Willits Frontier Days Rodeo was the Fourth of July weekend. The rodeo runs during the Fourth of July every year.

Rodeo. It dwells deep in psyche of the cowboy, young boys grow up watching their big brothers, fathers, uncles, cousins, neighbors, and wish to emulate them in the ring.

In small towns across the West, the rodeo is a family affair. Small boys often get their start riding sheep. They move up to calves. By the time they are old enough to join the California High School Rodeo Association (CHSRA), they will graduate to bulls.

These two adorable boys took turns being the bull between events.

For more information: CHRSA , Willits Frontier Days

These photos were taken with a Canon EOS 40D, flash. Exposure 1/60s at f/4. ISO 400. Focal length 68mm "Boys on Fence" and 28mm "Boys Playing Bull Rider."

Willits Frontier Days part 1

For some strange reason, today's post ended up with Sunday's date. So, I am going to post again. Also, haven't figured out how to enable the subscribe button. So, if you would like an email to send this direct to your inbox, please write me at outpost_patton@yahoo.com

Willits Frontier Days-4th of July
Dust, bulls, horses, and cowboys are the mainstay of every rodeo. And, Willits rodeo is no exception.

The young man in this image is called E.P., 23 years old, and he hails from Laytonville 22 miles north of Willits. E.P. went flying, but thankfully he was not hurt. This was a purely lucky shot. I normally do not shoot the cowboys once the chute opens. This day, the chute opened, the bull twisted, E.P. lost his seat, but his hand was still tied to the bull. A collective gasp went through the spectators, they all know that this can be dangerous if the hand does not come free with his outward momentum, the cowboy will then swing under the bull where he can be trampled. Fortunately, E.P. pulled free, a little disappointed, but still ambulatory.

Photo taken with Canon EOS 40D with a borrowed Canon 16mm-135mm wide angle zoom lens. Exposure 1/200s at f/5.6 with a bias value of -0.33. ISO 100. Focal length 16.mm