We drove up State Highway 5 the Napier to Taupo route to a little place called Te Pohue! When I say little, a gas station and a shop! The Rodeo was just outside Te Pohue. We didn't know what to expect, Tony was expecting a seating stand. What we actually found was that the regulars put old sofas in the back of their Ute's and pickups and sit in those. Many arrived with their Chilli bins and fold out chairs ready for the whole day event. It seems that the Kiwi's when they have to drive to an event they make a whole day of it. So some had their Gazebo's up picnic spread out. We only stayed a few hours as Dan had made plans to meet up with some friends. These are the events that we watched.
The 'Rope and Tie' Event is where the rider has to 'catch' their steer, Throw it to the ground, Wrap the rope 3 times round it's legs and then leave it to lie still for 5 seconds.
Then we watched some 'Barrel Racing'. The riders have 3 barrels (oil drums) which they have to ride around. If they knock one over then they get time penalties. There were some kids whizzing around these barrels...
After the Barrel racing was the Junior Calf Ride. These were quite small kids all riding little calfs. I think they had to try and stay on for 45secs!
Here are the tired calfs!
While they took a break for lunch, they called kids that were watching into the Rodeo arena where they had 'Sheep Catching'. Around 8 Sheep had red ribbons tied to an ear. The idea was that the kids had to catch a sheep and grab the ribbon. Those that caught a sheep and a ribbon won a prize! Sweets!
Next time we go, we'll be ready with our fold out seats and chilli bin. To watch the Steer Ride, Bull Ride, Steer Wrestling, Bare back, Saddle Bronc as we missed these events!
Forgot about this picture! A cowboy!
