Professional bull riders compare their sport to crashing race cars for a living.
To win, they must endure eight-second collisions with 1,700-pound bulls. If they walk away unscathed, that's another success.
The danger keeps fans enthralled with the Professional Bull Riders tour, which comes to Arco Arena today and Sunday for the Sacramento Classic. Riders risk their lives and limbs for a share of the $100,000 purse. The winner will earn more than $30,000.
Riding a wave of new popularity, PBR has grown into a worldwide tour with more than 1,200 competitors, 500 hours of prime-time TV and contests in five countries. Total prize money tops $9.5 million. The 45 top-ranked riders will compete in Sacramento.
"It's not any safer, but riders are taking a lot more precautions," said Sutter Creek's Mark Lopes, a pro bull rider who will compete this weekend at Arco. "More and more guys are wearing helmets. It's definitely better. It's a good thing."
Making sure riders can walk away is the job of Red Bluff's Joe Baumgartner, a longtime PBR bullfighter who distracts angry bulls and rescues fallen riders. His job used to be called rodeo clown, but there's nothing funny about his dangerous work.
Baumgartner, who has worked the National Finals Rodeo a record 13 times and is among the sport's most respected bullfighters, has seen safety gear become a common part of bull-riding equipment, but helmets remain optional.
"Up to five or six years ago, if you wore a helmet, people called you a sissy," Baumgartner said. "The vest was (treated) the same way 10 years ago. Now, (safety equipment) is mandatory in junior rodeo. We're bringing the kids up right, wearing helmets. All the young riders are using them. It's a great idea."
Baumgartner, a professional bullfighter for 21 years, has seen the consequences firsthand.
"One year, I saw three guys get killed; two weren't wearing (safety) vests," he said. "Vests and helmets are pretty important. They're not sissies anymore for wearing a helmet; they're called smart bull riders."
Lopes, 25, always wears a helmet. "I've taken some shots that would have put me out for good," he said. "With the helmet, I can compete the next day. If I knew I wouldn't get hurt, I'd just wear a hat, but I've had too many concussions.
"I know I feel safer with the helmet. It's like insurance."
Leather-trimmed protective vests are made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and foam with no breaking points where a horn could wedge inside.
"It's a lot like a flak jacket, the same concept," Lopes said.
Besides the vest and helmet, riders also get some time-honored protection from thick leather chaps.
"Lots of times, I would have gotten my legs torn up if I was just wearing jeans," said Lopes, who started riding bulls while a senior at Amador High School and has competed five years on the PBR tour.
Bullfighters wear more safety equipment, including shin guards, knee braces, hip pads and chest protectors.
"But my cowboy hat is my only helmet," Baumgartner said. "A (protective) helmet blocks my vision, and I've got to look out for the bull."
Baumgartner, 41, has taken his share of hard hits. Last year, bulls broke his legs twice, "left once, right once," he said. "Both times, I got run over and stepped on."
The bull's hooves prove more dangerous than horns, he added. "We trim their horns, so they're not pointed. Very few guys get killed by a bull's horns. But when they step on you, that's what will kill you."
The bullfighters work in three-man teams with two in the ring at any one time, working each bull.
"The worst matchup is a bad bull with a rider who doesn't know how to get off it," Baumgartner said. "You try to anticipate what the bull is going to do. But if a rider is in a bad spot, you've got to stand there and take it."
Call The Bee's Debbie Arrington, (916) 326-5514.
