Considered the wealthiest and most prestigious rodeo chapters in the world, the Wrangler NRF attracts the top 15 athletes in bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, saddle bronc riding, tie-down roping, barrel racing, and bull riding events to compete.
The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association and Las Vegas Events have announced the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, which Teton Ridge will present with a higher payout for the third consecutive year.
History: The Starting of Barrel Racing
Barrel racing was first started in the 1930s as a women-only rodeo event. Barrel racing attracts the crowd because of its quick turns, high speeds, and edge-of-your-seat excitement.
In the early days, the racing pattern of the horse and rider often alternated between a figure eight and a cloverleaf pattern, but the pattern changed in 1948 when the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association – WPRA established barrel racing as a timed event and implemented the cloverleaf as the official pattern.
Who Can Participate in the Race?
At amateur or youth levels, both females and males can compete. But this event is fully reserved for females in the collegiate and even the professional ranks.
The interesting factor about Barrel racing is it combines the horse’s athletic ability and the rider’s horsemanship skills to run around the three barrels without any injuries.
Those three barrels used for barrel racing in the NFR rodeo competition are normally in a triangle pattern.
How is the Winner Selected?
The rider who can quickly take up the barrel course is the winner. A laser system electric device called the electric eye is used to measure the time. Even in the armature events, a judge is assigned to test the time, who drops a flag to alert the timekeeper when to start or stop the clock.
The clock starts when the horse rider crosses the starting line and stops when the rider has arrived at all the barrel patterns.
Common Rules of Barrel Racing
A couple of rules are applied for both armature and professional barrel racing events. Those are given below:
- The fastest rider wins.
- The rider must ride around all three patterns.
- A five-second penalty will be if any rider’s horse hits or knocks over a barrel.
- Within the course of sixty seconds, the ride needs to be done.
- None of the riders can start the run from the off-center alleyway.
- The arena has to be changed or repaired after every twelve contestants/riders run.
Final Words
Barrel racing is a rodeo event for female horse riders. Starting in the 1930s till today, it is one of the most fascinating rodeo events.
In 2022, the event had seen 173,350 attendees in the competition’s ten days and sold out more than 350 consecutive performances.
This year, the event will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on 7-16 December. We await to watch the race and know this year’s increased audience to sold-out numbers.
In 2022, the event had a total attendance of 173,350 over the 10 days of competition at the Thomas & Mack Center and has sold out more than 350 consecutive performances in Las Vegas.
