How would you feel if you saw this at a rodeo?

http://www.sharkonline.org/horsetripping1.mpg
http://www.sharkonline.org/horsetripping2.mpg
http://www.sharkonline.org/horsetripping3.mpg


"You are in the front row. A bony Arabian mare stands so close you can see the scars on her flanks, and the terror in her eyes. Three men on horseback swoop down on the mare, chasing her with swinging lariats, until she's galloping 25 miles an hour. Each time the mare races round the ring, a fourth man aims a rope at the mare's forelegs. The goal: to topple her to the ground, and win points.

This mare has already been lassoed several times - those scars you saw were rope burns that carved away inches of her flesh. But this time the mare won't get up again. She crashes head over heels, breaks her leg, and is euthanized."


FACTS ABOUT HORSE TRIPPING

What Is Horse Tripping?

Horse tripping is the practice of roping the front or hind legs of a galloping horse -- causing it to trip or lose its balance and come crashing to the ground -- for the purposes of entertainment or sport. This cruel and inhumane activity is practiced in 3 of the 9 events held in the charreada, or Mexican-style rodeo. The tripping is intentional, and points are awarded for dropping the horse.

Terminology

Charro -- Mexican cowboy
Charreada or charro rodeo -- Mexican-style rodeo
Charreria -- the tradition

Lienzos -- arenas
Suertes -- events

The 3 events which include tripping are:

piales en la lienzo -- roping of the hind legs of a horse
manganas a pie -- tripping or felling of a horse from on foot
manganas a caballo -- tripping or felling a horse from horseback

Charro Rodeo History

The charreada is the national sport of Mexico. It is a time-honored tradition dating back to 16th century Spain and brought to the Americas after the Spanish conquest of Mexico in 1520. In the early 1700s, the "sport" moved to the Mexican ranch where ranchers roped steers and bucking horses in a display of their skill, horsemanship, and machismo. In the 1950s and '60s, charro associations began to crop up in the U. S., eventually becoming established in six states in the Midwest and Southwest (Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, New Mexico, and Texas). Today, all U. S. charreada competitions are overseen by 84 charro federations.

Cruelty versus Culture

The charreada is based on the notion that the charro must be a brave and skilled horseman to confront the fury of a wild horse and bring the animal to the ground. Such romantic legend, however, has little relevance to the manner in which the rodeos are practiced today. "Killer" buyers purchase unwanted horses at auction and squeeze the last nickel out of these pitiful creatures by renting them out, at about $65 per day, for a weekend of torture in the charro rodeos. There, the frightened animals are lassoed and tripped repeatedly in 3 different horse tripping events. Some horses have been known to try to leap over walls in an attempt to escape from the arena, only to be captured and brought back to be subjected to more torment -- all to the cheers of the spectators. After they are used in the rodeos, the horses are sent to slaughter.