IT'S A WILD RIDE AT THE COUNTY FAIR.Byline: Amy Raisin raisin, in botany and cooking raisin, dried fruit of certain varieties of grapevines bearing grapes with a high content of sugar and solid flesh. Although the fruit is sometimes artificially dehydrated, it is usually sun-dried. Staff Writer VENTURA - With 40 stitches to his head only a week old, and the skin around each eye still yellow and bruised bruise v. bruised, bruis·ing, bruis·es v.tr. 1. a. To injure the underlying soft tissue or bone of (part of the body) without breaking the skin, as by a blow. b. , Wes Hoskins was at it again Saturday, suiting up for another bareback bare·back also bare·backed adv. & adj. On a horse or other animal with no saddle: rode bareback; a bareback rider. ride on a bucking bronco bronco: see mustang. . One of 212 contestants competing at the Ventura County Fair rodeo at Seaside Seaside. 1 City (1990 pop. 38,901), Monterey co., W Calif., on Monterey Bay, in a fruit region; founded 1887, inc. 1954. Its economy is based largely upon tourism. California State Univ. Monterey Bay is there, on the former site of Fort Ord. Park, Hoskins last week took the bareback championship at the Mid-state Fair after being thrown beneath his horse in the bucking shoot. ``Just the adrenaline adrenaline (ədrĕn`əlĭn, –lēn): see epinephrine. of it - I love it,'' said Hoskins, 36, as he adjusted his chaps for another wild ride. ``I grew up on a ranch in Blackfoot, Idaho Blackfoot is a city in Bingham County, Idaho, United States. As of the 2005 census, the city population was 10,646. The city is the county seat of Bingham County.GR6 , and I've been doing this professionally since 1984.'' Before the rodeo even started, fans packed the stands at the Grandstand Arena, waiting to see everything from bucking broncos to barrel riding and steer roping. The crowd attraction, said rodeo secretary Cindy Moreno, is simple: ``They love the blood and guts. It's man against animal.'' At the same moment the first event - the bucking broncos - began, protesters stood outside the fairgrounds n. pl. 1. same as fairground. with signs and photos depicting what they insist is animal cruelty. ``This is no longer family fun and entertainment,'' said Simon Oswitch, president of Van Nuys-based Animal Emancipation Ask a Lawyer Question Country: United States of America State: Maryland I am 17 years old and would like to know if I would be able to file for minor emancipation. . ``They keep the animals healthy in order that they might be killed during the event.'' Rodeo fan Matt Vanoni, however, said that the rodeo is sport like any other athletic endeavor. ``It's not just man against animal, but it's pushing one's self to be better,'' Vanoni said. ``People forget how much respect these cowboys have for the animals.'' Bull and bronco rider James Miyagishima, 23, said the respect for the animals forces riders to stay focused and free of distractions while riding. ``Something that weighs 2,000 pounds, you want to stay on it. You don't want a whole lot going through your head because you don't want any distractions,'' Miyagishima said. Yet it is clear that the free-mind philosophy doesn't always work. Aside from the recent 40 stitches, Hoskins admitted to suffering a broken collar bone and six broken ribs after another spill, injuries that kept him off a horse for five and a half months. ``I do it for myself. If I didn't I don't think it would turn out very well,'' Hoskins said. ``You've got to love it.'' Cindy Moreno, who witnessed the horse trample Hoskins in the shoot a week before, said it's a way of life for the riders. ``I guess it's for the thrill,'' she said. ``Once it gets in your blood, you can't get rid of it. And if (the riders) are able to, they'll get right back on.'' CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 --2) A man, left, watches contestants warm up at the rodeo arena at the Ventura County Fair on Saturday while a sign, above, claims cruelty of the animals used in the rodeo competition. Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News |
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