Eight. Little. Seconds.

By KT, on July 6th, 2012

Yee-Ha!

I am lucky to have family in the most quaint and quintessentially Old-West town in the entire world – Cody, Wyoming.

We have enjoyed many Independence Day celebrations there – and this year was no exception. The rodeo in Cody over the 4th of July – known simply as The Stampede – has the highest purse in the entire world. And it better – after watching these cowboys take a beating, they deserve every penny earned.

Rodeo cowboys have a unique appreciation of time. For most of us, our “work day” can drag on and on, one minute melting into the next. The point at which one minute ends and the next one begins is often blurry and fuzzy. The same cannot be said for the Rodeo Warrior.

Their work day is equal to eight seconds. Eight. Little. Seconds.

And usually, for a rodeo cowboy – eight seconds is all they need.

Yep, Hollywood (the bull) is quite a sight. Check out the expression on the mini-cowboy’s face!

Speaking of mini-cowboys…they don’t get much cuter than the Cody-kind!

After the rodeo clown tells a few jokes and gets the crowd revved up – it’s showtime!

All eyes are alerted to the “bucking shoots” where the next willing cowboy tries his luck at outlasting the bronco. The cowboy has no easy task. And for what feels like an eternity until the buzzer sounds may seem like a blink to the common rodeo fan. For a cowboy, it’s an eternity. And seemingly stress-filled. And perhaps painful.

Of the 500 images I snapped this week, these are among my favorite…