Bull Riding Research Articles

Fan Perceptions of Latino Baseball Players and Their Influence on Overall Fan Satisfaction with Major League Baseball

Revered within American history and society, baseball has captivated many historians and scholars in their attempts to understand the underpinnings of professional baseball as a sport and source of commerce within the United States. As sport in America has become increasingly popular, and many resources are dedicated to increasing the growth of these enterprises, officials within Major League Baseball (MLB) have dedicated time and resources to identify factors leading to fan satisfaction. (1) Dave Winfield contends baseball has lost its public appeal and luster over the past thirty years and the game is slowly becoming a sport of the past. (2) On the surface, it would seem that Winfield's assessment is inaccurate, as MLB has reported record-breaking season attendance figures and increased media visibility (e.g. MLB.com and MLB Extra Innings). (3) However, issues such as drug use, inflated player contracts, limited national visibility of teams across the United States due to media contracts, and the lack of revenue sharing may dilute professional baseball's positive image for its fans. (4) These factors may have undermined baseball fans' positive perception of the sport, as other professional enterprises, such as NASCAR and The Bull Riding Circuit, have gained popularity among the general public. (5) These unconstructive factors encourage baseball scholars to look at the current status of professional baseball in attempts to uncover positive attributes such as the globalization of professional baseball to many countries outside of the United States. Further, officials within MLB should focus on player development and explore the changes in ethnic participation in attempts to increase a diverse fan base. One such area that has been neglected by baseball scholars is the significant increase in the number of Latino baseball players within MLB. (6) This particular ethnic group has become more visible on MLB rosters and within the media, thus, creating potential interest in existing and future baseball fans. (7) As such, it is timely to identify the effects of this particular group of players on fans' overall satisfaction with MLB. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore fans' perception of Latino baseball players and the relationship between a fan's perception of Latino major leaguers and fans' overall satisfaction with MLB. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Commercial sports are not isolated from the common business practices of the general economic market. Similar to other profit-seeking organizations, commercialized sport organizations focus their concerns on minimizing costs and increasing revenues to sustain large profits. One strategy that has been employed to accomplish this goal is the utilization of globalization tactics. This general business practice has also accounted for many labor strikes and union movements within MLB. (8) Similar to other professional leagues, MLB has encountered many changes over the past decade as it has grown the sport's global reach. In their quest to attract more consumers, Bud Selig and other MLB executives have focused on increasing baseball's popularity around the globe, and this global expansion has resulted in an increased diversity in player talent. MLB has invested many resources in developing foreign player talent, as well as developing international leagues. (9) Baseball academies built in the Dominican Republic, Japan, and Australia offer substantial evidence of MLB's attempts to develop cross-national player talent. In fact, by the 1990s nearly every major-league organization--as well as professional teams from Japan--had a baseball academy in the Dominican Republic. The introduction of these academies has resulted in the percentage of Dominican players in major leagues rising from 6 to 12 percent in the last fifteen years. Additionally, the percentage of Venezuelan ballplayers has tripled since the 1950s. As a result of these globalization efforts, the participation of Latino baseball players within MLB has increased significantly. …

Arena Legacy: The Heritage of American Rodeo (review)

Reviewed by: Arena Legacy: The Heritage of American Rodeo Demetrius W. Pearson Arena Legacy: The Heritage of American Rodeo. By Richard C. Rattenbury. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2010. 416 pages, $65.00. Arena Legacy offers a rich historical account of the evolution of contemporary rodeo and its legendary pioneers. The etiological delineation of rodeo and its competitive events, through a brief account of the rules and guidelines, provides researchers and rodeo devotees alike with a better understanding of the sport’s nuances. Sectioned in an easy-to-follow manner, this reference-style book enables the reader to enter this authentic “prole” sport and its culture without physically attending a competition or museum. Although Arena Legacy does not serve as a critical history of the sport or its shortcomings over the years, it does provide a “thumb-nail” sketch of the discriminatory practices toward minority cowboys and their inability to achieve acclaim in the arena. For example, a quotation from the book highlights the plight of African American bull rider Jesse Stahl, who rarely received a score befitting his performance: “He was a great bull rider … but he is most remembered for winning first, but getting third” (76). Color barriers, prohibitive entry, and biased judging were noted but not elaborated on for a more thorough understanding of the debilitating aspects of racial discrimination. Published qualitative research anchored by personal interviews and written accounts attest to the many obstacles experienced by minority rodeo contestants. Among the challenges were transportation and lodging, racial slurs, “back-entrance” restaurants, segregated participatory arrangements, and promoters unwilling to pay for placing in events. In spite of the aforementioned abbreviated discussion, Arena Legacy provides an extensive historical overview of rodeo culture and its impact on American society. As alluded to in the book, rodeo has emerged from cowboy fun on the prairie to a multimillion-dollar arena sport. Yet it was once perceived as parochial, western-state, ranch-related entertainment. Today, rodeo has arguably influenced all aspects of society. Its impact, as presented, has been manifested through western apparel, museum and hall-of-fame archives (i.e., sculptures, paintings, and miscellaneous artifacts), film and theatrical depictions, cowboy-athlete industry development (e.g., the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association), war-era promotions and entertainment, as well as philanthropic endeavors. An example (albeit omitted from this text) is the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the longest running and most lucrative rodeo competition prior to the season-ending National Finals Rodeo. [End Page 207] In conclusion, it must be stated that what has been written and visually reproduced in this historical representation of contemporary rodeo mirrors much of what I researched over a decade ago through numerous scholarly journals, books, periodicals, and personal accounts. Having access to the wealth of information contained in this reference book would have saved me considerable time and effort. The resources and images of archived artifacts employed to produce this work are noteworthy on several accounts and warrant consideration by scholars and rodeo enthusiasts interested in the evolution of North American rodeo. Demetrius W. Pearson University of Houston, Texas Copyright © 2011 Western Literature Association

Rodeo Catastrophic Injuries and Registry: Initial Retrospective and Prospective Report

To introduce the Rodeo Catastrophic Injury Registry (RCIR) and quantify the nature and incidence of catastrophic injury and fatality in rodeo participants across North America. Retrospective and prospective collection of catastrophic and fatal injury data in rodeo using an online registry (RCIR). Canada and the United States. North American rodeo competitors. Age, gender, level of competition, rodeo event, mechanism of injury, and use of protective equipment. Frequency, incidence, and nature of catastrophic injuries and fatalities among rodeo participants. The incidence rate of catastrophic injury from 1989 to 2009 was 9.45 per 100 000 (49/518 286). The incidence rate of catastrophic injury during the 2007-2009 study period was 19.81 per 100 000 (19/95 892). The incidence rate of fatality from 1989 to 2009 was 4.05 per 100 000 (21/518 286). The incidence rate of fatality for the 2007-2009 study period was 7.29 per 100 000 (7/95 892). Thoracic compression mechanisms of injury are most pervasive and likely to be fatal in rodeo and bull riding. It is unknown whether rodeo protective vests have a protective effect in reducing catastrophic and fatal injuries. On the contrary, helmet use in bull riding and rodeo events seems to have a protective effect in reducing both catastrophic injury and fatality.

Playing Chicken With the Train: Cowboy Troy's Hick-Hop and the Transracial Country West

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [S]uch fiddling and dancing nobody ever before saw in this world. thought they were true 'heaven-borns.' Black and white, white and black, all hugemsnug together; happy as lords and ladies, sitting sometimes round in a ring, with a jug of liquor between them ... --Davy Crockett (1834) ain't nothing like a good, solid ride. don't care where you are or who you are. It 's just like music--smooth and perfect if you do it right. --bull rider Alonzo Pettie (1910-2003), America's oldest black at time of his death My belt buckle is my bling-bling. It's just going to keep getting bigger. --Cowboy (2005)' BLACK HILLBILLIES AND BLACKNECKS There was no necessary reason why Cowboy Troy's country-rap single, I Play Chicken With Train, should have caused such an uproar among country music fans when it was released in spring of 2005. The song itself is a sonic Rorschach test: not so singular a curiosity as many might think, but still a challenge to what passes for common knowledge in music business. It is animated by a sound and a lyric stance that might strike us, in a receptive mood, as uncanny--at once unfamiliar, a half-and-half blend of two musical idioms that rarely find themselves so jarringly conflated, and strangely familiar, as though song has distilled sound of ten-year-old boys filled with limitless bravado, jumping up and down and hollering into summer afternoon. Compared with other country-rap hybrids, I Play Chicken With Train contains surprisingly few sonic signifiers of hip-hop: no breakbeats, no samples, no drum machines, no scratching. The full burden of audible blackness is carried by Cowboy Troy's decidedly old-school rap, with its square phrasing, tame syncopations, and echoes of Run-DMC. One hears white voices framing, doubling, responding to, supporting, that black voice; simultaneously, one senses that somebody has torn down wall that is supposed to demarcate firmly boundary between twanging redneck euphoria--the lynch-mob's fiddle-driven rebel yell--and rap's exaggerated self-projections of urban black masculinity? The song scans, to receptive ears, as a particularly boisterous example of male-bonded American pastoral articulated by Leslie Fiedler in Love and Death in American Novel, a transracial masculine idyll stretching its unencumbered limbs across some country & western frontier, civilized men throwing off their generic shackles and reinventing themselves as a fraternity of fearless young warriors out to revitalize world. Or else--to unreceptive--it is monstrous, and must be treated as monsters are treated. In The Philosophy of Horror, Noel Carroll defines monsters as entities that are un-natural relative to a culture's conceptual scheme of nature. They do not fit scheme; they violate it. Thus, monsters are not only physically threatening; they are cognitively threatening. They are threats to common knowledge. The email blast that alerted potential purchasers to recording's release fused a kind of King-Kong sensationalism with an assertion of scandalous, unprecedented hybridity: Cowboy Troy, we were informed, is the world's only six-foot, five-inch, 250-pound black cowboy rapper. Was that a threat, a brag, or a promise? (3) In his follow-up album of 2007, Black in Saddle, Cowboy referenced antipathy with which some whites and blacks greeted song and, by extension, his highly conspicuous presence in country music world. People I've never met wanna take me body surfing behind a pickup, he sang in How Can You Hate Me, referencing infamous dragging death of James Byrd Jr. in Jasper, Texas, at hands of two white men. As for black response to his hick-hop persona: silence from hip-hop precincts, at least publicly, has been deafening, although Vibe magazine did take note of Black in Saddle long enough to sneer at Coleman's presumptive audience: Troy and his twang trust are keen to serve two masters: game exurban blacks steeped in country grammar and white fans of post-redneck rock. …

The Things a Brother Knows (review)

Reviewed by: The Things a Brother Knows Deborah Stevenson Reinhardt, Dana . The Things a Brother Knows. Lamb, 2010. [256p]. Library ed. ISBN 978-0-375-94455-0 $19.99 Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-375-84455-3 $16.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-375-89762-7 $16.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 8-12. Brotherhood has always been a simple matter for Levi—he trailed after his heroic older brother, Boaz, who largely ignored him—and then Boaz joined the Marines and went to war in the Middle East, leaving Levi behind. Now Boaz is back and everything's changed; he camps out in his bedroom, spending hours on the computer and refusing to come out. A concerned Levi, now nearly eighteen, seeks to [End Page 90] understand his brother's trauma, so when Boaz sets out on foot for a long-distance trip (to where, Levi's not sure), Levi tags along until his brother finally accepts his company and he begins to get a glimpse of the turmoil behind Boaz's impassivity. Reinhardt is a smooth and talented stylist, and she brings some interesting notes into this examination of the legacy of war, such as the Israeli-American family's history of military service; the exploration of the brothers' relationship, as it wavers back and forth between old patterns and new realization, rings with authenticity. What's less successful is the treatment of Boaz's war experiences, which seem broadly representative rather than meaningfully individual, and the conclusion of the walking mission that forms the main plot fails to bring that trajectory to a satisfying end. Williams' Bull Rider (BCCB 1/09) is therefore a more effective treatment of vets and literal brotherhood, but interested readers may wish to follow Levi and Boaz on their literal and figurative journeys. Copyright © 2010 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

Analysis of 10 Years of Injury in High School Rodeo

To determine the injury rate of athletes participating in high school rodeo. Retrospective report review. National High School rodeo finals from 1996 to 2005. High school athletes qualified for the rodeo competitions through state or national qualifying rounds. Injury reports were documented by sports medicine personnel. Variables evaluated were injury density, frequency for mechanism of injury, injury location, injury type, and follow-up request. A total of 354 injury incidents from 43,168 competitor exposures (CEs) resulted in a composite injury density of 8.20 per 1000 CE. Rough stock athletes accounted for 76.6% of all injuries. Bareback riders, followed by bull riders and saddle bronc riders, demonstrated injury densities of 31.9, 28.5, and 23.5 per 1000 CE, respectively. Most injuries (40.9%) were sustained while dismounting or being bucked off of the animal. Contusions, sprains, and strains were the most frequent injury types (27.4%, 18.6%, and 16.4%, respectively). The head and the shoulder (17.8% and 11.35%, respectively) were the most commonly injured body parts. An incidence density of 0.7 per 1000 CE was found for injury requiring transport by ambulance. High school rodeo athletes sustain similar injuries to collegiate and professional rodeo athletes, indicating that addressing issues at the youth level may be of great benefit. To better provide prevention tools for rodeo athletes, mechanism of injury and methods to reduce buck-off need further inquiry.

Latino Migrant Music and Identity in the Borderlands of the New South

Life in Mount Airy, North Carolina, moves at a stately pace, and at times experience of life there, like image projected by can be almost achingly quaint. If boosters in Mount Airy had their way, people would consider it to be quintessential Southern town, an oasis of timelessness in modern world. Andy Griffith was from there, after all, and Mount Airy was model for Mayberry on his famous and beloved show. The town's webpage, tellingly named VisitMayberry.com, invites visitors to step back to a simpler time when you visit Mount Airy. A visitor might initially be inclined to agree that rhythms of life seem not to have changed quite as thoroughly as they have elsewhere in country. But striking and historic change has come to Mount Airy as it has to rest of American South, and neither life nor culture in Mayberry will ever be same. Suddenly, tradition-embracing Mount Airy has become a vital new borderland of globalization. The diverse and growing Latino immigrant population newly arrived in region is transforming historically insular and biracial Southern culture and introducing new cultures and new identities into communities such as this that are already rich with distinctive cultural traditions. This change can be seen in signature events in town which celebrate regional culture. Every year, on first weekend of June, thousands of people are drawn by Mount Airy Fiddlers Convention, an institution in region since 1971 and a destination for musicians from around world. Mount Airy stands at heart of Surry County, region in North Carolina richest in, and most famous for, driving traditional music known to fans and musicologists as old time music. Whereas bluegrass is dominant in most areas in southeast and around country, in Surry County traditional old-time fiddlebanjo music is still revered and played on a scale and intensity not seen in other areas in region. As might be expected, participants at Fiddlers Convention are almost exclusively white, although a tiny handful of African Americans do participate. The population of Surry County is 94.8% white, and Mt. Airy itself is slightly over eighty-five percent white and 7.9% African American. In 2000, federal census counted only 498 Hispanics or Latinos of any race residing in Mount Airy (American FactFinder). But town, like North Carolina more broadly, has changed with extraordinary speed, and 2000 Census numbers have been eclipsed by a remarkable explosion in size of Mexican population. Mexican Consul to North Carolina Armand Ortiz-Rocha notes that the Mexican migrant population in North Carolina has grown at unexpected rates, surpassing all (qtd. in Karsada and Johnson, Jr. unnumbered frontspiece).1 By September 15, 2007, these ongoing transformations were made clear when Mount Airy hosted new Latino in celebration of Mexican Independence Day. The Mount Airy News noted that this festival was the first ever Hispanic celebration in city, and articles covering build-up to event offered sense that this festival marked a real turning point in life of this town. Held in same Veterans Memorial Park as Fiddlers Convention, Festival Latino 2007 featured twelve hours of Mexican music played by fifteen bands, food, dancing, bull riding, and visits from Mexican Consul Ortiz-Rocha and Mount Airy town mayor, Jack Loftis. As organizer Juan Rivas told Mount Airy News, the heart of Mayberry community is friendliness ___ And that's what we want (qtd. in Perkins, to Showcase Latino Culture n.pag.). Mount Airy officials did not know what to expect before festival but continuously increased their estimates of anticipated attendance. The Mount Airy News eventually reported in a brief note on September 16, day after event, that festival goers numbered in many thousands. …

Rodeo Injuries and Prevention

Rodeo is a fast-moving sport with highly talented and tough athletes. Prevalence of injury is high, especially in rough stock events, which include bareback, saddle bronc, and bull riding. In bull riding, the incidence of injury is reported at 32.2 injuries per 1000 competitor-exposures. While a number of different injuries can occur during bull riding, concussions are often the most alarming. However, they may also be the most amenable to prevention, despite resistance from rodeo cowboys and organization rulemakers to the use of protective headgear and lack of adherence to recovery guidelines. Rodeo athletes want to return to their sport despite injuries and rarely seek medical care; nonetheless, arena-side health care is still utilized and appreciated by rodeo cowboys. This article addresses the need for greater use of preventative equipment, the importance of allowing full recovery from concussions, and the need to make medical care more available to the rodeo athlete.

Rodeo injuries and prevention

Rodeo is a fast-moving sport with highly talented and tough athletes. Prevalence of injury is high, especially in rough stock events, which include bareback, saddle bronc, and bull riding. In bull riding, the incidence of injury is reported at 32.2 injuries per 1000 competitor-exposures. While a number of different injuries can occur during bull riding, concussions are often the most alarming. However, they may also be the most amenable to prevention, despite resistance from rodeo cowboys and organization rulemakers to the use of protective headgear and lack of adherence to recovery guidelines. Rodeo athletes want to return to their sport despite injuries and rarely seek medical care; nonetheless, arena-side health care is still utilized and appreciated by rodeo cowboys. This article addresses the need for greater use of preventative equipment, the importance of allowing full recovery from concussions, and the need to make medical care more available to the rodeo athlete.

Poster 137: Pulmonary Embolism in a Patient With Quadriceps and Patella Tendon Rupture Repair With Long Leg Cast: A Case Report

events of the 2003 Built Ford Tough Series. Setting: 28 of 29 events from the PBR 2003 Series were retrospectively analyzed. Participants: Adult men 18 years of age and older ranked in the elite category by the PBR Inc. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: Frequency of injuries categorized as upper-extremity (UE) strains and groin injuries were recorded. Injury severity noted by missed events were tabulated. End of season ranking and percentage of bulls ridden were examined. Results: 72 professional bull riders sustained 157 injuries. 46 UE injuries occurred, were the most common type of injury, and resulted in 10 missed rides or events. 13 riders sustained a total of 16 groin injuries and missed 9 events or rides. The top 10 season finishers rode an average of 50.81% of their bulls while professional bull riders who sustained a groin injury only rode 33.6%. Points toward rankings were awarded to the top finishers for each of 3 rides per event and for the top finishers of each event. The top season finisher received a $1 million bonus. Only 1 of 13 riders who sustained a groin injury finished in the top 20 riders. Conclusions: Groin injuries are less common than UE injuries in professional bull riders but result in a larger percentage of missed rides and events and cause a significant decrease in world ranking. Furthermore, income is based on performance on each ride and endorsements are often given to the highest-ranking riders. An intensive rehabilitation program for riders with groin injuries should be initiated quickly to minimize lost income and ranking.

Poster 136: Groin Injuries Correlated With Greatest Loss in Ranking and Income in Professional Bull Riders

Poster 136: Groin Injuries Correlated With Greatest Loss in Ranking and Income in Professional Bull Riders

Short-Term Management of Biceps-Tendon Rupture during Competition in Bull Riders

Short-Term Management of Biceps-Tendon Rupture during Competition in Bull Riders

Self-reported Injury History in Native American Professional Rodeo Competitors

Evaluation of rodeo injury and the use of protective equipment. Cross-sectional survey. Indian National Finals Rodeo 2004 in San Jacinto, CA. One hundred sixty-nine native American, professional rodeo competitors. On-site survey completed before competition. A total of 180 native American competitors received the survey. Respondents reported the event of participation, prior injury histories (including number, type and disability), use of protective equipment, and access to health care. Main outcomes were determined before survey distribution and included self-reported injury rate, time away from rodeo secondary to injury, and protective equipment usage during competition. Total 94% response rate. There was a range of injury history-from 100% of bull riders to only 24% of tie-down ropers-reporting a history of injuries. Forty percent of competitors reported using protective equipment; of these, 32% reported wearing vests. Twenty-six percent of the competitors had a history of injury that prevented them from working an average of 3.2 months. As hypothesized, a greater injury rate resulted from rough stock events; older competitors are more likely to have had work time loss from injury; and vests are the most frequently used protective equipment in rodeo.

Bull Riding: Analysis and Application of a Specific Strength and Conditioning Program

Because bull riding is one of the most dangerous of extreme sports, it is very important to make efforts to improve the safety and the performance of its participants. A strength and general physical fitness program will better prepare riders for the demands of bull riding. The purpose of this paper is to describe the physiological demands of bull riding and to introduce a periodized strength and general fitness model

Surgical repair of complete proximal hamstring tendon ruptures in water skiers and bull riders: a report of four cases and review of the literature

Objective: Hamstring strains are one of the most common muscle strains in athletes; however, complete rupture of the proximal hamstring origin is rare and results from significant trauma. The objective...

Agreement Statement from the 1st international rodeo research and clinical care conference

This agreement statement is intended to form a set of guidelines and recommendations for the prevention and clinical management of concussions arising out of rodeo events and the use of protective head gear in bull and steer riding. These guidelines and recommendations are not intended and should no

Abstract 49 injuries in professional bull riders: a retrospective study. Mary G. Bryant, MD (UVA Health Syst, Charlottesville, VA); Laura W. Lee, MD, MBA, e-mail: mgb9e@virginia.edu

Abstract 49 injuries in professional bull riders: a retrospective study. Mary G. Bryant, MD (UVA Health Syst, Charlottesville, VA); Laura W. Lee, MD, MBA, e-mail: mgb9e@virginia.edu

Bull Riding Injuries in Professional Rodeo

ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: Recent tragedies in bull riding have highlighted the need for prospective epidemiologic investigation of injury patterns.OBJECTIVE: To document the frequency, type, severity, anatomic location, and mechanism of injury to bull riders participating in professional rodeo in Canada.DESIGN: Five-year prospective cohort study examining 4,375 competitor exposures during bull riding events at selected rodeos. Certified athletic therapists gathered data at 63 of 323 professional rodeos in Canada from 1995 through 1999. Data were included when a registered bull rider was injured and the Canadian Pro Rodeo Sport Medicine Team was officially present and providing services. The main outcome measures were the frequency, severity, and anatomic location of injuries to bull riders.RESULTS: According to the injury classification system (severe, minor, or other), 36% of injuries to bull riders were severe. Fractures were the most common severe injury. Concussions constituted 10.6% of all injuries; neck injuries and concussion with other head and facial injuries accounted for 28.9%. About half (48%) of injuries were minor. The knee and shoulder were the most commonly injured joints.CONCLUSION: Injuries to the head, neck, and face may deserve more attention by both researchers and those interested in preventing injury to bull riders. Epidemiologic information will give on-site physicians a better foundation in preparing to care for injured rodeo participants.

Bull Riding Injuries in Professional Rodeo

ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: Recent tragedies in bull riding have highlighted the need for prospective epidemiologic investigation of injury patterns.OBJECTIVE: To document the frequency, type, severity, anatomic location, and mechanism of injury to bull riders participating in professional rodeo in Canada.DESIGN: Five-year prospective cohort study examining 4,375 competitor exposures during bull riding events at selected rodeos. Certified athletic therapists gathered data at 63 of 323 professional rodeos in Canada from 1995 through 1999. Data were included when a registered bull rider was injured and the Canadian Pro Rodeo Sport Medicine Team was officially present and providing services. The main outcome measures were the frequency, severity, and anatomic location of injuries to bull riders.RESULTS: According to the injury classification system (severe, minor, or other), 36% of injuries to bull riders were severe. Fractures were the most common severe injury. Concussions constituted 10.6% of all injuries; neck i...

Survey analysis to assess the effectiveness of the bull tough helmet in preventing head injuries in bull riders: a pilot study.

The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the effectiveness of the Bull Tough helmet (Bull Tough, Seguin, TX) in preventing head injuries to bull riders. The hypothesis was that this helmet is effective in diminishing the incidence of head injuries in bull riders. This study was a retrospective study. Surveys were mailed to 320 purchasers of the Bull Tough helmet. Participants were asked to recall the numbers of rides performed in 1999 while wearing the helmet and the number of rides performed in 1999 while not wearing the helmet. In addition, they were asked to provide the number and severity of head injuries suffered in 1999 both while wearing the helmet and while not wearing the helmet. Participants responding to the survey were bull riders from the United States and Canada. Eighty-one riders responded to the survey. The primary outcome measurements were planned before data collection began and included the incidence of head injuries to bull riders both while wearing the helmet and while not wearing the helmet. While not wearing a helmet, the incidence of head injury was 1.54% per ride (11 head injuries/713 rides). While wearing the helmet, the incidence of head injury was 0.80% per ride (28 head injuries/3,518 rides). Using the X(2) test, the p value was 0.0570. This study supports the hypothesis that the Bull Tough helmet diminishes the incidence of head injury in bull riders.