Australian Cowboys Roughriders and Rodeos
The history of rodeo in Australia
Author Jenny Hicks

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This seminal work traces the history of rodeo as sport and entertainment in Australia.

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From the arrival of the Europeans in 1788 rodeo developed out of the fledgling cattle industry. Australians will bet on anything that moves and the pioneering spirit of one-up-man-ship and creating entertainment in general was soon traversing the country with the circus, buckjump & Wild West shows. At the same time, Bushmen’s carnivals and agricultural shows featured all sorts of sporting events, some of which over the course of the twentieth century evolved into the professional sport of rodeo.

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Thoroughly researched and incorporating colourful slabs of oral history, Australian Cowboys Roughriders and Rodeos captures the adventurous lifestyle, the excitement and drama inside the ring, as well as being packed with information and explanations from ‘behind the chutes’.

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The book is a treasure trove of folklore, facts and anecdotes distilled from interviews with 130 ‘old timers’. Illustrated with over 100 photographs, a veritable hall of fame of past and present champions in a sport that has borrowed heavily from American sporting culture yet remains uniquely Australian.

Because of the assimilation of American rules and regulations – Australian rodeo athletes are among the champions in the international rodeo arenas of today.

A must read for anyone interested in ‘Wild and Western’ sport and culture – Australian style.