Cape Girardeau hosts SuperBull event at Show Me Center

The Show Me Center was full of bull this weekend as 80 cowboys competed in the SuperBull Series bull riding event.

"The SuperBull Series is probably the oldest professional bull riding series going down the road, said George Marshall, event director for SuperBull. "It started in the late '80s. This is the inaugural event for 2010. This is our first trip out of the gate."

He said he was excited the series was in Cape Girardeau for the first time.

"This is a great building, great community. This is what we call 'southern hospitality' here all week. I hope they come back," Marshall said.

Marshall said one of the things that makes bull riding so popular is the athleticism of the bulls.

"Over the last 15, 20 years, they've really started developing these bucking bulls and breeding them to buck and be athletes. The genetics on these bulls go back to bulls that were famous 10 years ago, 15 years ago, 20 years ago. It's like the race horse business. They're bred to run; these bulls are bred to buck," he said. One hundred bulls were used in this weekend's event.

Watching a cowboy hang onto one of those 2,000-pound bulls is what attracted much of the crowd Friday and Saturday night.

"Our family really enjoys watching bull riding on TV and my 3-year-old daughter, Samantha, really likes it. We thought we would bring her here to get a live version of it," said Alice Hope of Oak Ridge.

Championship bull rider Willy Ropp said cowboys like bulls that buck. He said bulls that spin and turn help cowboys earn a big score.

"If you're a bull rider, you like to come to these events because you're going to get a bunch of points when you ride a bull," he said.

Ropp, from Trenton, Mo., said he was excited to start the series in Cape Girardeau, because it would be the closest to home he would be during the season.

In addition to featuring several bull riders and bulls from Missouri, one Gordonville man served as "bull roper" for the Cape Girardeau event. If a bull decided not to return to the holding area following a ride, Jason Stroup would lasso the bull and, along with his horse, Mouse, pull the animal to the stables.

Rodeo events are big draws for the Show Me Center, and SuperBull was no exception. Shannon Buford, marketing director for the Show Me Center, said the event was well-attended and the crowd seemed to be enjoying the action.

Bulls of the SuperBull Series get accustomed to the arena Friday at the Show Me Center. (LAURA SIMON)

In addition to the $6,000 top prize, cowboys were also competing for entry into two invitationals later in the year.