Thousands of horses are used every day to help with ranch work around the country, Figure 10-26. Rodeos Another sector of the horse industry is rodeos. A rodeo is a sporting event comprised of events based on ranch skills that cowboys and horses used to work cattle in the American West, Figure 10-27. The first rodeos began when groups of neighboring ranch hands met to see who had the Lenice Harms/Shutterstock.com Figure 10-26. Even in today’s world of modern equipment and technology, horses are still used as the primary means for moving and sorting cattle on many ranches. Do you think it has more to do with tradition or efficiency? What benefits could you see to using horses? Did You Know? Three different towns all claim to be the site of the first rodeo: „ Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1847 „ Deer Trail, Colorado, July 4, 1869 „ Pecos, Texas, 1883 Actually, much of the current rodeo structure is based on the rodeo held in Prescott, Arizona, on July 4, 1888. The Prescott Rodeo is still an annual event. Venessa Nel/Shutterstock.com Figure 10-25. Western horse shows include events like western pleasure (left) and cutting (right). Some events require the horse and rider to demonstrate their skills in handling cattle. Candia Baxter/Shutterstock.com Chapter 10 Large-Animal Production 545 Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.