Bayousphere: Rough Riders at the Houston Rodeo

After rolling around in the dirt, these cowboys and cowgirls clean up pretty well

Comments (0) By Daniel Kramer Wednesday, Mar 26 2008

Daniel Kramer

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Leon Coffee has been a rodeo clown for 39 years. Texas Monthly calls him perhaps the most revered and beloved clown in the history of American rodeo. A U.S. Army veteran and "man in the can," the bullfighter is a lifetime member of the United States Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. In 2004, he was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Hall of Fame.

He's a regular at the Houston Rodeo, one of a multitude of stars and about-to-be's who iron their Wranglers, keep a tight grip on their fears and carry on the cowboy tradition in the dirt and controlled chaos of Reliant Stadium each spring.

(Click here for a slideshow of images.)

How else do you explain Niki Moran, who stands on top of a horse and gallops around the arena, carrying a flag while fireworks go off?

Or Punkee Schroeder of China, Texas, who lost his arm and most of one ear in a farming accident, but doesn't hesitate to cheer on son Beau, whose bull ride this year ended with a toss into a metal fence post and 11 stitches?

Sharon Camarillo took her years of experience as a champion at the rodeo and parlayed them into a gig as an announcer at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo — proving there is life after the buzzer.