Redland Bay was bull riding central on Saturday as the rodeo community and almost 2000 spectators turned out beneath a hot, blue sky for a day of family fun and high activity at the annual Grass Roots Bull Riding event.
Organised by Ray White Redland Bay principals Jesse James and Vanessa Jagusic, and supported by almost 40 Redland businesses and non-profit organisations, the day shone a national and international spotlight on Redland Bay while raising money for local youth organisation, The Cage.
The program included fair rides, a charity cowboy auction, free rock concert at Redland Bay Hotel and, of course, the cowboys and bull rides across a range of categories from Poddy to Open.
For the first time, an international challenge between Australia and the USA brought current senior world champion bull rider Robert Mims from Texas, USA and Queensland bull rider Dean Weller, who is ranked at fourth in the world.
The international challenge was won by two-time Australian champion bull rider Dale Jones, while the open bull ride was won by New South Wales bull rider Troy Wilkinson.
Organiser and former professional bull rider Jesse, who said the day was "awesome", rode for The Cage and, despite being bucked off at 2.5 seconds, raised more than $1000 from the ride.
"We've had a flood of people calling and Facebooking to say it was a great day," he said.
"We've also had a stream of messages from bull riders in the USA saying they're coming out for the event next year."
Jesse said initial estimates indicated the event had raised several thousand dollars for The Cage.