Do you think Bronc Riding is COOL or CRUEL?

One of the reasons I would consider it cruel is the flank strap, it is quite fun to watch but parts of it tend to upset me. (At one shoe, the horse bucked while it was in the stall (I'm not sure what it's called, but the thing they go in before the rider gets on) and it's leg was stuck on top of the rail. They tried whipping it in order to get it's leg back on the ground o.o)

But I have to say, other than those few things: it is quite fun to watch.
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The flank strap tells the horse it's time to go to work. If you notice, as soon as the pickup rider takes the strap off, 95% of them stop bucking instantly.

If you look at them, they are wide and fleece lined. Not cruel at all.

The flank strap is no different than you cinching your horse, like mls said, they know its time to work. The flank strap doesn't actually make them buck it makes them kick out harder.
Horses that rear up in the chute are dangerous to the rider and themselves. You don't one to get in the habit of doing it. Horses as you know anticipate...bucking horses do the same.

Cruel? Their flank straps are fleece-lined. These horses are valuable property...no one wants them to be hurt. They work for around an hour a week and have the rest of their time to themselves. Sounds like a good life to me.

I can see how it would be viewed as cruel. I didn't even know the strap had fleece, I just figured that it was nothing more than an annoyance like what they use for bulls. But that's another thing horses have over cattle - they actually try their best to not step on you, whereas a bull will do everything he can to try killin' you. O_O

LOL what actually got me one time was how pretty the horse looked..trotting around and sniffing things with his tail & head up high after they took the flank strap off
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Broncs have a better life than any other horse (besides a pasture ornament...maybe). They get hauled around, stand in a chute for an hour, buck, rip around the arena for a few seconds, and relax in a pen for the rest of the day. I can't see what's not to like. It sounds like a better life than always being bugged my humans to do something and get trained.

Its kool as long as the horses are well cared for. I would do it myself if I could. My grandoa had a pony and he wasnt planning on doing anything w him so we use to get on him an let him buck us off over an over lol, I gess he liked it cause he always came running when we went in the field, he had to sell him thou:( I miss him
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I love watching broncs. There's nothing better than seeing a good bucking horse rocket out a shoot, IMO.

A lot of people think that bucking horses are just a bunch of renengade saddle horses who decided they hated humans. This is actually far from the truth.

I was reading a very interesting article just a few days ago from the January Edition of the Western Horseman magazine, about a man who has been breeding broncs for years. His animals are beautiful, hefty animals who truely enjoy their jobs. The writer of the article was writing about how it actually took a very specific, very well trained horse to be a good bronc. Since horses are such delicate animals who pick up on a person's feelings, many horses will become disheartened after a few times in the chute if they can't dislodge a rider, not try harder. It takes an animal with a lot of confidence and will to continue bucking as hard as they can every single time.

For those of you who think bronc riding is cruel, I'd advise that you go find that article and read it. It really is an eye opener.

I think the cruel part is where the guy rides them, cruel to him if he's hurt. They all get hurt.