Day 26, Monday, March 1 2010
————————————
In the morning we had a quick swim in the creek at the cattle station before we had breakfast. After breakfast we went and learnt how to throw a boomerang. I had already learnt at the Tjapukai Cultural Center, but that didn’t change the fact that I managed to get ito to come back a bit, but mostly to high so I had to run after it. They didn’t have any left boomerangs, but they showed me how to throw a right one with my left hand, which worked quite well.
After the boomerang throwing we again went mustering some more goats on horse back, this time it was a bigger trip and we even saw a black headed python! After the mustering it was time for lunch.
After lunch we went to shoot a few plates with a shotgun. I missed most but I managed to hit one out of five. Those bloody things are just too fast =))
After the shooting, we went for a swim in the pool at the cattle station where a snake even had to be saved from drowning because it somehow had fallen into the pool. The late afternoon consisted of everyone on the cattle station doing a rodeo. The rodeo is done by first learning how to use a lasso. That was rather a hard bit. Then for the next part, the goats that have been rounded up are taken one by one, and a group of three people go into a rodeo ring. There someone holds the goat and shows it where the door to freedom is. The 3 people have the job of using their lasso’s to capture the goat, and once done to lift the goat up, put if gently on its side and then burn a mark into the goats rump with. Of course this is all just play so the goat is not hurt at all, not even branded.
The whole rodeo starts by the watching crowd yelling “Are you ready”, then the goup answer with a chorus of “Fuck you” and the the crowd yells “Get set, go” and then the goat is let loose. While it charges to the door the group has to catch the goat with the lasso. The group may not obstruct the goats way to the door, and must throw the lasso from the sides. This whole process is timed, and the group gets 3 tries. It looks harsh, but isn’t and thankfully everyone was nice to the poor goats.
In the evening we had dinner and then did our washing and most went to bed early, while others stayed at the bar.