Barrel Racing is one of my favourite events at the rodeo. It’s just so darn fast! The idea is to navigate a course around 3 barrels, taking care not to hit any of them and knock them over, and get back to the finish line as quickly as possible. The course takes up the whole arena and includes 3 360 degree turns and yet the winners still manage to complete it with times in the 15 second range.
Shooting barrel racing is also challenging because of the speed. I like to camp next to one of the barrels, prefocus on it (or just behind it) then let rip on continuous shooting mode as soon as the horse and rider appear. This typically gives me at least one good frame as they round the barrel. The better riders cut it really fine (like this one) but some take the corners wider so you have to be prepared to loose a few horses’ legs in the process 🙂