Local News

RodeoHouston Brings Crowd to Tears with Tribute to Bucking Horses

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Tony Maples Photography

 

“She’s been bucking for 14 years,” owner Binion Cervi said of his horse named Hostage to KHOU. Twenty years ago, Hostage was born, and this year, she began the moving tribute to her family of bucking horses. Each evening during RodeoHouston, audiences were treated to a ceremony that left many onlookers in tears due to the majesty of the beautiful animals.

After Hostage galloped to the middle of the stage, Hostage Negotiator (Hostage’s daughter) Hostage Taker (Hostage’s grandaughter) ran up to join her. Then the family grew when the absolutely adorable “2-month-old Painted Hostage; and 2-week-old Houston’s Honey” made their way into the spotlight. Then the crowd would get especially misty-eyed as an entire herd of gorgeous horses joined their matriarch Hostage. The group ran around the area with their manes proudly flowing.

Rodeo News posted a video of the tribute to their Facebook page and explained that the show was brought to RodeoHouston by Cervi Championship Rodeo Company in Colorado. Each night, announcer Boyd Polhamus spoke to the audience about the importance of Hostage’s bloodline and the respect that these horses deserve. “They are loving, yet wild,” he reminds the audience at the end of the short, but meaningful, tribute.