CVIO Season 6 – That’s No Bull
I’m thinking about riding a rodeo bull for Season 6 of Charlottesville Inside-Out. For previous shows, I arm wrestled for charity, played polo, and skated with the Charlottesville Derby Dames -- so why not sit on a bull? Word has it the bull in mind has retired and no longer struts (or kicks) his stuff around the arena. Yeah, they tell me he’s pretty laid back these days -- just hangs out in the middle of a field eating grass. You can even walk up and pet him. That being said, he weighs 3,000 pounds. So, I’m still thinking about it…
What made me consider straddling a rodeo bull in the first place, you’re wondering? We’re covering Oakland Heights Farm for CVIO this season. The Lamb family has maintained this 100-acre property just outside of Gordonsville since the early ‘70’s. They offer trail riding to tourists, jumper/hunter horseback riding lessons to the community, and host bull-riding rodeos and horse shows. They also raise beef cattle and buy and sell horses. We spent a day at their farm recently riding on the trails, and we’re going back again soon to shoot a rodeo. While I can’t tell you yet if I’ll actually get on the back of a burly bovine (you’ll just have to catch CVIO Season 6 to find out), I can tell you that, during my visit to the farm, I rode a horse named Joy that used to belong to Bruce Springsteen and his wife, Patti. And that’s no bull.
CVIO Season 6 won’t be all horsing around. I’ll be covering a wide variety of topics. To name a few, I’ll visit Les Yeux du Monde art gallery and go behind the scenes with Dave Matthews Band tour director Geoff Trump. I’ll hike in the Shenandoah National Park; learn how to make bagels; discuss political history and policy making; visit one of the areas “greenest” wineries and sample an award-winning wine made with chocolate. Then I'll catch up with a few local musicians and go boating and skiing with athletes and volunteers from Wintergreen Adaptive Sports -- a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities through outdoor sports. Who knows -- I might even join a group of ping pong enthusiasts who have been competing every Tuesday night for over 30 years.
Hard to say what I’ll do after that… A friend wants me to jump out of a plane. I’m thinking I’ll save that one for CVIO Season 10… We’ll see. Keep an eye on CVIO’s Facebook page for updates. And if you like us -- “Like” us!
Can someone let me know when this episode will air about the Lamb family in Gordonsville?
Hi Sue,
The "Charlottesville Inside-Out" segment on Oakland Heights Farm aired this past Thursday. You will be able to view the show on-line by mid-week at the following link:
http://ideastations.org/video-browser/recent/charlottesville-inside-out
Thanks for writing!
Thumbs down on the riding a retired bull idea. He has already been stressed during his life to satisfy the need of humans to prove whatever it is bull riders need to prove to themselves. Just because he weighs 3,000 lbs. does not classify him as a toy for humans to party on. Why isn't just petting him enough? Would you touch valuable works of art in museums just because they might be within your reach? Please, let him be. Show compassion. It's funny how I stumbled upon this article on my way to renew my membership to public radio.
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