Horse hooves pound the ground, running on a fully dirt-covered rendition of Petco Park on Thursday morning. Atop that steed, a female rider in a shiny outfit performs tricks.
It's a glimpse of what's to come at the third annual San Diego Rodeo taking place from Friday through Sunday.
Jeremy Maisonneuve is an 18-year-old set to compete in the rodeo’s bull riding events.
“I was born in a rodeo family. So it's been in my blood since day one,” he said. “When my parents roped at home, I'd always get on the calves so they figured that day I was going to be a bull rider.”
Tunnel vision takes over when competition starts, he said.
“Eight seconds feels not that long until you're on the back of a bull,” Maisonneuve said.
Sujhey Rosas is Miss Rodeo California. She lives in Tecate and grew up on both sides of the Cali-Baja border in the rodeo scene.
She’s involved in a handful of rodeos that happen across San Diego County.
“At San Diego Rodeo, I'm excited for team roping — it's my favorite event. We have two cowboys — a header and a heeler who will both rope the head and legs of the calf, for the fastest time,” she said.
The rodeo’s use of animals for sport is the subject of a lawsuit in San Diego Superior Court alleging animal cruelty.
Multiple animal rights groups are also protesting the event, including Strategic Action for Animals.
“There’s cruel events like calf roping where baby calves are forced to run 20 miles per hour, jerked, slammed to the ground, and those are inherently cruel and do result in injuries and sometimes death in those animals,” said Amit Dhuleshia, the organization's co-founder.
The San Diego Rodeo is presented by C5 Rodeo Co. and Outriders Presents in partnership with the San Diego Padres.
The Padres did not provide KPBS an interview nor immediately provide a statement responding to the lawsuit.
The other two organizations also did not immediately respond for comment.
Attorney Bryan Pease, who represents the plaintiffs, Animal Protection and Rescue League (APRL) and Showing Animals Respect and Kindness (SHARK), gave closing arguments in the lawsuit on Thursday, he said.
“What we are seeking is an unfair business practices injunction that would prohibit San Diego Padres and C5 Rodeo from engaging in specific acts of cruelty,” Pease said.
Those specific acts he’s hoping to stop include what he describes as roping baby calves and slamming them to the ground, and using bucking straps on animals.
At least two horses have been seriously injured or died at the San Diego Rodeo in past years, Pease said.
He expects a verdict in the coming weeks.
