“They slap themselves in the face or ram a fist into their chest then climb into a coffin-shaped steel bucking chute, mounting a muscular quivering beast ten times their size, as if strapping onto an unpredictable carnival ride, part rollercoaster, part roadside bomb. Professional bull riders approach their seemingly insane job with an icy-calm self-assurance that produces shivers in the rest of us – mere mortals who can only marvel at David trying to tame Goliath in the most audacious and dangerous game of chicken imaginable. But these cowboys aren’t crazy. They are alive.”
So writes Andrew Giangola in his new critically acclaimed book, Love & Try: Stories of Gratitude and Grit in Professional Bull Riding, which introduces the rugged cast and crew behind sporting events that wrap 8-second bursts of man-versus-beast mayhem into an all-American celebration of faith, freedom, and family. Giangola, a New Yorker and total outsider to the Western culture, was warmly welcomed into the bull riding family and he began writing about this mysterious sport mixing a hard-rock music soundtrack with the evangelical Christian faith, those who are saved and others raising hell. He’s coming on Vienna Live to give us the whole story. Come welcome Andrew to our show for a fascinating insider’s look at just what makes these people and the growing sport of bull riding so alive.
Vienna Live with Simeon Morrow - Weekly interactive Show 