AbrivadoThis is a typical French bull race, it is not the “Camargue race” but it is a part of it. While the main race takes place inside an arena, this one occurs outside, on the streets delimited by railings (but it is possible to pass them through). This kind of race is called “Abrivado” and once was the way to bring the bulls, guided by “Gardiens” (men on horseback), from the herd to the arena. Now, these practices have become only a show. The participants' (Attrapaïres) aim is to take out the bulls from the Gardiens' control, trying to hold on to the bulls or slow them down by grabbing their tails.
Despite the races don't involve the death of the animals, I wonder if nowadays with the multitude of ways we all have to have fun it is needed to do so by using animals. I suppose that for those bulls to go to and fro a red box while being pocked with spiked sticks and yanked as they're running on asphalt is not that enjoyable, is it? The sequence of the pictures might appear repetitive, I've tried giving an idea of how the race happens, chronologically. The photos were taken during an Abrivado in Arles in France, September 2018. |