PHOTOS: Steers put strength, teamwork to test

Hunter Cure of Holliday, Texas, gets a grip on a steer Tuesday night during the steer wrestling competition in the sixth round of the National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas & Mack Center. Cure tied for fourth place in the round with a time of 3.9 seconds. He placed first in the fifth round, tied for second in the third round and took third in the second round. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Bray Armes gains leverage during the Steer Wrestling event on day 6 of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas on Dec. 10, 2013. Armes tied for fourth place on the day with a time of 3.9 seconds. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Dean Gorsuch of Gering, Neb., rejoices Tuesday after posting a winning time of 3.2 seconds in the sixth round. He also placed first in the fourth round, tied for fourth in the fifth round and took sixth in the first round. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Jason Miller of Lance Creek, Wyo., works his steer to the ground during Tuesday’s sixth round en route to tying for seventh place in 4.0 seconds. His best showings were in the fifth round, when he took fourth, and the first round, when he was fifth. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Matt Reeves of Cross Plains, Texas, struggles to grip his steer during Tuesday’s sixth round en route to failing to register a time. His best results came when he took fourth in the second and fourth rounds. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Jason Miller charges out of the gate during the Steer Wrestling event on day 6 of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas on Dec. 10, 2013. (Jason Bean/Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Jule Hazen has been stellar so far in steer wrestling at the National Finals Rodeo and is challenging Casey Martin for the gold buckle. Martin had led the standings most of the year. Bray Armes, Dean Gorsuch and Dakota Eldridge, one of three Nevada cowboys in the NFR, also have shown well in Las Vegas.

Steer wrestling is a combination of strength, timing and teamwork. The steer gets a head start and is chased by a cowboy on horseback — helped by a hazer who tries to keep the steer running in a straight line.

When the bulldogger pulls even with the steer, he eases down his horse and grabs the steer’s horns. He digs his heels into the arena dirt to slow the steer. The cowboy turns the animal, lifts up on its right horn and pushes down with his left hand.

He either must bring the steer to a stop or change the direction of the animal’s body before the throw, or he is disqualified. The clock stops when the calf is on its side with all legs pointing in the same direction.