Denton (United States) (AFP) – At the Texas Tradition Rodeo in Denton, John Beck gallops his horse Diamond across the arena, leaving a plume of dust in his wake — one of around 50 cowboys competing in classic events such as barrel-racing, calf-lassoing and bull-riding.

But at last weekend's show, contestants also participated in unconventional challenges such as “Wild Drag Racing,” in which cowboys in sparkly dresses and extravagant wigs try to jump atop bucking steers — this is a gay rodeo.

And even as the state contemplates stripping back myriad protections for LGBTQ residents, this group of gay, lesbian and transgender cowboys are proudly joining in on one of Texas' most famous traditions anyway.

Beck, who says he has known he was gay since he was a child, was not always able to be open in the rodeo world as a professional cowboy.

“I had to hide. For every little thing I did, I had to hide,” recalled the 73-year-old, dressed in jeans, boots and a cowboy hat adorned with an enormous blue feather. 

The show's organizer, the Texas Gay Rodeo Association (TGRA), has put on these events for 30 years, even while the state legislature in Austin debates dozens of bills — 140, according to the NGO Equality Texas — that would seek to limit the rights of LGBTQ people, a trend seen in conservative states across the country.

Despite the looming threat, the small crowd in the metal bleachers in Denton, near Dallas, is enthusiastic. They laugh and cheer even when the drag queens tumble off their precarious perches on the bulls' backs — here, unlike in the real world outside, the danger is all part of the fun. 

‘Live my dream'

The TGRA, which was founded 40 years ago to raise money to support people living with HIV, when government assistance for those affected by the disease did not yet exist in the southern state. 

The group relies on donations to bring its version of rodeo to life, according to TGRA member Jim Gadient, for people who love the “western” lifestyle but may not feel at home in traditional Texan culture.  

“Our rodeo is different,” said Gadient, 68. 

The space to be different is more relevant than ever for many of the participants, as lawmakers debate bills that would restrict the discussion of gender identity in schools, limit or forbid drag shows, ban certain books and prohibit hormone treatment for transgender minors.

“Wild Drag Race” amateur competitor Sean Moroz, a paramedic, said his friends and family were “very accepting” when he came out as gay. 

He had wanted to get involved in what he saw as the “hypermasculine” world of cowboys since he was a child. 

“Having a gay rodeo just made it a little bit easier and more comfortable for me,” he recalled. “I got to be a part of that and kind of live my dream.”

Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, a political ally of Donald Trump, has decried efforts to “sexualize and indoctrinate Texas children” with events such as drag queen story hours. 

But for 50-year-old drag performer Delilah DeVasquez, who joined other drag queens dancing between tables filled with adult attendees to collect money for charity, such concerns are irrelevant at the rodeo. 

“We know our audience. So if we're entertaining children, we obviously are going to entertain appropriately, versus if we are going to entertain adults,” she explained. “It's two different things.”

It's not “dangerous,” Moroz said. “It's people dressing up in a dress and having some fun.”

‘Long time to get here'

Some rodeo participants, including Gadient, said the Texas government should instead focus on issues like gun violence or voting rights rather than targeting the LGBTQ community.

“It's important that these rights do not get repealed,” said cowboy Charlie Colella, 63, while feeding his horse. “It took a long time to get here.”

“I rode broncs in the straight world and gay world both for 17 years. I rode bulls for eight years,” Beck said, adding that he and his straight cowboy counterparts “learned to get along together. And that's the bottom line.”

“These are my family, these are my friends,” Moroz, 35, said of his fellow LGBTQ rodeo competitors.

“And, you know, I'm able to be me.”