Ever since setting to work on my novel, I’ve been digging
deep into the mythology and ancient history of the Greeks. One unexpected (but
cool) side effect is that some otherwise random news story or fragment of ephemera
will catch my attention because it recalls or connects with something from that
time. A great example of this is the following photo, which chanced across my
computer’s homepage a week or so ago:
This is a picture of a man sailing over a charging bull, looking
much like an Acapulco
cliff diver, only sideways. One thing we can say for sure about this guy is
that when he landed, it wasn’t in water. Hopefully, it was just sawdust, or
sand, or something equally inoffensive. Anyway, it makes for a compelling
image, and instantly raises the question: What is this man doing, and where did
he get those nifty socks?
I’ve had no luck with the socks yet, but it only took a few
clicks to learn that the man is called a recortador,
a professional bull-leaper. That’s right, he leaps over bulls for a living. The
sport is called recortes, and the
premise is to avoid being gored and trampled by a stampeding bull while still
picking up points for style. To do this, the recortador relies on courage, preternatural agility, and an uncanny
knack for knowing where the bull is going to go. The only weapons he takes into
the arena are his wits and an unlimited supply of hair product.