Editing Bull riding (section)

===Headgear===
For most of bull riding's history, the primary headgear worn by contestants was [[cowboy hat]]s. However, things started to slowly change during the latter years of the 20th century. Among the earliest bull riders to use protective headgear was 1982 PRCA world champion, [[Charlie Sampson|Charlie Sampson]]. At an exhibition rodeo in [[Landover, Maryland]], during the latter part of the 1983 PRCA regular season, Sampson suffered some major injuries after he was jerked down and his face collided with the bull's head during the ride, knocking him unconscious. The wreck cracked his skull and fractured nearly every bone in his face. As a result, he had reconstructive surgery. When the regular season ended, he had won enough money to qualify for the [[National Finals Rodeo]] in [[Oklahoma City]] in December. Against doctors' recommendations, he decided to compete at the event. However, his face was still recovering, so he rode at the event with a [[lacrosse helmet]] and a neck roll. When his face was healed up, Sampson went back to riding in a cowboy hat. However, he would suffer additional facial injuries throughout the rest of his career and rode with a helmet if his injuries were severe enough to warrant it. He would always go back to riding in a hat when healed up and never made a helmet a permanent part of his gear. 

Into the 1990s, a small number of other professional bull riders began using protective headgear such as leather face masks with metal bars that they wore under their hats while riding or modified [[Hockey helmet|ice hockey helmets]]. Like Charlie Sampson, most of these riders only wore headgear while recovering from serious facial or head injuries, only to ditch it when healed up. Very few bull riders made protective headwear a permanent part of their gear. However, by 2003, though still a minority, helmeted bull riders were more common than ever. Many were now riders that did not necessarily suffer serious injuries, but who grew up riding with them for the sake of extra safety. The number of contestants who rode with helmets grew throughout the rest of the 2000s, especially during the latter years of the decade. 

By the early 2010s, manufacturers were building helmets made specifically for bull riding. During the same time period, most up-and-comers were already riding with helmets. In 2013, the PBR made it mandatory that all contestants at their events who were born on or after October 15, 1994 ride with a full bull riding helmet. Those born before that date were [[Grandfather clause|grandfathered in]] and permitted to ride with a protective face mask underneath their hat or simply with their hat if so desired.

Public health researchers found evidence suggesting that bull riding helmets are protective, when riders wearing one particular type of helmet suffered approximately 50% fewer head and facial injuries.<ref>{{cite web |title=Survey Analysis to Assess the Effectiveness of the Bull Tough Helmet in Preventing Head Injuries in Bull Riders: A Pilot Study |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11004188 |website=Research Gate |access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Brandenburg |first1=Mark A. |title=Mechanisms of head injury in bull riders with and without the Bull Tough helmet--a case series |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7346449 |website=ResearchGate |access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref>

In 2004, at the 1st International Rodeo Research and Clinical Care Conference in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the licensed rodeo and bull riding medical personnel and clinicians recommended to the rodeo and bull riding associations mentioned in the agreement the mandatory use of helmets to all youth bull riders and the recommendation of helmets to all adult bull riders.<ref>Butterwick2005/{{cite journal |author=Butterwick DJ, Brandenburg MA |title=Agreement Statement from the 1st International Rodeo Research and Clinical Care Conference Calgary, Alberta, Canada July 7-9, 2004 |journal=Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine |volume=15 |issue=12 |pages=192–195|date=April 2005 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7869942 |doi=10.1097/01.jsm.0000160553.87755.2a|pmid=15867568 }}</ref>

For competitors under the age of 18, mandatory protective headgear incorporating an ice hockey-style [[helmet]] is worn. Riders who use helmets as youths tend to continue wearing them as they reach adulthood and turn professional.<ref>[http://law.justia.com/texas/codes/2009/health-and-safety-code/title-9-safety/chapter-768-children-participating-in-rodeos/ Texas law mandates competitors under 18 in rodeos, including bull riding, must wear a helmet.]</ref>