No cowboy would ever dive off his horse onto a five to six-hundred-pound steer at 35 miles an hour out on the open range.

The key to successful steer wrestling lies in coordination between two cowboys, two horses, and a steer. Steer wrestling is the only rodeo event in which a contestant is permitted to use a helper. The horned steer is given a head start, the steer wrestler then starts his horse in pursuit, keeping to one side of the steer. A second mounted cowboy, called a "hazer", pursues from the opposite side of the steer. As the pair draws near, along both sides of the steer, the contestant slides down on top of the steer, arms around its horns, with his boot heels digging into the ground ahead.

As the steer slows down, the cowboy turns the animal, lifts up on its right horn and pushes down with his left hand to produce the leverage needed to throw the steer to the ground. A rodeo judge will stop time when the steer is on its side with all four feet pointing in the same direction.

Once known as the "big man's" event, due to the brute strength required, recent emphasis on quickness and technique have produced phenominal times by large and average sized cowboys alike. With constant practice and top-grade horses, it often requires a time of less than five seconds to win a champion caliber steer wrestling competition.