Cow Fighting, Combats de Reines, Aproz, Switzerland

Hi

On Sunday, I attended a very typical swiss event which takes place each year in Aproz in the canton of Valais in Switzerland (close to Sion). It is the "Combats de Reines", cow fighting event of the Hérens Breed (for more info, please refer to http://www.raceherens.ch/E/explications.php).

Hérens cows breed have a strong and aggressive temperament. Each time they meet for the first time and although if they have not been in contact for some time, most of the cows will fight hard. Cows are not prepared or trained to fight but the confrontations occur naturally. The winner will be designated as La Reine (the Queen) of the flock. This ability to fight gave birth to the tradition of the Combats de Reines and attracts many enthusiasts and farmers. Injuries during these clashes are rare.

I attended the event with K-5 with DA15 and DA*200, as well as D3s with AFS 70-200/2.8 VR2.

Here are a few photos of the day:
1
K-5, DA*200, 1/1000s f/3.5 at 200.0mm iso400

2
K-5, DA*200, 1/1000s f/3.2 at 200.0mm iso80

3
K-5, DA*200, 1/1000s f/3.2 at 200.0mm iso80

4
K-5, DA15, 1/100s f/9.0 at 15.0mm iso80

5
K-5, DA15, 1/800s f/8.0 at 15.0mm iso80

These and more are also under http://www.pbase.com/tcom/combatreines2011