Meeting the California Rodeo Salinas' cowgirls, cowboys and animals.

Wrestling down cows, dodging 1,500-pound bulls or riding violently thrashing broncs isn’t something you want to do on a whim.

Fortunately for most rodeo participants, it’s a lot closer to the polar opposite: They’ve been doing it their whole lives, and the huge week-long festival is simply a more visible week of riding and roping and ranching. This is their existence. Many participating families have done it for generations – and some can’t imagine life without it.

The Pedrazzis provide a perfect example. They have been living on River Road and running cattle in Salinas ever since moving there in 1886 from Switzerland. Six generations have already grown up in the ranching life. Papa Pedrazzi (Pete) was once the rodeo’s track director, overseeing all the trick riders, mutton-busting, horseplay and clown acts it involves. His daughter-in-law Debbie competes in cattle sorting. His son Dave has won team roping events and will serve as director himself after time as a rodeo vice president. A number of family members have served on the rodeo committee.

Dave’s fiercest qualification might be that he can’t fathom life apart from rodeo. “To be honest, I can’t see anything else,” he says. “It has always been programmed for me to be that way.” He’s one of 52 different directors who help orchestrate 1,200 volunteers, a small army of people with a big passion. “Our whole way of life brings family closer together because we’re in the ranching business, and we do a lot of things that involve everyone,” he says, “and the rodeo is the same way.”

Here’s a look at more of the rodeo lifers who descend for the 106th annual:

Marguerite Happy • Barrel Racing •

Happy grew up in a strong, competitive rodeo family in Salinas and competed at local junior rodeos at a young age. She became a member of the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) around 1979 and has served as WPRA circuit director for the last four years. This year, she hopes to gain a Salinas buckle because it may be the last year she runs barrels on her current horse. “These rodeo horses, whether barrel horse, rope horse or bucking horse, have huge hearts and love their job,” Happy says. “Part of what is so special about the sport is the undeniable connection and love between horse and rider.” On top of being a barrel racer – speeding to complete a clover pattern around barrels as fast as possible – Happy has worked as a professional stuntwoman for over 35 years and owns a spot in the Hollywood Stuntmen’s Hall of Fame.

Shane Proctor • Bull Riding •

The 31-year-old from Grand Coulee, Washington, is currently ranked seventh in the Pro Bull Riding national circuit and enters the arena as the defending California Rodeo Salinas champ, with two more wins to his credit this year. “People had written me off after my shoulder surgeries a couple of years ago,” he told PBR.com. “While I don’t think I’m 100 percent, I’m working toward that and when I get to 100 percent, who knows what can happen.”

Sterling and Jacobs Crawley • Saddle Bronc Riding •

According to their Facebook page, the Texas brothers travel from rodeo to rodeo in an old converted ambulance. Last year’s California Rodeo Salinas saddle bronc win, Sterling’s first in Salinas, was a breakthrough for the then 24-year-old. His 80-point jaunt in the finals came on Rider. “That was an awesome horse,” he told ProRodeo.com. “I was just plum tickled when I found out I had him.”

Ty Erickson • Steer Wrestling •

Montana-born Erickson returns as defending champ in the high-adrenaline act of jumping on top a big fleeing bovine by its horns and taking it gracefully to the ground – in as few as 4 seconds – without getting smashed underneath it. But steer wrestling is hard on the wrestler’s horse too, hence the recent spa treatment for his main ally. “My boy Shakem has had a couple weeks off while being home in Montana,” Erickson posted on Facebook, “but he still gets his massage for maintenance, muscle release and soreness.”

Tim O’Connor • Protection Bull Fighter •

He may be dressed like a clown, but the gig is far from funny. O’Connor was born into the ranching lifestyle in California and grew up watching his uncle fight professionally. He has 10 seasons under his belt as a pro himself. “They think it’s just running from a bull, but you gotta know how to react to the situations,” O’Connor said at the Reno Rodeo.

Megan Ford • Miss California Rodeo Salinas 2016 Contestant •

A Miss San Benito Rodeo and a fourth-generation San Benito County resident, Ford has participated in rodeos since the age of 4. She is a member of the American Cowboy Team Roping Association and has competed in events such as barrel racing, pole bending, team roping, goat tying and breakaway roping. She currently attends Gavilan Community College and plans to transfer to CSU Monterey Bay for nursing. Ford will compete against three other women for the title of Miss California Rodeo Salinas 2016 based on horsemanship, personality, appearance and scholarship.

Ross Hill • Freestyle Bullfighting •

Hailing from Muscle Schoals, Alabama, the so-called “Alabama Slamma” recently invented the selfie fake in Ft. Worth, Texas, in which he pretends to take a selfie with a charging bull but moves out of the way before it can get to him. Hill was the California Rodeo Salinas freestyle bullfighting champion in both 2007 and 2008 for daring moves that include completing an actual backflip over a fast-approaching bull.

Wolf Deer • Pro Bull •

Wolf Deer is a Wrangler National Finals Rodeo bull who bucks as hard as any beast in the area. He joins the rarefied muscle in the final round of the Professional Bull Riding event July 20 and the short round of the California Rodeo Salinas, when only the strongest and most challenging bulls get involved. Wolf Deer is owned by Cindy Rosser of Flying C Livestock and is the son of Werewolf. He weighs around 1,500 pounds with an 82-percent buckoff rate.

Tyler Corrington • Saddle Bronc Rider •

Coming to Salinas from Hastings, Minnesota, Corrington grew up with a father who is a professional saddle bronc rider himself. He’s won in multiple rodeos around the country since 2010 after joining the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association in 2006, winning the prestigious title Resistol Rookie of the Year. Corrington qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in 2011, 2013 and 2014. According to his Twitter feed, he suffered a broken leg in 2015 but has roared back to full health ahead of Salinas.

Taylor Howell • 2015 Miss California Rodeo Salinas •

Growing up in Sonora, Calif., Howell has been living the cowgirl lifestyle for 21 years. Howell says that becoming Miss California has been a dream come true. “It is an honor to represent a lifestyle I live every day,” she says. After winning Miss California Rodeo Salinas last year, she has continued to advocate for Western heritage by competing in the West Coast Regional college rodeo barrels racing and breakaway roping, barrel racing on the side and helping friends at their ranches during her free time.

I Are A Little Fancy • Steer Wrestling •

This year brings a lot of firsts for Charles Harris’s bay mare “Sissy,” whose registered name is “I Are A Little Fancy.” Not only is this her first time in Salinas, but her first pro rodeo. Her rich bloodline includes Leo Camarillo’s tie-down roping stud horse and Charles’ hazing horse I Are Fancy. The family is confident in the young mare’s potential after she placed or finished just out of the money at her five previous rodeos.

California Rodeo Salinas takes place Thursday-Sunday at Salinas Sports Complex, 1034 N. Main St., Salinas. Tickets start at $7. 800-549-4989, www.CARodeo.com.