Bangkoki: The annual Buffalo Race Festival in Thailand tests the mettle of one buffalo against another!
Barefoot jockeys use their whips to drive the buffalos faster.
They race along a 100 metre long dirt track to the finish line, with little to protect them from falls and injuries.
The winning jockey and buffalo receive a prize of Baht 5,000 (Rs 5,500) and farm equipment.
A Buffalo Parade in honour of the animal is carried out during the festival.
Buffaloes are paraded down the streets in bright costumes as passers by cheer on.
The festival started as a social event for farmers but has now become a major tourist attraction.
The day's events, which also include a buffalo beauty pageant, a Miss Farmer beauty contest and a comic buffalo costume contest, perfectly exemplified a favored Thai attitude to life ? "sanuk," meaning fun.
Adul Boran, a 39-year-old water buffalo jockey, has been racing for 28 years for the good times associated with the unorthodox sport.
"I don't get paid for it, but my friends and I get together three days a week to train with our buffaloes just for fun," he says.
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