T he "course Camarguese," held in local village bull rings throughout the spring and summer, are events unlikely to upset even animal-rights groups.
Unlike the Spanish bullfight, or the brand of "mise a mort" practiced not far away in the arenas of Ni^mes and Arles, the only blood that is ever spilled in the rings of the Camargue, and then only rarely, is that of the men who confront the bull.
In a course, six white-clad men, fighters known as "razeteurs," enter the ring after the bull has stomped in. The aim of the game, which are tests of strength and agility, is for a player to remove, in one lightning pass, a ribbon or cockade from the deadly horns of the animal and to then make a swift dash for the red barriers. He must leap over these and then propel himself, literally through the air, to an inner banister that he clings to before releasing himself and climbing back into the ring.