Bucking broncos. Free pancake breakfasts. Cowboys and Indians. Dazzling grandstand shows and fireworks. It's no surprise that the Calgary Stampede is called “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth,” especially when you add midway rides, live music, agricultural shows, chuckwagon racing and a casino.
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| Saddle bronc riding. Calgary Stampede Rodeo. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
Alberta's Calgary Stampede has drawn visitors annually since it began in 1912. This year is no exception, with the Stampede Parade launching ten days of special events. Upcoming Calgary Stampede dates are July 9 to 18, 2010, July 8 to 17, 2011, July 6 to 15, 2012, July 5 to 14, 2013 and July 4 to 13, 2014.
Stampede parade
A two-hour parade kicks off the Calgary Stampede, with marching bands, horse-drawn wagons and floats. Even the most inhibited visitors soon find themselves caught up by the wide-open western friendliness.
Calgarians are cheerful and outgoing, eager to meet visitors and share with them the excitement of the Stampede. They square dance in the streets until noon, then head to the 137-acre Stampede Park to continue their fun.
Pancake breakfasts
Each Stampede day begins with free pancakes, bacon and sausages served chuckwagon-style at city shopping malls and businesses. Store owners and employees, wearing aprons and white cowboy hats, cook pancakes on large grills and serve coffee and juice from covered wagons.
Free music, petting zoos, face painting and parades entertain people while they wait for their pancake breakfasts.
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| Riders and horses exit chutes for steer wrestling. Calgary Stampede Rodeo. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
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| Cowboy and horse team for calf roping. Calgary Stampede Rodeo. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
Rodeo events
Exuberant spectators fill the grandstand to watch the rodeo every afternoon. In the tournament-style rodeo, twenty top competitors compete for $1.87 million in prize money in six rodeo events: bareback, bull riding, ladies barrel racing, saddle bronc, steer wrestling and tie-down roping. In addition, novices compete in rodeo events like steer riding and kids vie for top spot in wild pony racing.
Chutes burst open. Bucking broncs cannonball out, bouncing and jolting their riders. Clowns distract enraged, snorting bulls while fallen cowboys make a hasty exit.
Cowboys wrestle steers to the ground in seconds. A cowboy and his horse work together to rope a calf. The cowboy lassoes the calf then jumps off his horse to tie the calf's feet with a rope that he holds with his teeth. The horse pulls gently, keeping the rope taut.
Chuckwagon racing
Every evening, there are nine chuckwagon races. Each chuckwagon has a driver, two teams of horses and four outriders. One outrider holds the two lead horses, while waiting for the starting signal. Another outrider holds the reins of his horse with his teeth, while picking up an 80-pound box containing the cook's stove and equipment.
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| Chuckwagon Races. Calgary Stampede. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
When the gun sounds, outriders throw the boxes into the chuckwagons and then jump on their horses. The chuckwagons make a figure eight before racing down the track. Horses frequently fall or get tangled in harnesses during the rush to begin.
Thundering hooves raise dust as riders and horses, with all the fury of Ben Hur, strain to reach the finish line in less than two minutes. The crowd screams with excitement. It's no wonder, since prizes for chuckwagon races total more than $1 million!
Agricultural shows
The 400 horses and 60 bulls in the rodeo come from the Stampede's 22,000-acre ranch near Hanna in east-central Alberta. The Calgary Stampede also showcases tamer animal exhibits, ranging from beef cattle and miniature horses to sheep and llamas.
There are competitions for blacksmiths and auctioneers, as well as vintage tractor pulls. In the Grain Academy, visitors learn about the history of grain, from farming grain in the prairies to transporting it and creating breads, cereals and other foods.
Live entertainment
The Calgary Stampede is more than an agricultural and cowboy show. Free performances at the Enbridge Stage include the Calgary Stampede Showband, A Band of Outriders, marching bands, hoop dancers, magic shows and street dancers. Also free with admission are concerts by country music stars at Nashville North.
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| Calgary Stampede fireworks after grandstand show. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
At the midway, visitors find 35 rides (22 for children at the kids' midway). Main midway rides include the swing tower, mega drop, spinning coaster and the giant wheel (the largest portable Ferris wheel in North America). Beside the neon-lit amusement rides, games entice stampede visitors to win giant stuffed animals.
Every night, after the chuckwagon races, the largest mobile stage in the world (weighing 300,000 pounds) is moved from the track oval to the racetrack to dock with the main stage. The Grandstand Show stars 400 singers, dancers and musicians. As the grand finale, brilliant fireworks fill the sky.
A new Stampede Casino boasts 600 slot machines, 40 table games and a 24-hour poker room. The $44 million casino also has four places to eat, three lounges and a showroom.
Kids activities
On the main level of the Big Four Building, Buckaroos has a play area for toddlers, face painting, button making, a car racetrack and many other things for children to do. The Western Photo Booth offers free family photos.
Splash 'n Boots and a Wild West Show entertain families with several performances daily. Superdogs is the most popular show, with racing and jumping dogs in the Stampede Corral.
Bell rodeoX attracts teens with BMX riders and skateboarders, who thrill spectators with their daring maneuvers on the street course and half pipe.
The Roundup Centre draws families to an indoor beach for fashion shows, hair-braiding, model searches, a sandcastle exhibit, a hip-hop dance show, graffiti art and Nintendo and Xbox games.
Arts and crafts
The Roundup Centre also hosts the Western Art Show, cooking demonstrations by local chefs, arts and crafts demonstrations and cowboy music and poetry at Western Showcase.
Stampede visitors can buy art directly from more than four dozen artists at the Western Art Sales Salon, and watch artisans create wooden, metal, glass and ceramic works at the Western Art Show. A special People of the Plains exhibit displays works by Aboriginal artists.
In the Western Lifestyles area, visitors see displays of entries and winners of quilt, cake and cowboy boot art competitions. Children can create crafts to bring home.
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| First Nations horseman. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
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| Teepees at Indian Village. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
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| First Nations women dancers. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
Indian Village
Colourful tepees highlight the Indian Village where Plains Indians demonstrate native skills like meat cutting, drying jerky and pemmican, beadwork, baking bannock and making clothing from animal hides.
Visitors are welcome to watch the First Nations song and dance competitions, tipi (tepee) raising contests and horsemanship.
Cowboy fashions
Traditional Stampede clothing consists of denim blue jeans, leather belts with big buckles and plaid shirts. The key symbol of Calgary is a white Smithbilt hat (given as a gift to every visiting celebrity, sports star, Canadian prime minister and U.S. president).
Footwear consists of cowboy boots, made by the Alberta Boot Company. The Calgary-based company manufactures boots for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) as well as custom-made western boots from cowhide, rattlesnake, python, alligator and other hides.
How to get to the Calgary Stampede
Stampede Park is located just a few blocks away from Calgary's downtown business district and less than one hour from Banff, Alberta.
The best way to reach the Stampede grounds is on the C-Train express buses operated by the light rail transit system in Calgary. Buses stop at two Stampede Park locations. Get off at the Erlton/Stampede Station in the southern end of Stampede Park if you want to go to the grandstand, midway or Indian Village. Get off at the Stampede/Victoria Park Station in the centre of Stampede Park to go to the Coca-Cola Stage, the Roundup Centre or Pengrowth Saddledome.
Calgary Stampede tickets
In addition to general park admission at Calgary Stampede entrances, visitors can buy standing room tickets for the rodeo and evening shows, at the grandstand, 1.5 hours prior to each event.
Rodeo, chuckwagon race and Grandstand Show tickets, purchased in advance, include entrance to Stampede Park. The best deals are packages that include afternoon rodeo tickets, reserved evening show tickets for the chuckwagon races and Grandstand Stage Show, gate entry, Skyride tickets, souvenir programs, Calgary Stampede golf shirts and tote bags.
To order by phone, call toll-free 1 (800) 661-1767 or buy tickets on-line.
TRAVEL INFORMATION
Calgary Stampede: www.calgarystampede.com
Calgary information and accommodations: www.tourismcalgary.com
Other things to see and do in Alberta:
Capital Ex and Taste of Edmonton Festivals Combine Food and Entertainment