An orgy of all things
cowboy and cowgirl,
the annual
Calgary
Stampede brings
around a quarter of a
million spectators and
participants to the
city for ten days
during the middle two
weeks of July. This is
far more than a
carefully engineered
gift to Calgary's
tourist industry,
however, for the event
is one of the world's
biggest rodeos and
comes close to living
up to its billing as
"The Greatest
Outdoor Show on
Earth". During
"The Week",
as it's known by all
and sundry, the city
loses its collective
head; just about
everyone turns out in
white stetsons, bolo
ties, blue jeans and
hand-tooled boots,
addressing one another
in a bastardized
cowboy C&W slang.
But for all its
heavily worked visitor
appeal, the
competition end of
things is taken very
seriously. Most of the
cowboys are for real,
as are the injuries -
the rodeo is said to
be North America's
roughest - and the
combined prize money
is a very serious
$500,000. Even the
first show in 1912,
masterminded by
entrepreneur Guy
Weadick, put up
$100,000 (raised from
four Calgary
businessmen) and
attracted 60,000
people to the opening
parade, a line-up that
included 2000
aboriginal people in
full ceremonial rig
and Pancho Villa's
bandits in a show
erroneously billed as
a swan song for the
cowboy of the American
West ("The Last
and Best Great West
Frontier Days").
Around 40,000 daily
attended the rodeo
events (today's figure
is 100,000), not bad
considering Calgary's
population at the time
was only 65,000.
Nowadays the events
kick off on Thursday
evening at Stampede
Park with a show
previewing the next
ten-days' events. Next
day there's the
traditional parade, timed to begin at
9am, though most
spectators are in
place along the parade
route (which is west
along 6th Ave from 2nd
St SE, south on 10th
St SW and east along
9th Ave) by 6am. The
march takes two hours,
and involves around
150 entries, 4000
participants and some
700 horses. For the
rest of the Stampede
the Olympic Plaza
in downtown (known as
Rope Square for the
duration) offers free
pancake breakfasts
daily (8.30-11.30am)
and entertainment
every morning. Typical
events include bands,
mock gunfights, square
dances, native dancing
and country bands.
Square dancing also
fills parts of Stephen
Avenue Mall at 10am
every morning. Nightlife
is a world unto
itself, with Stampede
locations giving way
to music, dancing and
mega-cabarets, which
involve casts of
literally thousands.
There's also lots of
drinking, gambling,
fireworks and general
partying into the
small hours. Barbecues
are the norm, and even
breakfast is roped
into the free-for-all
- outdoor bacon,
pancake and flapjack
feasts being the
traditional way to
start the day.
"White hatter
stew" and baked
beans are other
inevitable staples.
Stampede's real
action, though - the
rodeo and allied
events - takes place
in Stampede Park, southeast of
downtown and best
reached by C-Train
(every 10min) to
Victoria Park-Stampede
Station. This vast
open area contains an
amusement park,
concert and show
venues, bars and
restaurants and a huge
range of stalls and
shows that take the
best part of a day to
see. Entrance is $8,
which allows you to
see all the entertainments
except the rodeo and
chuck-wagon races.
Things to see include
the aboriginal village
at the far end of the
park, where members of
the Five Nations
peoples (Blackfoot,
Blood, Sarcee, Stoney
and Piegan) set up a
tepee village (tours
available); the John
Deere Show Ring, scene
of the World
Blacksmith
Competition; the
Centennial Fair, which
hosts events for
children; the
Agricultural Building,
home to displays of
cattle and other
livestock; the outdoor
Coca-Cola Stage, used
for late-night Country
shows; and the
Nashville North, an
indoor Country venue
with bar and dancing
until 2am.
If you want to see
the daily rodeo
competition - bronco
riding, bull riding,
native-buffalo riding,
branding, calf-roping,
steer-wrestling,
cow-tackling, wild-cow
milking and the rest -
you need another
ticket ($8 on the
day), though unless
you've bought these in
advance
, it's hardly worth
it: you'll probably be
in poor seats miles
from the action and
hardly see a thing.
Rodeo heats are held
each afternoon from
1.30pm for the first
eight days,
culminating in
winner-takes-all
finals on Saturday and
Sunday (prize money
for the top honcho is
$50,000). If you want
to watch the other big
event, the ludicrously
dangerous but hugely
exciting chuck-wagon
races (the "World
Championship")
you need yet another
ticket ($8) on the
day, though again you
need to buy these in
advance to secure
anything approaching
decent seats. The nine
contests are held
once-nightly at 8pm,
the four top drivers
going through to the
last-night final,
where another $50,000
awaits the winner.
It's worth planning
ahead if you're coming
to Calgary for
Stampede. Accommodation
is greatly stretched -
be certain to book
ahead - and prices for
most things are hiked
for the duration. Tickets
for the rodeo and
chuck-wagon races go
on sale anything up to
a year in advance.
They're sold for the
Stampede Park
grandstand, which is
divided into sections.
"A" is best
and sells out first;
"B" and
"C" go next.
Then comes the smarter
Clubhouse Level (D-E
are seats; F-G are
Clubhouse Restaurant
seats, with tickets
sold in pairs only).
This is enclosed and
air-conditioned, but
still offers good
views and the bonus of
bars, lounge area and
restaurants. The top
of the stand, or
Balcony (J-K) is open,
and provides a good
vantage point for the
chuck-wagon races as
you follow their
progress around the
length of the course.
Rodeo tickets range
from about $17 to $35,
chuck-wagon races from
$17 to $40; tickets
for the finals of both
events are a few
dollars more in all
seats. For ticket
order forms, advance
sales and general
information, write to
Calgary Exhibition and
Stampede, Box 1860,
Station M, Calgary, AB
T2P 2L8 (tel 261-0101,
elsewhere in Alberta
or North America tel
1-800/661-1260) or
call in person at
Stampede Headquarters,
1410 Olympic Way SE,
or the visitor centre.
Tickets are also
available from
Ticketmaster outlets (tel
270-6700).
