Finally the big show started! There was lots of speculation whether the organisers will get everything cleaned up after the floods. But they did and also adopted a new slogan – Come Hell or High Water! They sold lots of T-shirts with that logo and the proceeds went to the flood support fund. The only thing that was cancelled were the big concerts by Tim McGrath and Dixie Chicks – the venues to hold them had been under the water until the 10th row of seating and it was impossible to get them ready for concerts like this.

We had a really good start for our first ever Stampede experience – a friend of ours, who’s company is sponsoring one of the chuckwagon teams, invited us backstage with VIP passes. Chuckwagon racing is probably not very well-known outside Alberta. The story we were told about the historic roots is from the times when cowboys were actually moving herds of cattle from one location to other. The cook had to beat the herders and make dinner before the cowboys arrived, so he had to race faster than the herd with his wagon full of food and pots to make it to the next location. Now there are 4 teams racing – each wagon has 4 horses and a separate racer on horse who has to throw the keg on the wagon when the wagons start racing and jump on the horse. If they don’t make it before the Half Mile of Hell starts, then the team loses points that are added on to the finish time. The race lasts only half a mile, therefore the name of the course and the association of the sports. We went to the barns to see the horses and had a chance to talk to the drivers of the Maverick team. All horses are thoroughbred and they are rescued from becoming a part of somebody’s meatball after their racing career is over at the individual races. The horses are beautiful and somewhat unpredictable – one of the drivers of the team, had been kicked by the horse in the knee that resulted him having to wear a brace and quit the racing already on the second day.

We had a great time talking to the team, the supporters, watching the races and betting on the winners. All the while drinking Budweiser beer. My husband had told me probably a day earlier that if I see him drinking Budweiser beer, I should shoot him. I let him live even after he had had a few on the premises that it was Canadian Budweiser (stronger than the South of the Border version) and that there was not much else to drink.

Cowboys and horses

Next time I went to the Stampede 101 (yes, last year was their 100th time), was on Friday and as a regular visitor. I went there with the Estonian couple who have lived in Calgary since 1997 and are Stampede veterans. We bought the tickets at the entrance ($16 for adults, $8 for seniors and kids) and that gave us access to Superdogs show in addition to all the barns and other attractions on the premises. Superdogs was a lot of fun for everyone who likes dogs. There were all kinds of different dogs that were competing on running through the hoops and jumping over obstacles and also dancing. It was great fun!

Deepfried pies – view from the Sky train

We also took a tour on the Sky elevator – basically ski-lifts across the whole even premises – this was a great experience, since it gave an overview how big the event actually is. It was also possible to see from the sky how many different things one can deep-fry – obviously the Scots with their deepfried Mars and Snickers have a thing or 2 to learn – deepfried butter, pies, candy, you name it – it can be deepfried. I did not even want to consider trying any of these, just the thought of deepfried butter makes me queasy.

Then there were all the animals – we went to see cows and horses. They some kind of judging of the best of the animals and they get prizes as well. The barns were immaculate and the cows and horses superclean and shiny. I had never seen cows with furry hair. Their pelt was soft and long and I saw one guy even shaving the surrounding area of the tail – to give it shape. Obviously all modern cows go to hairstylists these days 🙂

The horses were beautiful – there were some heavyweights that weight around 2 tons and are as high as my husband is tall – they are for pulling heavy stuff and there are the thoroughbreds for the racing.

Furry cow resting

Great experience the Stampede, definitely going back next year and will buy the tickets to rodeo and the evening show. All the days were sold out by the time we got around to looking and we were told that the best tickets are already sold in March. The good thing is that we already have the boots and the hats – we would have looked out of place without them.