Calgary Stampede

Rider at the Stampede Rodeo

The Calgary Stampede, which bills itself as The Greatest Outdoor show on Earth, is a large, non-profit festival, exhibition, and rodeo held in Calgary, Alberta for ten days every July. The 2006 Stampede began on July 7 and will end on July 16. It is Canada's largest annual event, and the world's largest outdoor rodeo. It features an internationally recognized rodeo competition, a midway, stage shows, concerts, agricultural competitions, chuckwagon races, First Nations exhibitions, and pancake breakfasts around the city, among other attractions. In 2005, record-breaking attendance at the 10-day rodeo and exhibition totalled 1,242,928. The Stampede Parade which occurs on opening day, is one of the festival's oldest and largest traditions. It follows a 4.5 km route in downtown Calgary. Attendance at the parade is usually about 350,000. The parade is also televised and has a viewing audience of over 2 million. During Stampede Week, the city is flooded with tourists who join locals in the spiritted atmosphere by dressing in western attire. A large number of businesses decorate their stores and offices in a western style.

Stampede grounds

The Calgary Stampede takes place at the Stampede Grounds, which are located on the southeast fringe of downtown Calgary in the Beltline District. The park is easily accessed via Calgary Transit's light rail system, the C-Train. Permanent structures at the site include the Pengrowth Saddledome (hockey arena), the Round-Up Centre (a convention and exhibition facility), the Stampede Casino, the grandstand/racetrack, the agriculture building, and a number of smaller buildings. A major expansion and upgrading of the grounds is currently underway. It will likely include a new hotel, a new casino, a new "main street" retail and market area, a new agriculture building, underground parking, and an extensive re-landscaping of the outdoor areas.

History

General Overview

Statue at Stampede Grounds, with the Calgary Tower in the background

The Calgary Exhibition was first held in 1886 soon after the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the city. The Calgary Stampede (a separate event) was inaugurated in 1912 by Guy Weadick, an American trick roper. Weadick wanted to put on a world-class rodeo event and Wild West show that would bring the best cowboys from across the continent. The first Stampede was the richest rodeo competition in North America with prize money totalling $20,000. It drew more than 100,000 spectators. In 1923, the Stampede was combined with the Calgary Exhibition and the event has taken place every year since.

The Midway is run by North American Midway Entertainment, who also operate the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto.

Historical Timeline

The early years as separate events:

• 1884 Agricultural Society formed
• 1886 First Calgary Exhibition held
• 1889 Stampede Park was purchased from the Government of Canada
• 1908 Dominion Exhibition held (Canada was then known as a Dominion of the United Kingdom)
• 1912 Guy Weadick arrived in Calgary. He envisaged a Wild West Extravaganza, arranged financing from the "Big 4" (Lane, McLean, Burns and Cross) for $100,000 and in September 1912, the first Calgary Stampede was held - it was a success
• 1922 Calgary Industrial Exhibition held
• 1923 The Stampede hosted the first competitive Chuckwagon Races
• 1925 The American silent film, titled The Calgary Stampede was released throughout North America. It was a Western about love, murder, and the rodeo. It included substantial footage of the actual rodeo competition at the Calgary Stampede. It helped make the Stampede known throughout North America.

History of the combined Calgary Exhibition and Stampede:

• 1932 The Calgary Exhibition joined with the Stampede to become the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede. From this point on, the term Stampede refers to the entire combined organization and related events.
• 1953 Guy Weadick dies
• 1964 The Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede came into being
• 1967-1968 The Stampede stretches from 6 to 10 days; it's current length.
• 1968 Additional land purchased to allow for Stampede Park expansion
• 1971 The Calgary Stampede Showband is formed
• 1976 Stampede attendance surpasses one million for the first time
• 1982 Prize money for the rodeo is raised to $500,000
• 1997 Completion of the $8.2 million permanent infield structure complete with 23 deluxe box suites and increased rodeo prize money announced
• 2000 Attendance was 1,218,851; which was the highest so far for the Stampede
• 2004 The rodeo prize goes from $500,000 to $1,000,000 to keep the Stampede on par with other major rodeos such as the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo.
• 2005 Attendance sets a new record through ten days at 1,242,928.
• 2006 The rodeo is no longer sanctioned by the PRCA (Pro Rodeo Cowboy Association), or the CPRA (Canadian Pro Rodeo Association), and has become an invite-only rodeo event to the top competitors from the NFR (National Finals Rodeo), CFR (Canadian Finals Rodeo), and PBR (Professional Bull Riders) - a first in rodeo. Prize money for the six rodeo events is upped to $1.6 million, while the famous chuckwagon races is $1 million.

Controversy

Many animal rights groups, including The Calgary Humane Society have voiced concern with the Stampede and rodeos in general, citing animal cruelty and recreational abuse. The Stampede has always countered that they go to great lengths to protect the safety of animals, and the large majority of years, go by with not a single fatality. Defenders of the Stampede argue that the Stampede, and ranchers, love and protect their animals, but cannot avoid all accidents.

The Stampede has traditionally had relatively few animal or human casualties for a sporting event of its kind and size (it is the world's largest outdoor annual rodeo). After every accident resulting in an animal or human death, the Stampede conducts a review which almost always results in safety modifications.

In 1986, 12 horses were killed during the Stampede (most were euthanized because of injuries), making that year the worst for animal deaths. As a result, major safety changes were implemented to make collisions less likely. Only one other chuckwagon race since, has caused a comparable death toll.

Accidents Involving Humans:

• 1948: A spectator in an area known as the Stampede infield died when they were struck by an outrider's horse.
• 1960: Driver Don Chapin, 34, was killed when his wagon overturned at the start of a heat.
• July 14, 1971: Outrider Rod Glass, 19, was killed when some chuckwagons overturned at the first bend of the racetrack. He was tossed to his death.
• July 20, 1996: Outrider Eugene Jackson, 24, died of head injuries sustained in a July 11, 1996, accident.
• July 11, 1999: Driver Bill McEwen, 51, died of severe head injuries suffered in a chuckwagon crash two days before, when a pileup on the track had catapulted him into the air. He was taken off life support before he died. Larry McEwen was quoted as saying that his father died doing what he loved.

Accidents Involving Animals:

• July 10, 1986: A chuckwagon collision resulted in the death of six horses.
• 1995: Three horses died in rodeo accidents.
• 1999: One horse died in a chuckwagon accident.
• 2002: A total of six horses were euthanized after they were injured during chuckwagon races.
• 2004: A horse was put down after it broke a hind leg in a rodeo event.
• 2006: Two horses died during Day #1 of the Rangeland Derby (One from a heart attack, second was euthanized due to injuries from the resulting pileup)

The worst animal tragedy for a single event related to the Stampede was on July 3, 2005. Nine horses died after jumping off a bridge and into the Bow River. The accident occurred during the Trail 2005 trail ride from the Stampede's ranch to the city. The incident occurred 5 days before the beginning of the Stampede. Shortly after the accident, the Calgary Police cleared organizers of any criminal fault, upon finding no wilful intent to cause cruelty. The Stampede's internal investigation was released in December of the same year, and failed to identify the cause. It did rule it wasn't caused by sudden noise as speculated at the time. With its release, the Stampede indicated they wouldn't try again unless they could ensure safety. Though no future rides were planned, the option to have one in the future was left open.

See also

• Beltline District - Community where the Stampede Grounds are located.

References

• CBC page on the Calgary Stampede
• Canadian Heritage Information Network: Calgary Stampede

External links

• Calgary Stampede Homepage
• Calgary Stampede Holidays (From the UK)
• Calgary Stampede - Pro Rodeo Online
• CBC Digital Archives - Calgary Stampede: Celebrating Canada's Western Heritage