Calgary Stampede

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Calgary, Alberta, Canada

by Katie Bannerman

An aboriginal performer at the Calgary Stampede

The Calgary Stampede is a ten-day event that takes over the entire city of Calgary. The city is filled with cowboy boots, western-themed window displays and free pancake breakfasts. (The free pancake breakfasts started in 1923 and are a definite must.) Cowboy hats are the uniform of everyone living in Calgary and saying "howdy" is encouraged. The Stampede extends far beyond the grounds for the first week of July – it's an exercise in city-wide participation.

The Stampede is an event that can cater to anyone; you can take the Midway and enjoy some rides and carnival food, you can watch the world-famous rodeo, or you can wander through the BMO centre and view some local art. On the Stampede grounds alone you can go shopping, play carnival games, or watch live cooking demonstrations. There's even a special section of the Midway just for kids. Basically, the Stampede offers something for everyone you're travelling with.

Calgary Stampede Midway

One of the biggest attractions of the Stampede is the Midway. The Midway is built up of food stands, rides, and carnival games. There is every variety of deep-fried food imaginable on the Midway: deep-fried strawberry shortcake, Oreos, dill pickles, or even deep-fried Coke! Some of the best food on the Midway includes mini-donuts, traditionally-made fudge, and corn dogs. You'll definitely need to loosen your belt if you want to properly experience the Midway.

The big drop

The Midway also offers a selection of rides. There is the Drop of Doom, a slow merry-go-ride, bumper cars, and everything in between. The carnival games lining the Midway are fun too, but make sure to be careful as the game operators are very charismatic and can always convince you to try "just one more time". Overall, the Midway is completely irresistible to try, but be careful with your money. Make sure spend strategically and don't get so caught up in the excitement that you end up with an $100 dollar Spongebob Squarepants toy.

Fishing for a prize

Elsewhere in the park, dog-lovers and kids will love the local favourite: the Superdogs show. Superdogs features a cast of cute dogs who perform tricks for the audience. Kids love the Superdogs, especially because the dogs are usually available for a meet-and-greet after the show. On the other end of the park there is also a fun little agriculture tent that hosts cows, sheep and baby chicks. The agriculture tent is one of my personal favourite things to do at the Stampede. It's a quiet place (with adorable animals) and is really good for a break on a hectic Stampede day.

Watching a sow and her piglets

The Grandstand building hosts a few of the best activities the Stampede has to offer: the rodeo, the chuckwagon races, and the Grandstand Show. The rodeo is about three hours long and is really worth it for the real "Western experience." The most dangerous (and therefore exciting) part of the rodeo is the bull-riding. Left until the very end, the bull-riding is worth the wait. While seated tickets for the rodeo can get pretty expensive, don't be afraid to buy a standing room ticket. Standing room is great because it is cheap and is an up close and personal view of the action. If you can get to the rodeo early enough, buy a standing room ticket and stand right up close to the fence. You might even get mud on your face- it's a great experience.

Bull one, cowboy zero

With one evening ticket you can see the chuckwagons and the Grandstand show. The chuckwagon races (now called the GMC Rangeland Derby) are fun to see and have a lot of history behind them. They've been around since 1923 and maintain a lot of the old traditions. Chuckwagon races involve one wagon with a driver and four horses, and four outriders who follow behind on their own horses. They have to pack up the wagon and do one lap around the track. There are two really good ways to watch the chucks: you can either stand up close to the track to see the wagons up close, or stand up at the seventh level and watch them go around the entire track.

The Grandstand show comes after the chuckwagons and is included with the price of the Chuckwagons ticket. The Grandstand show is a big spectacle put on by the Young Canadians, an elite song-and-dance troupe of young Calgarians. The Grandstand show is pretty cheesy, with elaborate musical numbers, fireworks, motorcycle tricks, and a comedic act. Cheesy as it is, the Grandstand show is a lot of fun. Adults will enjoy the show and it is great for older kids- not so much the younger ones because it can go until as late as midnight. It can also reach some very noisy levels that can upset very young children. The fireworks show that comes at the end can be seen anywhere on park and is a great end to a day at the Stampede.

More info online:

• Calgary Exhibition and Stampede - Official website
• Calgary Stampede - Tourism Calgary's Calgary Stampede web page

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