It started for me at 6 AM in the park with a Cowboy Breakfast. I was always there. Was the food anything different than you could cook at home? No, but it was just being outdoors and seeing old friends and taking in all the chatter. The idea of getting a 1/2 lb sausage patty topped with 2 eggs over-easy and watching it run into the biscuits and gravy while I blasted out some squeeze bottle ketchup over it. The guys, even those mid-aged, always loved the near emptying bottle so they could blast out a farting sound. Farting is just part of rural humor. We gals loved getting the fuller bottle so we could blast the backside of a cowboy with his new fresh tight Wranglers. There was little room for that big stack of pancakes soaked liberally with real butter and local huckleberry syrup, but it didn't go to waste. I would take a few bites and then one of my friends would say loudly, "You see Faye that is why you must get married. Husbands loved to finish off their wife's food." They would make such remarks when a single guy was nearby. I never had to toss any food, yet I still remained a widow. What about those boiled hot dogs for lunch? Hungry or not, I wasn't missing out on that experience. The thing about the hot dog stand is they had mustard. Nothing more fun than a full squeeze bottle of mustard. Adding a little yellow to the Mr. Tight Jeans backsides seemed to complete our artistry. I learned from one Mr. Tight Jeans years later (I was 60) when I saw him again at a rodeo that he purposely posed for our handy work and acted like he didn't notice. He bragged to the boys about how us cowgirls were madly in love with him but just too shy to admit it. While he was over talking to the other old guys about glory days, I chatted with his wife that hadn't heard the story of denim rodeo artistry and she suggested we bring back memories for him. The hot dog stand only offered those little packets but knowing the proprietor was a plus because she produced squeeze bottles of both condiments for our denim Pissaco. So now Mr. Baggy Suspender-supported jeans was totally unaware of our advanced year's rodeo artistry until several started laughing.
Ok, Al, have you ever been to a ranch rodeo, parade, breakfast? Wife and I have been to a ranch rodeo and it was pretty cool.
I was snappin out broncs at the Old Flyin' U At fourty a month a good buckaroo When the boss comes around and he says, "Hey, my lad, you do pretty good ridin' horses that's bad." But I've got no more wild ones for you to break but I'll buy you a ticket and give you a stake And if that will suit you I want you to know You might do real good at the big rodeo. That was then, this is now. Most "cowboys" work part time. There are a few big ranches around the country who still employ a few hands full time and there are parts of the country where folks still practice the old ways because mostly thats what they've always done, the way they've lived. In Texas and probably much of the southwest, and maybe elsewhere, I don't know, many small towns have some space where riding and roping and other rodeo skills are practiced and maybe periododicly hold contest where folks come out to witness their skills, a small town rodeo. When cowboy poetry began to get famous and talked about and sponsored cowboy churches followed and itmay have started for rodeo hands but in a year or so it spread through out the land. It got so in Texas every where I went there was a little cowboy church. At first I sccorned the idea but then got to thinking maybe some would go to a cowboy church who wouldn''t go to say, First Baptist, First Methodist or maybe the First Assemblies or any other church. Thinking furrther, I thought 'who am I to judge'. Of course every one knows fashion people got involved. Levi's, Wrangler's, and a dozen others got involved, denium manufacturers got involved, boot manufacturers, belt, hats, you name it, all competing for monies spend on western wear. That's mostly what generates the 'cowboy idea' today. Ken is right, Rodeoing started as a way for some of the best at what they did to show off their skills entertaining threir followers and the public at large. I find no fault in this as long as we realize most of our participation like whether to wear levi's or wrangler's or which boot or hat to wear, are ideas pitched to us by fashion people and that we are celebrating an era now mostly gone buy. What we have learned is that some few folks have always lived this way, mostly out of the way place in the northwest, not knowing or caring where the fashion went. And along the way we learned, in spite of the culture that once existed, as written by Waylon Jennings, that he had reached a certain age and was still wearing jeans, we learned this denium material made pretty good work clothes in addition to looking good ay the Saturday night western dance.
Now this is something that really makes me want to support and get to a nearby rodeo I think of the kids in big cities that have never even seen a tree, let alone any farm animals, or getting to know anything about "country living", even kids that just live in rural areas but have no farm, or ranch. This in itself would be a good reason to hang onto rodeos, and it's why so many like me, spent their Summers saving our bean-picking money to get a ticket to the rodeo. We lived rural, but never owned a farm or ranch. The only animals we had were dogs, kitties, and some chickens. How I loved being outdoors, my little brother and I, all day long til sundown (sometimes beyond if parents were busy partying). It's kind of interesting now that I thought about it but it's probably a pretty, good reason I don't like the big city "type" of environment. Right now I'm so longing for even a yard of my own. Especially since my neighbors don't bother to pick up there dog's poop, and I either do it, or I'll step in it. There, now I see I do know something about cleaning "doo" off my boots https://franklinrodeo.com/kids-events/
I hope you keep it @Faye Fox I think we can overcome what's been done, let's not let someone win that doesn't deserve to win. Let's not let anyone take away a great idea for a thread because it is a great idea. You made it so others like me who don't know anything about being "rodeo" could talk about many of our Summertime activities/events we loved going to. Anyone here would feel welcome, hell, we are all tough in our own ways, and it feels good to not let someone rob us of yet another freedom in life. I'm realizing that it is totally up to the members, each of us, to have a good time, or not. If we let one person or more spoil it for us, that's on us. I'll stay around and that's a promise if you keep the thread. I'll help you keep it going. I may even dare to share some of my "learning to ride" experiences for a laugh I'll tell about a fair ride my little brother and I went on, I'll never forget I'll tell about my boyfriend in highschool working the fair in the Summertime, and me catching him drunk (pretty sure his first time too) LOL!! It's a good one
Sorry about that @Faye Fox. I jumped in with both feet without reading the the entire thread. Apologies
Several years ago, we were spending a couple of days in Deer Lodge, Montana, which just happened to be when the tri-county 4H fair was occurring. The fair parade was great, consisting of just about every tractor in the county and some vintage cars from the local car museum. The highlight, though, was when the cowboys from the Grant-Kohrs Ranch brought the herd of wild horses through town on their way to the fairgrounds for auction. Four cowboys out in front, then a thundering herd of mares and their foals, and then followed by four more cowboys. It was incredible how they controlled the herd going down the street. Nobody got trampled. I do love county fairs and small-town parades.
Great story, how exciting! I get a rush seeing that on TV in a movie, I can only imagine seeing it in person!! Calgary Stampede! Haven't heard that name forever and it just came to mind, never got to go though, yet
Parades, yep, I’ve been in a quite a few in the reed section of the marching band throughout Jr., High and High school but the absolutely most drunken and disorderly parade I was ever in was a Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans. Carnivals and fairs, yep again. Heck, I not only went to carnivals but I worked as an agent for Murphy Brothers (carnival), Reihoffer and Smoky Mountain shows and also had the position as the show chaplain for Reihoffer. I might mention that a lot of Rodeo goers and showmen in Cheyenne lost a lot of money at my game all in the name of getting a stuffed animal. Some paid more for a stuffed animal than they would have if they had bought a live one including a horse.
When I was little, I loved watching the local parade ! I grew up in a small town, and we always had a Fourth of July parade, and maybe a Memorial Day parade, too. When the rodeo was in town, there was a rodeo parade. After I got my first pony, I rode him in the parade, and once I was old enough to have a horse, then I rode my horse in the parade, Since I belonged to the drill team, we sometimes even traveled to other towns to perform and ride in the parades. Many times, we also had a “Kid’s Parade” which followed the main parade. Kids would bring their dogs, ride their pony (usually led by a parent) have a goat or large dog that could pull them on a wagon, and just about anything that a little kid could think of doing for the parade. This picture is of our Sandpoint Drill Team, riding in the Spokane Lilac Parade, which was one of the largest parades in my area. I am riding the third horse back, on the right hand side.
Thank @Yvonne Smith for cleaning up the horse pucky once this parade settles down to staying on topic. Thanks to everyone that helps keep it on topic which is anything about the yearly county fair parade or rodeo. Talk about showing chickens or goats or horses, talk about that quilt you made that maybe only placed 3rd. Maybe the giant squash you entered, the cotton candy that made you dizzy, the parade float with a music group, the drill team, the old stage wagon, and team, and then we still have the following rodeo with greased pig scramble and mutton busting, maybe a trick rider or roper broncs bulls steers, etc. This thread has endless things that stay on topic. Kids picking up candy thrown by the square dancers on a flatbed trailer pulled by a 1930 tractor. The possibilities are endless. We may have members that still have animals and gardens and may enter such at the fair.
The rides at the fairs were my favorites. Often times rickety and under-inspected, run by extremely tattooed and toothless guys, but oh! the excitement. It never occurred to us how dangerous those rides could be.....just how thrilling. When my grandparents left the circus circuit because my dad was getting old enough to need a permanent home, my grandfather went into the carnival ride business. He had 2 or 3 dinky little rides, including a "chair swing ride", where you sat in a little hanging seat and were whirled around out into the air. In one little town, a quite hefty lady insisted on riding, even though Grandpa told her it wasn't safe because of her weight. She said she was the police chief's wife and that she'd have him arrested if he didn't let her ride. He gave up the argument and let her wedge herself in the chair and started up the ride. It wasn't even at half speed before one of the chains parted links and she was flung over a fence. Grandpa said he foresaw himself in and possible "under" the town jail before the night was over, so he grabbed the cash box, jumped in his truck and hightailed it out of town. He never got his rides back. He hoped she had had enough padding on her to bounce when she hit the ground.
Wow Mary, that's some story!! Serves that gal right, she was warned!! Glad your Grandpa got away You know that brought back something I heard from my mom when I was really little, well, I had to have been in school because I was doing gymnastic stuff. Nothing "marylou renner" just easy stuff. My mom may have just been trying to encourage me as I seemed to be pretty good at it, but she said some ancestors on my dad's side were in the circus doing trapeze. I never got to know my dad and didn't even know where he was until after he died. I'll never know for sure if that was true, both my mom and dad are gone, and no one else left to find out from I love the rides too, and my favorite was called the squirrel cage if I remember right. My little brother and I went on it together and I kept holding this lever back that could make it stay upside down and my little brother kept telling to stop, but I didn't of course, really think he was serious, then he puked, omgosh!! I felt so bad, I'm laughing telling this story but I never forgave myself for that. At every family gathering, of course it had to come up, no pun intended ;( Oh well, he got even with me