20 Hey there Cowboy 1886

There have been some fun ideas in Canada. In 1886 when Calgary started their first country fair,it was just like many others(see 1879).But Alberta is different to all the other provinces and territories in Canada. In Alberta, there is a lot of oil and gas. In Alberta, the farmers raise cattle on large pieces of land called ranches.

The early years in Alberta are known as the “Old West” or the “Wild West” because there were not many laws. Many people think of it as a time when there were cowboys riding horses.A time when pioneers were moving across the country (see 1872). It was a time when people with guns were shooting each other. There are many stories of cowboys stealing cattle during the Wild West days. Western Canada was a difficult place to live.

The Calgary fair wanted to show the best of the west. Calgary is known as “Cowtown”because there are so many cattle ranches in Alberta. The Calgary fair had more cattle on show than other fairs. Many of the people who visited the fair owned ranches and they liked to look at horses and cows. By 1912, when Guy Weadick got to Calgary, the culture of the Old West was dying.

Guy had a great idea. He wanted to turn the Calgary fair into the Calgary Stampede. He had a dream of making it a place where cowboys could show their skills. He wanted to make a rodeo so cowboys could try to win prizes. There could be a prize for the best horse rider; the cowboy who could ride on a bull the longest; the cowboy who could gather all the cattle together inside a fence the fastest and so on.

In September of 1912, the first Calgary Stampede happened. The name is funny because a stampede is when a lot of big animals like cows get frightened and all run in the same direction. Guy thought that so many people would run to visit his fair that it would be like a stampede.

That year, cowboys showed how skilled they were with ropes. They would make a big circle with their rope, called a lasso. They would turn the lasso around and around, over their heads. They would throw the lasso at cows. When they pulled on the rope, the circle got small and caught the cow around its neck. The cowboy who could catch the cow the fastest won the prize. They still do this today and a cowboy from Saskatchewan won in 1978 with a time of 5.7 seconds.

Another popular competition was to see which cowboy could ride a horse the longest while holding on with just one hand. The horses that they used were bucking. This is when a horse kicks and jumps to try to make the cowboy fall off. The most famous bucking, Canadian horse was a black one called Midnight.

Midnight never let anyone ride him. Lots of cowboys tried, but Midnight would go crazy. He would jump and kick and turn and stand on two legs. Midnight would do anything to get the cowboy off his back. Midnight was the best bucking horse in Western Canada. The most skilled cowboys who could usually stay on a bucking horse for up to 10 seconds were thrown off Midnight in two or three seconds. No one was ever able to ride Midnight for all of his life.

The Stampede has events for women too. One of the most fun to watch is the trick riding competition. A trick rider can stand up on a horse that is running very fast. She can hang upside down off the side of the horse. She can jump on or off a horse that is running. Trick riding was never a cowgirl skill, though. It was started by the Russians who wanted to hide from their enemies. When Russians hung over the side of a horse, their enemies could not see them. The Russians could get close enough to kill their enemies. When Russians began to immigrate, they did trick riding at fairs to make money.

BUCKING HORSE COMPETITIONS ARE POPULAR AT THE CALGARY STAMPEDE

Today at the Calgary Stampede trick riding is a specialty act. Krista and Amber Graham are two of the best trick riders in all of Canada. The sisters can do many dangerous things on a horse. They can both stand on one horse at the same time. Their best trick is standing on one horse and jumping through a ring of fire at the same time.

Another event which is unique to the Calgary Stampede is the chuck wagon race. When cowboys needed to eat, their food would be brought to them in a chuck wagon. This was a wood bed with a cover made of strong cotton. Inside the chuck wagon were all the things needed to cook food. The chuck wagon races are so popular that they are watched on TV all across Canada.

In 1923, the Stampede added a parade to the fun. Guy Weadick told everyone to dress in western clothes and to make their businesses look like the Wild West. Today, Calgary is one big party during the Calgary Stampede. Stores and office buildings paint their walls with pictures of cowboys and horses. People wear cowboy clothes and take a holiday from work. There are pancake breakfasts, barbeques and huge office parties.

The Calgary Stampede shows the traditions that made Alberta different from other parts of Canada. It was started to show farmers how good the western part of Canada was. The Stampede wanted to get people to move west and become ranchers. It was so much fun that some people did exactly that.