Last week I went with some friends to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The Rodeo is one of the biggest events of the year in Houston. Anyone new to Houston quickly learns that the Rodeo is a big deal and is not just Wranglers and chewing tobacco.

The first indication of the grandeur of the Rodeo is how long it lasts. There were 20 days of rodeo action this year! Starting March 1 there was a show each night consisting of your typical rodeo events such as bareback, saddle bronc, bull riding, barrel racing, steer wrestling, team roping and tie-down roping. Then for fun there is the chuck wagon races and calf scramble. The calf scramble is one of the funniest things I’ve seen. 14 calfs are released and 30 kids have to run around the arena, catch one, tie it up and bring it back to the center. Each kid that brings a calf back to the center is awarded $1,000 to buy a calf to raise and show during the next year. It’s really funny and something you just have to see!

Another indication of how big the rodeo is in Houston is the number of people that attend. This year there were over 1 million attendees and over 17,000 volunteers. But there is more than just the rodeo. Although we did not go there is also a huge carnival, livestock show, World’s Champion Bar-B-Que Contest, horse show, and various auctions among others.

One aspect of the rodeo that most wouldn’t expect is that after the dust settles from the bull riding and chuck wagon races, a stage is brought out and there is a concert and this isn’t just some local banjo playing twangy group. Usually the acts are Grammy nominated performers like Alicia Keys, Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney, Hilary Duff, Lynard Skynyrd and others. They’ve even had AC/DC and Def Leppard in the past! We went to see Maroon 5 and they jammed in front of 60,000+. Wearing a gold Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo belt buckle, Adam Levine, the lead singer , said this was the largest crowd they’d played. It was a great show and we had tons of fun. In typical Texas fashion, they left the stage in the back of a F-350! Here’s a photo from the concert

Here’s a link to the rest of my photos