Visiting these barns reminded me of swim meets and dog shows. The barns had individual pens for the animals and the human competitors were all young teenagers, mostly high school age. Around the edge of the pens family groups were set up with their lawn chairs and various equipment needed for the shows. In the center of the barns were show rings where the young people would bring their animal to be judged. Not only are there cash awards for the winners, but the winners are then able to take their animal to the auction where they can make even more money. Most of the money is in the form of scholarship funds and that is a big part of the Rodeo and Stock Show - to support these young people.
What we have noticed about Texas is that every other vehicle seems to be a pick-up truck. At the Rodeo and Stock Show, I'd say that number reached 75%. Here we are in the parking lot surrounded by pick-ups.
The first barn we entered was the sheep barn. Here these youngsters are showing their sheep for the judges.
These are goats.
These competitors work very hard to position their animal to show at best advantage.
For the cattle, the human contestant uses some type of pole that provides a shock to position the animal. You might be able to see it being applied to this steer's right hind leg.
We went into the horse show arena where there was some type of horse agility competition going on. The horse in the square above had to enter this box and turn around inside the box without stepping over the white poles.
There were several large, barn-like structures that held the Market Place where you could find almost anything from clothes to classic western movies on DVD, to chocolates and decorative western art objects.
The horse barn also had a wash room.
This young lady was using a pink bath scrub to wash down her horse.
For the lady competitors, it seems to be all about the glitz - lots of rhine-stones and silver.
In between the barns there was all manner of entertainment and attractions. I haven't a clue why the Pillsbury Dough Boy was there, but he shook Frederick's hand.
At the Swifty Pig Races there was also a little pig that would swim down a trough about ten feet long.
He's almost at the end!
The pig races were a big draw.
There was a wild animal display shed that featured bats.
Bar-B-Que at the food area.
At one of the market-place shops this man was steaming hats to put the desired crease in the top - your choice of style.
Over in the cattle barn they not only wash the cattle but also dry and fluff them up using a machine that looks like a vacuum cleaner.
This young lady is waiting to enter the show ring.
This area at the back of the cattle barn was something like a warm-up pool at a swim meet - the humans would walk their animals around to get the jitters out before entering the show ring.
There was a basketball show where this man would run to the trampoline and jump in the air, catch a ball that was thrown to him, and make a slam dunk.
At the back of the exhibition area was a carnival with all the usual rides and thrills.
About 6:30 pm we moved toward the AT&T Center for the Rodeo and the evening's entertainment.
Outside the Center there was a stage with live music; I guess to get you in the spirit.
It seemed a good place for a selfie.
The AT&T Center is where the San Antonio Spurs play. They have been pretty consistent winners of the National Basketball Association championship, including last year.
Right at 7 pm there was a laser show to kick off the evening.
And then a Drill Team and Palomino Patrol.
Everyone stands for the singing of the National Anthem.
Then the Rodeo begins. The San Antonio Rodeo is one of the major stops for the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA). The Rodeo actually last for 20 days and uses a tournament style format, with 5 brackets that compete for three days each. The top money winners move on to the semi-finals and finally the Finals that will be held on February 28. That means that every night the contestants can win money and provides a thrilling experience for the audience. There are seven events with 10 competitors in each event.
First up is the Bareback Riding. With only a suitcase-like handle on a strap, the cowboy must not only maintain his balance on a bucking horse, but also coordinate spurring action in coordination with the horse's motion. He has to stay on for eight seconds and be judged on "style" points.
Then there was the Steer Wrestling (no pictures) followed by Team Roping where one cowboy ropes the steer's horns and another then ropes the two hind legs.
This seemed to be the trickiest event because often the first cowboy would miss the horns and then there was no chance for the second cowboy to rope the legs.
Saddle Bronc Riding is similar to Bareback Riding only this time with a saddle and the cowboy must remain synchronized with the horse's movements.
Once again, there are "style" points awarded by judges.
Tie-Down Roping involves an very talented horse and quick action by the cowboy.
Barrel Racing was thrilling; the ladies have so finely tuned their skills that the sport is timed to the hundredth of a second.
The last event of the evening was Bull Riding. This is the most dangerous event in rodeo. The bull not only bucks but corkscrews and weighs 2,000+ pounds.
At the end of the Rodeo there was an intermission while they brought in a stage.
Brad Paisley was the entertainer for the evening. Clearly a lot of people came only for the entertainer and it was a wide-ranging audience. Sitting next to me was a four generation family. From a Great Grandfather to two small children (both of whom fell asleep during the performance). Sitting next to Frederick were 4 young ladies who knew all the words to the songs and sang along with great vigor.
Brad Paisley on the Jumbo-tron.
Wow! Like an alternate universe :-)
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