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 In 1912 the great Stampede was born from the vision of Guy Weadick. Guy was a famous working cowboy and vaudeville entertainer featured in the traveling wild-west shows that were popular world-wide in the early 1900s. He was a man with a dream of celebrating the romance of the old west.
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The Stampede we enjoy today has evolved from Guy's vision. He was successful because he understood that as much as things change, we need to believe in the way things were.
The seed that was to grow into the world-renowned Calgary Exhibition & Stampede was planted at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers when an Agricultural Society was formed on August 16, 1884. In 1886, James Walker was elected as the second president and under his leadership, Calgary held its first Agricultural Fair in October 1886.
In July of 1889, 94 acres of the land, which would eventually comprise Stampede Park, was purchased from the Dominion Government. |
The stage was now set and in 1912, Guy Weadick, a trick roper who had played more than his fair share of Wild West Shows, vaudeville and traveling rodeos, arrived in Calgary. Weadick was to take centre stage, and he saw Calgary as the crossroads of the Canadian west. He envisioned it as the birthplace of the biggest frontier days show the world has ever seen...hundreds of cowboys and cowgirls, thousands of natives. We'll have Mexican ropers and riders...we'll make Buffalo Bill's Wild West Extravaganza look like a side show...
Weadick was a dreamer, but a dreamer with a difference. As well as being a showman and a performer, Weadick was a promoter and organizer extraordinaire, and he had the substance to make his dream a reality. The only thing this cowboy lacked was money.
He haunted the lobby and the bar of the Alberta Hotel and told his story to anyone who would listen. Finally, a meeting was arranged with E.L. Richardson, General Manager of the Calgary Industrial Exhibition. Faced with an Exhibition that had been slowly losing steam and in need of a new spark of life, Richardson was intrigued and thought that Weadick's hair brain scheme might keep the exhibition from sinking into the red again. Weadick needed a $100,000 bankroll and Richardson assured Weadick that if responsible financial backers came along, he would recommend a rental of the Exhibition Grounds, but that would be the limit of his involvement.
As Weadick, frustrated and dispirited, returned to the Alberta Hotel, he was met by a man who had heard his story. He introduced himself as H.C. McMullen, general livestock agent for the Canadian Pacific Railway. He listened to Weadick's proposition and asked for a week to arrange a meeting between Weadick and four prominent Calgarians: George Lane, A.E. Cross, A.J. McLean and Patrick Burns. These men, who later became the Big Four, agreed to back the project to a total of $100,000 and the deal was cemented with a handshake. It would be known as The Stampede and if it proved to be as successful as Weadick expected it to be, the word Stampede would always be synonymous with Calgary. The first Stampede, held in September of 1912, was everything Weadick promised - a resounding public success. Thus the stage was set and the script written for The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.
The Stampede was still a separate entity from the Calgary Exhibition, and Richardson - still General Manager, was worried about the financial condition of the Exhibition. Finances were dwindling and at the Annual Meeting of the Board he recommended an experiment with the Stampede as an attraction - on a one-year trial basis.
Weadick was elated and went to work with a will to find something new and thrilling so the Stampede could catch a visitor's eye. His ever-active mind settled on chuckwagon racing and thus, the Rangeland Derby was born.
There are many different stories as to how the chuckwagon races began. Some old timers say Weadick got the idea from wagon races cowboys used to hold on the open range. Others say the idea came from a practice during land rushes when settlers in wagons raced to reach that certain piece of property they wanted to claim.
Weadick maintained his idea stemmed from his own experiences on range roundups and the practice of some roundup crews racing their chuckwagons and riders for the last half-mile to the nearest town and saloon after roundup. The last crew in usually stood the winners to one round of drinks.
In 1923, after a successful courtship, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede became one and the same, making a winning combination of great rodeo excitement, proud agricultural exhibits of southern Alberta and the first chuckwagon races conducted under competitive rules.
In 1952, 40 years after he had organized that first Stampede, Guy Weadick was a special honoured guest at the Stampede, where he presented championship trophies to the victorious cowboys. It was not only a fitting tribute to this visionary cowboy, but a timely one as well. Guy Weadick's death in 1953 saddened the Calgary community and the expatriate American was laid to rest under the rolling foothills of his adopted home - a country he had come to love. The Calgary Exhibition and Stampede expanded from its traditional six days to nine days in 1967 and since 1968, Stampede guests have had 10 full days to let their hair down and enjoy the flavour of the old west.
In 1982, the Stampede introduced the Half Million Dollar Rodeo. At the time, it was the richest purse ever offered in the history of the sport. In 2004, the prize money was raised even higher to the Million Dollar Rodeo.
In October 2005, the Stampede announced there would be further changes to the rodeo format and an increase in prize money. The world's top ranked competitors will compete over 10 days for prizes totaling $1.6 million that includes the $1 million Final Showdown Sunday.
In each of the six major events, 20 of the top ranked rodeo competitors in the world will be divided into two pools, with each pool competing for four consecutive days. The top four contestants from each pool will then move to the semifinals on Showdown Sunday and the remaining six competitors from each pool will compete on Wild Card Saturday. Two winners from Saturday will then advance to the semifinals where ten competitors will battle it out for one of four positions in the Final Showdown. The winner of each event during the Showdown on the final Sunday will walk away with $100,000, double the amount of last year's payout, making it the 'world's richest ride in rodeo'. As Guy Weadick stated in 1912, The money is here, come and get it.
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The parade opens up the Stampede, and is always the first Friday morning of the Stampede. The parade is always a highlight of the Stampede, even for people who've lived in Calgary all their lives. About the only people who skip it are those hung-over from the night before's festivities. The parade is televised locally and across Canada (9:30 - 11:30 am). It attracts about 250,000 people, plus another million on TV). The parade begins west on 6th Avenue at MacLeod Trail, and continues to 10th Street SW, and then east again on 9th Avenue. The parade begins at 9 am, and runs till about noon (depending on where on the route you are).
Here are some tips from experienced parade watchers:
- Park outside the downtown core or catch the C-Train into downtown. The traffic this day is BUSY.
- Get to your chosen spot early. The police block downtown access for cars by then. The good spots on 6th Ave fill up by 7 am, and on 9th Ave by 8 am. For those taking pictures or videos, head to 9th, so the morning sun is behind you (good tip the TV networks).
- Bleacher seating gives everyone a view (though you have to pay for it), and your feet don't get as tired in cowboy boots.
- If you've got children, bring your own refreshments and snacks. If you forget, there are lots of corner street vendors who will help repair your vocal cords.
- Sit your kids street-side on the curb. That way they'll have an unobstructed view. Watch your kids during the parade, so they don't run up to animals, floats, or mascots.
- Wear your cowboy hat for protection from the hot sun.
- After the parade head to the Stephen Avenue Mall, and people watch (the suits & ties have disappeared).
- If you've got kids, head down to the Stampede grounds. Or go to Heritage Park...its not as busy, its harder to lose the kids, and its educational.
- Do your morning shopping or banking outside the downtown core! Most downtown establishments don't open 'til noon because everybody's at the parade.
- Videotape the parade on TV. You can relive some of the better floats or bands, and compare notes with friends. The local stations will also replay the parade highlights that evening and on the weekend.
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 Stampede Park is a versatile and multi-purpose facility that hosts many events in addition to the Calgary Stampede. The park includes the Pengrowth Saddledome, the Roundup Centre, the Stampede Coral, the Stampede Casino, Stampede Racing Park, the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, the Agricore Grain Academy, several souvenir shops and more.
You can enjoy the midway rides and the free entertainment: pig races, a split-rail maze, a petting farm and the Indian Village. The stampede is a great place for kids to meet farm animals, watch sheep shearing and witness a World Champion Blacksmith's Competition.
A self-guided tour book is available at Stampede Headquarters (1410 Olympic Way SE).
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