Rodeo Days!

In the Wild West there’s a long standing tradition…attend the National Western Complex in Denver, Colorado for the stock show and rodeos, in January.  One might ask the question, ‘why in January?’…well the answer is simple:  January was a practical choice because, coming after the fall harvest and before spring calving, it was a convenient time for stock growers. Denver businessmen liked the idea of a January show because the post-Christmas period was the slowest time of the year for sales. What better fix for the mid-winter doldrums than a convention that would draw large numbers of visitors and get Denverites out of their homes to see the stock show.  The first show was in 1908, where over 15,000 attendees; the show has been an on-going, all time fav’ for 108 years!!  In 2014, the attendance was a record 644,022…that’s up by over 15,000 from the year before.

There is a lot of history and growth in and around the National Western Show.  Over the years a lot has been added to draw attention and attraction to show.  Chances are if you’ve been to Denver during the Rodeo Days, you just might have been to a show!  Juniper wanted to keep that tradition alive in our spirits by taking a trip to a rodeo show…and ending the day with a cowboy dinner, back at the ranch.  Those that were able to get to the rodeo showed their grand time of enjoyment with the smiles on their faces.  It’s not everyday you get to see those cowboys lasso a sheep!  City folks have always enjoyed everything from prize-winning livestock to exhibits of farm and ranch machinery at the January extravaganza.  Attendees of our Cowboy Dinner enjoyed not only some of the best Beef Stew and Shepard’s Pie ‘round town, they had the pleasure of listening to some true blue cowboy music!