Thursday, March 22, 2012

Record breaking attendance at Houston rodeo


Sarah Bledsoe


Attendees broke the all-time paid rodeo attendance record at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo last Thursday. Performer Jason Aldean and 74,901 fans reached the number one spot in celebration of the show’s 80th year anniversary.

The Houston Rodeo, which takes place every March for three weeks, is held at Reliant Stadium. This year’s rodeo was scheduled from Tuesday, February 28th through Sunday, March 18th. Congruently, the show also set a new record in yearly attendance with 1,283,419 people.

“This is my first time at the rodeo and I can’t believe the amount of people here. I would have to say my favorite part was seeing Jason Aldean perform,” said Nick Vandennieuwenhof, age 21.

Additionally, this year’s show set five new records on the Houston rodeo’s top 20 paid attendance records for individual performances. As a result, this year’s show now claims the top three record spots.

“I remember going to the rodeo all the time when I was a kid. It’s great, there’s so much to do and see. I would say the best part is going to see the performers,” said Tiffany Howard, age 28.

Performing for the 11th time, the group Alabama kicked off the rodeo for this year’s event. Other performers included Kid Rock, Lady Antebellum, John Legend, Luke Bryan, Enrique Inglesias, Blake Shelton, Duelo, La Original Banda El Limon, Reba McEntire, Miranda Lambert, The Band Perry, Jason Aldean, Train and Alan Jackson.

“I’ve been going to the Houston rodeo since I was in high school and I like that they have performers from all different genres of music,” said Natalie King, age 21.

The Houston Rodeo is a charity that benefits youth and supports education through scholarships and research. The show also helps promote better agricultural practices through presentations and exhibitions. According to the their web site, since the show started in 1932, it has contributed approximately $283 million to the youth of Texas.

Nevertheless, the rodeo consists of several forms of entertainment, such as: bareback riding, steer wrestling, bull riding, a calf scramble, barrel racing, a carnival and lastly, a concert.

Additionally, the Houston Rodeo holds several themed days including Black Heritage Day, Go Tejano Day, Spring Break Stampede, AG4U, Go Texans Day, Armed Forced Appreciation Day and Paint the Rodeo Pink Day.

Furthermore, next year’s rodeo is scheduled for Tues., Feb. 26, 2013 through Sun., March 17, 2013.

“I am having so much fun that I’m already anticipating what next year’s rodeo has in store,” said Howard.

Source Page
Nick Vandennieuwenhof – nicholasv90@yahoo.com
Natalie King – 713.582.3761
Tiffany Howard – 512.897.6315

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