Like the chameleon city it is, San Diego once again transformed itself for a single weekend. Walking through the Gaslamp District where Comic-Con’s hallowed paths reside, the stomp of boots echoed in the streets. Cowboy hats bobbed inside the windows of every bar, and the buckle bunnies that followed the jostling sound of cattle trailers across the country braved the winter winds blowing off the Southern California coast to make it to Petco Park.

The Rodeo had come to San Diego.

Thanks to the news segment of the protest at the first night of the Inaugural San Diego Rodeo—that played on tv right after Friday Night Smackdown (WWE is a bit of a big deal in our household)—my husband, Tyler, and I found ourselves hurriedly buying last minute tickets to brush shoulders with the country-folk of San Diego for the second night on Saturday.

Unfortunately for that group of about nine protestors screaming about how cows don’t like cowboy hats¹, their protest led to more people coming to the Rodeo than not.

And while I don’t blame the protestors for speaking their mind about animal cruelty and how cows and horses perhaps do not enjoy being apart of rodeos (though we’ll never know as they cannot speak and honestly I’d rather they be at a rodeo than inside a steel cage their whole lives). I thank the protestors for braving the cold night air so Tyler and I could go to our first rodeo together.

One of my earliest memories is from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, fighting to stay awake during a Randy Jackson concert after spending all day walking through the pens at the livestock show, riding the carnival rides that made me feel like I was floating, and eating my weight’s worth in funnel cake and sausage.

The Houston rodeo was apart of just about every year of my life growing up and it was/is an integral part of my extended family’s life. (One of my favorite things to tell people is that my cousin Amy was one of the confident few who were able to wrangle a calf during the Calf Scramble.)

My husband on the other hand is a Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo man. He worked at his Uncle’s cattle ranch through most of his teenage years. His brother showed cattle at the Fort Worth livestock show, and his Nana has been an attendee of the Fort Worth rodeo for over 30 years.

So, It’s safe to say we both love a good rodeo, and were beyond excited to see one come to San Diego.

The events for the second night of the San Diego Rodeo were:

1. Bareback Riding
2. Steer Wrestling
3. Team Roping
4. Saddle Bronc Riding
5. Breakaway Roping
6. The Down Roping
7. Barrel Racing
8. Bull Riding

The Good

The San Diego rodeo was truly fun. No doubt about that. The crowd was engaged and energetic through each event, cheering on the winners and losers in near equal fashion. The commentators and announcers were knowledgeable and entertaining. Up in the nosebleeds, we were even able to make some friends in the crowd who had never been to a rodeo before.

I felt a lot of pride as Tyler was able to explain each event and it’s rules to them when they asked. His love for the rodeo shining through on the big smile he wore the whole night.

In fact, my favorite thing about the rodeo was watching Tyler be so giddy and excited. The rodeo was a little slice of home for both of us and a much needed respite after not going back to Texas for the holidays last year, or being able to join his family on their annual trip to the Fort Worth rodeo.

We’d even gone last minute shopping so he could get new boots, a hat, and a vest. I’ve never had the privledge of seeing him dressed up like his country self, and boy was it a treat. He was radiating joy and that in turn had me cheering along the whole night.

Another thing I truly loved was that we were there on Heritage Night. And while there was no “half-time” of the crowd belting out Deep in the Heart of Texas, there was a Trick Riding performance by Tomas Garcilazo and Family which was gorgeous.

As always, the barrel racing was my favorite event. Hopefully next year they can add mutton bustin’ to the event list!

The Bad

Now, the first tick against the San Diego rodeo is the fact that it was just a rodeo. There was no livestock show–which is my personal favorite part of the Houston Rodeo as there is nothing better than walking into the convention center next to NRG and being welcomed by the sounds and smells of a barn. If there isn’t an announcement over the coms that a cow is giving birth, is it really a rodeo?

Maybe next year they’ll think about expanding the event to include more livestock, but it’s understandable that maybe they don’t have room downtown for that sort of thing.

The Ugly

The food at Petco Park is always underwhelming and overpriced, so I shouldn’t have been surprised but I was still really disappointed with the food. I know it’s a lot to ask for California to have some decent bar-b-que, but gosh dangit, this was a RODEO! You’re telling me there wasn’t a single vendor out there y’all could have brought in for some sausage on a stick, brisket sandwiches, or even one fried oreo?

All in all, I was so glad to have experienced San Diego’s first Rodeo. I was happy to see so many people filling the stands alongside us.

My only wishes for the future are that they don’t try to make it into something it isn’t, and let the rodeo continue to shine for what it is: A Rodeo. There doesn’t need to be any fancy trends or mediocre concerts (looking at you Houston with some of the artists you let try to outshine the actual event).

If we’re still in San Diego this time next year and they decide to host the event again, we’ll definitely be back.

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1. This was what the protestors were screaming in their microphones while we walked through security. One protestor was dressed as a cow. I’m not sure why more people didn’t take them seriously… ↩︎

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Howdy Y’all! What’d I say? I’m back to writing and really enjoying collecting memories here in San Diego while we still have a chance to make them. See ya in the next post!

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Thanks for reading!

Bri

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