(Ponoka Stampede website)

By Alessia Proietti

100 years of chuckwagon racing

Ponoka Stampede returns next week with new Showdown Dance Hall

Jun 23, 2023 | 4:23 PM

The Ponoka Stampede is fast approaching and attendees can expect to see an entirely new stage set up.

Held at the Ponoka Stampede grounds (5616 39 Ave.) from Monday, June 26 to Sunday, July 2, guests can get ready to watch 14 different rodeo spectacles from bareback riding to team roping, alongside other features like a tradeshow, live music performances, a parade, and more.

“We’re looking forward to it. We got a great show planned and we want to see everybody out and everybody having fun. We can’t wait to get started,” said Jason Cline, President of the Ponoka Stampede Association.

Cline says this year’s show is bigger and better than last year, with the most noticeable addition of a new 11,000 square foot facility called the Showdown Dance Hall near the middle of the grounds where the Beer Gardens and entertainment will be held.

He stated the Association attempted a similar set-up last year with a tent and found it so successful, they decided to make a permanent structure.

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Other ground improvements, he notes, include a new bucking chute for rodeo fans.

Particularly special this year is the 100^th anniversary of chuckwagon racing which began in 1923 at the Calgary Stampede. Cline says they will be celebrating the milestone all week long and have increased their prize funds.

Following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, Cline says last year’s return of the Ponoka Stampede brought over 100,000 attendees. With pre-sale tickets already exceeding 2022 sales, Cline says he anticipates this year’s show to attract equal, if not more, of a crowd.

“It goes both ways; obviously Ponoka Stampede is a big part of the community but, more importantly, the community is a big part of the Ponoka Stampede. When you have a town that size and you go from 7,500 people to 100,000 people over a week, it takes a community to handle that,” he said, adding the event would not be possible without their 800 volunteers.

Cline says the Stampede has become a place for locals from across the region, including Rimbey, Bashaw Red Deer, and Lacombe, to gather and fundraise for their clubs.

The Ponoka Stampede will also be kicking off its 87th rodeo with their own VIP fundraiser to celebrate the legacy of rodeo.

Fans are being invited on Monday to fundraise for the Canadian Pro Rodeo (CPR) Hall of Fame, housed right in Ponoka at the Calnash Ag Event Centre.

Beginning at 3 p.m. at the Hall of Fame (3611 AB-2A), attendees will witness the unveiling of last year’s inductees, which include 2022 Animal Inductee VJV Slash, owned by Vold Rodeo; 2022 Contestant Inductee Robert Bell; and 2022 Contestant Inductee Bill Reeder; along with works displayed by the 2022 Builder Inductee Mike Copeman.

“It’s important to showcase the careers and legacy of the contestants, builders, and animals of the sport,” said Brenda Vold, Director with the Canadian Rodeo Historical Association. “We preserve the western heritage and history of rodeo, which ensures the contributions of such amazing people and animals don’t go unnoticed.”

Attendees will also be able to meet CPR Hall of Famers and past rodeo champions at the steak dinner starting at 5:30 p.m. on the Wild West Suites rooftop bar before the rodeo begins at 6:30 p.m.

Officials say the draw will feature some of the best rodeo athletes in the world such as three-time World Champion Bareback Rider Tim O’Connell; Alberta’s Curtis Cassidy, eight-time National Finals Rodeo and 38-time Canadian Finals Rodeo Qualifier; Ponoka’s Levi Simpson, World Champion Team Roper; as well as athletes all the way from New Zealand.

(Supplied)

VIP tickets can be bought on the Ponoka Stampede website.