This March 2013 over 2.5 million individuals attended the Rodeo Houston which has been going strong since its first event in 1932. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo at Reliant Stadium is the largest rodeo event in the world. It has an attendance which is more than double the one million that go to the second biggest annual rodeo event held in Calgary up north in Canada.
An outstanding corps of 24,000 volunteers makes this huge 20-day Rodeo Houston event succeed each year.
Preceding the Rodeo, a mass trail ride by a company of almost 3,000 horse riders coming from over twelve different locations relive the Old West as they stride hundreds of miles towards the business center of Houston.
On its first day, spectators line up the streets of downtown Houston to enjoy the parade of the trail riders and rodeo participants, a walk and run competition and the feast at the “World's Championship Bar-B-Que Contest”.
The highlight of each day of Rodeo Houston happens in the early evening with the fast-paced exciting sequence of tie-down roping, bareback riding, team roping, saddle bronc riding, steer wrestling, barrel racing, bull riding, calf scramble, under 5 year-old kids lamb riding and music concert. Aside from rodeo action, Rodeo Houston features livestock competitions, a carnival, pig racing, an international wine competition, shopping, and livestock auctions.
The world's biggest recording artists, including Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Willie Nelson, Selena, Bon Jovi, ZZ Top, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Bruno Mars, Blake Shelton, Band Perry, and Lady Antebellum have performed in the Rodeo’s main venue which is currently the 70,000 seat-capacity Reliant Stadium.