And just like that, The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo has come to an end. This past month has been filled with rodeo fun and everyone in Fort Worth is sad to see it come to an end for this year. The rodeo is arguably one of the best parts of living in Fort Worth. People from all over the country come to Fort Worth just to see our rodeo and experience “Cowtown”.
The Fort Worth Rodeo has been held since 1896, and it is always a highly anticipated event. For the past 128 years, Fort Worth has hosted the rodeo in mid-January-February. The timing of the rodeo is perfect: it gives everyone something to look forward to after Christmas and at the start of the new year.
Madeline – I Love the rodeo and luckily got to attend multiple times with friends and family. On Saturday, January 14th, I went to the rodeo with a few friends, despite the weather being cold outside, we bundled up and went. After dinner at Taco Heads, which is right by Dickies, we walked across the street to Dickies. As I first walked in, we could see the grand entry circling the arena. After mutton bustin’, barrel racing, and all the events, the rodeo ended with awards for the fastest barrel racer. During the rodeo, my friends and I slipped away to get a funnel cake. The funnel cake was so good and was the perfect treat to enjoy.
Lainey- On Tuesday night I attended the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo. On Tuesday Jan. 16 and Wednesday, Feb. 17 Dickies Arena held Bulls’ Night Out. This night consists of 40 riders and they each get eight seconds to take on bull riding. The arena was packed and was very loud with all the cheers and screams of the riders. I went with Sloan Howard ’25 and we enjoyed watching all the contestants and the atmosphere. We enjoyed some delicious fajitas along with some rice and beans. My favorite night is Bulls’ Night Out because bull riding is my favorite thing to watch and is so entertaining. I would recommend going to the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo this January and February.
I also went to the rodeo on Saturday, January 19. This was Round 1 Bracket 1 and it was very fun and competitive. I attended the rodeo with Caroline King ’25, Mary Kathryn King ’25, and Madeline Mehall ’25. We had a lot of fun watching all the events. My favorite event was Mutton Bustin because it was so fun to watch the children hold onto the sheep. Mutton Bustin is for children from ages four to seven and they can sign up to be a part of the rodeo. It is an interesting event and keeps the crowd entertained.
One of Country Day’s students, Jack Homan ’25, spent many of his weeknights working the rodeo. Jack raked and smoothed the dirt after a rider had run in the arena.
“I loved working at the rodeo because I got to see all the behind-the-scenes and I got to see all of the work that goes into every show,” Homan said.
Many different restaurants around Fort Worth are great spots to have dinner before the rodeo. Some of our favorite pre-rodeo restaurants are Joe T Garcias, Reata, Clay Pigeon, and Taco Heads. Bowie House has just opened on Camp Bowie close to dickies and it is the perfect place to eat dinner and hang out before the rodeo. It is a Hotel, so if you are coming to the rodeo from out of town, it is a great place to stay. The Drover is down in the stockyards and is also a fun and festive place to eat dinner and spend the night. If you can get a parking pass, it’s a great big parking garage so it makes transportation easy. But, ubering is a great option too and it is typically easy to find a ride and get to your ride.
