One my last night of SXSW a group of friends suggested a trip to the Rodeo Austin. I’ve never been to the Rodeo before, but I hope to go again.
The Austin Rodeo, also known as the “Austin Livestock Show and Rodeo,” is an annual event that takes place in Austin, Texas, usually in March. The rodeo is one of the largest and most popular rodeos in the country, attracting thousands of visitors each year.
The Rodeo features a variety of rodeo events, such as bull riding, bareback riding, steer wrestling, and team roping. In addition to the rodeo events, the event also features a carnival, live music performances, a livestock show, and other family-friendly activities.
About 40 minutes North of Austin is Rodeo Austin (not, for some reason ‘Austin Rodeo’…) During March and April Rodeo Austin hold a series of evenings that combine some rodeo events and a concert. On our chosen night, the concert was from Ludacris.
For my British friends, compare this to a ‘Newmarket Nights’ or similar event and you get the picture..
We arrived slightly late, missing a chance to go on the big wheel or watch the little kids ride around on sheep but instead went straight into the action. For the next two hours we saw cowboys and cowgirls ride bucking broncos, angry bulls and race horses around barrels. Each ride was coordinated with a great soundtrack – watching someone ride the bucking bronco whilst the Stones’ Start me Up blared from the sound system was pretty cool!
I put together a quick video to share my experience of Rodeo Austin.
(the Rodeo image is from their official poster, which I love and hope it is OK to share!)
For the newbies, like me you can easily get to Rodeo Austin from downtown Austin. All the major ride sharing companies, including the local Ride Austin will take you there and pick you up at the end of the night. We bought tickets the day before so there was some availability left. If you booked earlier I am sure you could get better seats, or pay more and sit over the pens where the cowboys and cowgirls settle in before going to the ring. My seat was about $40 which I thought was a bargain! You had a clear view from every seat and they brought cold beers to buy from your seat! The staff were awesome. I had a Laura Dern lookalike who explained the rules and scoring and made sure I was enjoying the show.
Ludacris was great. A little random if you ask me, but hey! I think that was the only concert I’ve ever been to and not know a single song. I couldn’t even sing along or pick it up! Still a great night though.
The Rodeo was just one of the great experiences I had at SXSW 2018.
