THERE’S arguably no better place to send this festival first-timer than to the rodeo to help refine a country palette.
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Some of the country’s most feared bronc and bull riders, as well as some of the fastest ladies on the barrel-racing circuit, put on a show at AELEC on Saturday night to mark the start of the week-long bucking action at the city’s premier stadium.
Young budding bull riders and out-of-towners keen to get their first taste of rodeo sports filed into CowboyUp, a fundraiser for the Westpac Lifesaver Helicopter, as Nashville musician Eric Lee Beddingfield entertained the growing crowd.
The action started when the chutes were pulled open and riders gritted their teeth through the thrills and spills of an eight-second slot in the spotlight.
Though Saturday night was a fundraiser, with many using it as a last-ditch bid to finesse the art of bull and bronc riding, it heralded the start of a big week in the arena.
The junior finals rodeo will run Tuesday and Wednesday, before the rodeo and campdraft national finals start on Thursday and culminate in the finale on Saturday night.
A touching tribute will be held for Tamworth cowboy, Blake Hallam, who tragically died in an accident in September, aged 23.
The rodeo community will wear touches of blue at the finals on Saturday night to remember Blake as a man of great talent in the arena and of great character out.
