Calgary Stampede 2019 – My Favorite Westerns

Early days North West Mounted Police outpost

My roots are deep in Calgary
My Dad was born here and I was told
that my great grandfather was a member of the
North West Mounted Police

North-West Mounted Police of Canada, 1887 (colour litho), Remington, Frederic (1861-1909)

Jeremiah “Jerry” Potts (1840 – July 14, 1896), (also known as Ky-yo-kosi, meaning “Bear Child”),
was an American – Canadian plainsman, buffalo hunter, horse trader, interpreter, and scout of Kainai (Blood) and Scots heritage.

Potts is just one of many early Canadian Explorers and Frontiersmen.
Canadians know disgustingly little of their own History or of such people.
We don’t celebrate them. We never developed a film industry like the US
that tells of them in any way. Their exploits were easily equal,
but they are almost completely unknown. Because of this I would guess
that the average Canadian knows more about US History than Canadian History.

Don’t know who these cowboys are? but it looks like
they got a bag of pancake mix and 4 beers for posing.

The Calgary Stampede Song / Wilf Carter

When I’m not trying to wake people up – including myself,
I do ordinary things – like go to the Calgary Stampede.

The Stampede is a 10 day event and Rose and I go down to the
Stampede Grounds for one day every year – usually Seniors Day (get in free!).
We take transit because driving around downtown is insane.

Calgary – not a town anymore.

The Saddledome. Soon to be torn down and replaced
by a new $550-million arena.
(Would we be surprised if that reaches a billion before it’s finished?)

Anyway … The Calgary Stampede: quite an event.

There’s action all over town.
Horses get ‘right of way’.

It’s crazy at the transit station.
Hope you don’t mind crowds.

The gates are in sight.

No drunks; No drugs; No guns; No smoking; No tasers; No blades; No drones;
No explosives; No baseball bats, hockey sticks, golf clubs, bows and arrows;
Etc; Etc; Etc …
Geez, you can’t do anything.

On the grounds.