Day 2 at the Calgary Stampede started off strong and delicious: I actually got to experience in person the pancake breakfast I remember craving when I saw it on Top Chef Season 22, filmed in Canada, at Fluor Rope Square.
They opened the morning with a ribbon cutting while High Steppin’ Daddy jammed out nearby and the chefs flipped bacon and pancakes off the back of the famous Chuckwagons.
They’ll be serving up their traditional bacon-pancakes every morning from 8:30-10:30am for the rest of the fair right where the very first Stampede Breakfast took place more than 100 years ago on Stephen Avenue
After breakfast, I went on a tour of the Sam Centre, newly reopened in 2024, to learn all about the history of the Stampede from my incredible tour guide, Jennifer Holm, a manager at the museum. In striking contest to being the massive event it is today; the Stampede’s origins are humble – it began as a small agricultural society 113 years ago. Now, a team of over 3500 volunteers put together the rodeo each year.
The tour started by viewing “The Branded”, the art of the Calgary Stampede poster exhibit. In 2019, the Stampede inaugurated the Youth Poster Competition where young Canadians submit art paintings and drawings to be featured on the official poster. The winner gets a scholarship to university.
After the museum, l enjoyed an elegant lunch at the Wine Garden at the BMO Centre. Three healthy pours of wine were paired with a smorgasbord of artisanal Canadian cheeses, meats and pasta. It was a luxurious quiet getaway in the middle of the Stampede crowds.
Lunch was my last moment of sitting down for the rest of the day as I covered all the rodeo excitement. The Calgary Stampede is an invitation only rodeo with a prize pool over $2 million, so the hype here is very real.
Cowboys and cowgirls, largely from the US and Canada, face off in various physical tests of skill, determination, style, and control. Throughout the beautiful, picture-perfect sunny afternoon, I saw people performing absolutely insane physical feats as judges followed them as closely as they dared. I saw Bareback Riding, Ladies Barrel Racing, Tie Down Roping, Steer Wrestling, Saddle Bronc Riding, Breakaway Roping and the grand finale of the day Bull Riding.
To get an up close and personal look at the cowboys breaking out of the stalls, I did a behind the scenes VIP Tour of the Chutes, which are the holding pens for the animals and their riders participating in the rodeo.
After the rodeo, I took a tour of the Barn and met some Heavy Horses from the Krebs Family Farm named Remington and Jules. These two angels are the friendliest and biggest horses I have ever seen.
In the evening it was all about the Shania Twain headlining show at the Scotiabank Saddledome on the Stampede Grounds.
Shania took the stage in white shorts and sweater and sparkly red boots. She took the stage around 9:15 PM and played an energetic set with all the hits. The sold-out crowd sang along to every song as she played hit after hit, from her newer line dance jam “Giddy Up” to her slower, more heartfelt classics. She closed out the show with her stadium country superhit “Man, I Feel Like a Woman” as every single person yelled the lyrics with her. She is a true icon and a Canadian national treasure.