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Shawn Dukas, 13, of Stockdale, Texas, leads his alpaca, Q-Tip, through the “Public Relations” course during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in Houston on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Carlee Hodgen, 7, of Roachdale, Indiana, cleans up the family’s pen as they get ready to pack up the llamas and head back home on the last day of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022. This was the first year the Hodgen’s came down to the Houston Livestock Show, since it fell on their spring break.
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo attendees get flipped around during on the “Tango” ride on the last day of the fair on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Kids enjoy a carnival ride on the rodeo’s final day Sunday. Attendance through Saturday totaled roughly 2.1 million people.
A family leaves the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo with their llamas and alpacas on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Londyn Rubek, 13, of Plattsmouth, Nebraska, controls her two-year-old llama, Jolt, as it backs away from an air dancer during the “ Public Relations” course in Houston on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo attendees get flipped around during on the “Tango” ride on the last day of the fair on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Attendees of the Houston Livestock and Rodeo enjoy the last day of the festival on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Ashely McBryde performs during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022. McBryde opened up for George Strait.
Ashely McBryde performs during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022. McBryde opened up for George Strait.
Ashely McBryde performs during the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022. McBryde opened up for George Strait.
Attendees of the Houston Livestock and Rodeo try to get a photo or video of George Strait as he makes his way to the stage to perform the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Attendees of the Houston Livestock and Rodeo try to get a photo or video of George Strait as he makes his way to the stage to perform the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Attendees of the Houston Livestock and Rodeo try to get a photo or video of George Strait as he makes his way to the stage to perform the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Sumeer Kirk strolled out of NRG Park on Sunday afternoon with a watermelon agua fresca in one hand and a hard-earned stuffed toy tucked under the other arm.
Kirk, 20, and her friend Brooke Earl, 18, were happy to be back at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo doing all of the activities they have enjoyed since childhood. They sped around on go-karts, closed their eyes together on a ride that spun them up-and-down, and played a game involving ropes and bottles and rings for nearly half an hour before Kirk finally scored a coveted Squishmallow prize.
Like many, the friends said they were happy to be back at the rodeo after the event took a year-long COVID-19 hiatus.
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“I missed the funnel cakes and the fried oreos,” Kirk said. “And the sausage on the stick — definitely still something I dream about on a yearly basis.”
The rodeo concluded on Sunday with gorgeous, sunny weather and throngs of visitors feasting on food, learning about livestock and gearing up for an evening performance by country star George Strait.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
George Strait performs the last concert of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Sunday, March 20, 2022.
Attendance through Saturday totaled roughly 2.1 million people, slightly down compared to previous record-setting years, said Chris Boleman, president and CEO of the event. Nine nights each drew more than 70,000 people to watch rodeo athletes and musical performances from country singers, pop stars and rappers.
The lower attendance numbers were not surprising given that people are still bouncing back from the COVID-19 pandemic, said Boleman. Some people remain hesitant to spend time in crowds, plus event organizers encouraged people to stay home if they were feeling unwell. Organizers were very pleased with the turnout.
“We said this over and over going into the year — we weren't looking to set records, we were looking to provide a quality experience for everybody that came here,” Boleman said. “What we’ve learned is just how important this event is to the community…People were certainly pumped to be back.”
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This year marked the launch of a new rodeo event for women’s breakaway roping, the first fine-dining experience and lots of new vendors, according to organizers.
The Houston event supports Texas youth with scholarships and promotes agriculture and Western heritage in a family-friendly environment, attracting local visitors and people from around the country, Boleman said.
Parents pushing strollers and holding small hands flooded the Livestock Arena on Sunday afternoon to see baby chicks hatching from eggs, chickens running amok inside a fence and newborn lambs sleeping by their mothers.
“Makes me want to get one and put it in my bag,” one woman joked as she looked at the lambs.
“I want a baby cow so bad,” a girl said at a nearby exhibit.
In a corridor lined with food tents, Latoya Medlock chomped into a doughnut chicken sandwich, which is exactly what it sounds like: a slab of fried chicken wedged between two glazed doughnuts.
“Ooh, that looks delicious,” said her husband, Darnell Medlock, as he narrated and filmed his wife’s review of the deep-fried carnival food for their YouTube channel.
“It’s really good,” she said. “I’ll give it five stars.”
The couple wanted to try another delicacy advertised in bright colors on the sign — shrimp coated in Fruity Pebbles cereal — but employees told them they ran out of the apparently popular item.
Next, the family said, they were headed to find a beef brisket potato. Maybe some fried Oreos, too.
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As the afternoon sun beat down on the pavement, people stood in line for fried cookie dough, jumbo turkey legs and watermelon tacos. They carried plates with mountains of curly fries and squirted ketchup on corndogs. Music blasted from various stations as kids and adults rushed through the air overhead on rides with names like Twister, Galaxy and Insanity.
Amid the crowd, a volunteer with a clipboard juggled two tasks: giving a girl directions to the animals and taking care of a lost child trying his best to hold back tears.
Nearby, Jerry Smart sat in a shady booth offering airbrush tattoos. He’s been a vendor at the rodeo for 26 years, he said, and last year was tough without the financial boost from the event’s large crowds.
This year, he’s stayed busy from morning until night.
“It’s been really good actually,” he said. “I guess people are ready to get out.”
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Anna Bauman is a reporter for the Houston Chronicle.
Before coming to Houston, Anna covered breaking news for The San Francisco Chronicle metro desk. A Kansas City native, Anna graduated from the University of Oklahoma, where she studied English and worked at the OU Daily student newspaper.
She likes running, reading and the Kansas City Chiefs.
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