Sign up for TPR Today, Texas Public Radio's newsletter that brings our top stories to your inbox each morning.
Before you ride out to the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo on the grounds of the Frost Bank Center and Freeman Coliseum, TPR has a few tips to cowboy or cowgirl up for the event that runs through Feb 23.
More than 1.1 million visitors are expected to pass through the gates before it all ends.
First of all, a jacket and other layers will be needed for highs mostly in the 40s between Wednesday and Friday.
The grounds are mostly open-air, so if the wind is brisk, expect wind chills to match. But there are plenty of indoor venues to duck into if you catch a chill, including the main venues, the livestock barns, and The Shops at the Rodeo in the Expo Hall.
If you wear a cowboy hat, it should ideally be made of felt. That's the style for winter months. Straw hats are for the warmer months. Now you know, pardner.
There's a lot of walking involved, so if you wear boots, make sure they are well broken in. Otherwise, we recommend more comfortable footwear to saunter around in.
The afternoon or evening rodeo competitions are followed by concerts, and we think they complete the experience of a visit to one of the city's biggest events of the year—outside of Fiesta in April.
And a visit would not be complete without some shopping at The Shops at the Rodeo, a ride or two in the carnival area, and a bite into some of the many fair foods, including hot dogs, corn dogs, tacos, hamburgers, barbeque, kettle corn, roasted corn, turkey legs, funnel cake, and more.
There's also plenty of vendors selling beverages, including non-alcoholic choices, to help you stay hydrated or warm, if you visit during one of the chilly days ahead.
The good news is the whole experience can come with just one ticket.
"With your rodeo ticket, they're starting out at $35 a ticket for all of our shows. That's the starting price for our rodeo," said Baylee Olivarez, the event's digital media manager. "And with that, you get rodeo, you get the concert immediately following the rodeo, and you get access to all our fairgrounds."
So ideally, visitors should go a couple of hours before the start of the rodeo time listed on their ticket to have fun at the carnival, to shop, see other exhibits, and to sample some fair foods. You can also walk around after the concert because the carnival grounds close at 11 p.m. on weeknights, at midnight on Saturdays, and 10 p.m. on Sunday and Monday for President's Day.
The carnival grounds open at 4 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. on Saturdays, and 10 a.m. on Sunday and Monday for Presidents' Day.
The concert dates ahead include:
- Diamond Rio, 7 p.m., Feb. 17
- Joe Nichols, 7 p.m., Feb, 18
- Whiskey Myers, 7 p.m., Feb. 19
- Sammy Hagar, 7 p.m., Feb. 20
- Nelly, 7 p.m., Feb. 21
- Nate Smith, noon, Feb. 22
- Dwight Yoakum, 7:30 p.m., Feb 22
If you don't have a lot of time to take it all in, TPR recommends not missing the pig races put on by Swifty Swine Productions and Bustin' in the Barn, where kids ride sheep wearing crash helmets and see how long they can hang on. The venues are located right next to each other.
The pig races are held weekdays at 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m., and 3:30 p.m.
Bustin' in the Barn is held at 6 p.m. during the week. Showtimes are added by both on weekends. On Feb. 22, the pig races will also be held at 5:30 and 7 p.m. Bustin' in the Barn runs the same day at 10 a.m., noon, 1 p.m., 3 p.m., 5 p.m., and 6 p.m.
Learn more here: Know Before You Go
