By Katherine Hatcher | Staff Writer
Saddle up for one hot rodeo with livestock shows, a carnival and concerts starting on Oct. 3, where activities to engage all ages feature at the Heart O’ Texas Fair and Rodeo.
This year’s fair will highlight some classic attractions, along with some new ones. Extraco Events Center has organized and hosted the event every year since 1956, and according to rodeo announcer T.C. Long, it is only growing.
“Well, this rodeo continues to grow. We always have mutton busting in there… where the little kids get on the sheep,” Long said. “This rodeo stems with lots and lots of history, but they’ve added more money to bring in the better contestants.”
Melinda Adams, who is the senior division manager of marketing and sponsorships for Extraco Events Center, said that besides the classic rodeo and fair activities, they are excited to introduce two of their new attractions: Black Heritage Night and their Extreme Dogs event.
Black Heritage Night will be an event with a fashion show and rhythm and blues music. The rodeo will even present DJ Precyse, a DJ from 107.3 The Beat, a central Texas hip-hop and R&B station.
Another event, “Extreme Dogs,” allows fair attendees to utilize the Heart Texas Fair Rodeo App to see dogs compete in physical competitions.
“They have athletic dogs that do, like backflips and jumps and tricks, and they’re promoting adoption and rescue,” Adams said.
The Extreme Dogs event, mutton busting, the petting zoo and Rodeo 101 are all included in the fair’s general admission ticket.
While they have many entertainment outlets for families, Adams said the rodeo is geared to college students as well. Concerts, put on every night between Oct. 3-13, except for Oct. 7 and 8, have discounted tickets for students they can access via their student IDs.
“We have college night on Thursday night, so that’s more geared towards the younger crowd, and almost like a Morgan Wallen vibe,” Adams said.
There will also be an audiovisual (AV) production in the Extraco Center, which will include lots of loud music and crazy lights.
College students can also shop in what the event center coins as “HOT shops.” These include over 90 vendors and exhibits to browse through, along with concessions with meals and drinks.
“That’s where you can find everything from home decor, to boutique clothing, to candles,” Adams said.
Long said that the rodeo competitions can’t be beat. Just a few of the many activities are bull riding, barrel racing, tie-down roping and the calf scramble.
Long also said that their clown, John Duley, is the best rodeo entertainer ever. According to Long, he does an amazing job of engaging the audience, like having them compete for $100 dollar gift cards.
To attend the event, Adams said the public needs to bring clear bags and their ID if they want to purchase any alcohol. More of their policies can be found on their website.
