Kiwanis Lone Star Rodeo rides into town

Clarksville, Tennessee, Online
http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/2008/08/17/24th-annual-kiwanis-lone-star-rodeo-hits-town/

This weekend brought two days of rodeo excitement to Clarksville at the Fairgrounds Park.

Glenn Childers, 2008 Downtown Kiwanis club chairman, gave a brief rundown of this year’s rodeo, adding that the Kiwanis club, with its 128 members, is proud that this was its 24th year bringing the rodeo to the Clarksville community. This rodeo was a very family-oriented and family-friendly happening, with all proceeds dedicated to aid children and youth programs.

The pageantry of rodeo is colorful, dramatic, patriotic, and exciting. Mark North, rodeo announcer, does an excellent job of informing the crowd and encouraging everyone’s participation and appreciation for the athletes’ performances (both human and animal).

There are chuckwagon races, Children’s “Lost Shoe Match-Up” competitions, and “Gold in the Haystack” searches. Trick riding, rodeo clowns, and shooting demonstration also are part of the rodeo show.

Food vendors offered cotton candy, funnel cakes, nachos, snow cones, popcorn, and hot dogs. Wayne Abrams, barbecue specialist extraordinaire, worked his ‘Applewood Magic,’ with Bubba’s Tennessee Smokers creating barbecue sandwiches, and Wendy’s offering cool Frosties for dessert.

Other attractions included a petting zoo, pony rides, and livestock pens. The Clarksville Police Department Mounted Patrol was also in attendance.

The local business community support of this event is impressive: local banks, storage operations, construction, veterinary care, certified accountants, auto repair to car sales, pleasure watercraft sales, radio media, Web design, printers, lodging, livestock, restaurants of all genre, lawyers and law firms, concrete products, commercial real estate, architectural firms, communications and insurance firms — virtually every sector of the local business community was involved in some way with this rodeo.

For the uninitiated, it was a chance to get acquainted with the real living tradition of the American West. Cowboys, cowgirls, horses, and cows—“That’s American!”