Raymond Stampede
The Raymond Stampede is an annual rodeo that is held in the town of Raymond, Alberta, Canada every 1 July.
Famous for being Alberta's oldest rodeo, the Raymond Stampede is also known for being Canada's oldest professional rodeo, having started a full decade before the Calgary Stampede.
The Raymond Stampede was first held on a vacant lot in 1902, as part of the town's first Canada Day celebration.
Under the direction of rancher Raymond Knight, cowboys from the surrounding ranches were invited to participate in this first rodeo, which consisted of saddle bronc riding and steer roping.
A chute was built for the steer roping, but the bucking horses were all "blindfolded and snubbed" and then ridden until the horse stopped bucking.
Ray Knight was the stock contractor, providing bucking horses and roping steers from off his ranch, some miles south of town on the Milk River Ridge.
Hundreds of spectators witnessed the first Raymond Stampede. DeLoss Lund, a cowboy from the Hat L Ranch dressed in fur chaps, rode the first bucking horse. In the end, Ed Corless won the bronc riding competition, and Ray Knight won the steer roping competition.
The first Raymond Stampede constestants included Raymond Knight, DeLoss Lund, Ed Corless, Dick Kinsey, Frank Faulkner, Jim Austin, and Steve Austin.
As a rodeo pioneer, Raymond Knight has been called the "Father of Canadian Stampedes" having coined the rodeo terms "stampede" and "stampeding." These two words are now in common use for "rodeo" and "rodeoing."
The Raymond Stampede and Calgary Stampede are among almost 300 different rodeo events around the world, from North America to Australia, that use the word "stampede" in their name.
In 1903, the Raymond Stampede benefactor, Raymond Knight, financed the construction of Canada's first permanent rodeo grounds with an engineered oval track, a single bucking chute and a covered grandstands. This rodeo grandstand is the oldest continuously used in rodeo history. The bucking chute, which was a "shot-gun" style, was the first ever built in rodeo history.
The Raymond Stampede and the rodeo grounds were named for Raymond Knight who financed the rodeo and served as the arena director for almost 40 years. The town of Raymond, as well as the local school, the college and the opera house were also named for Raymond Knight.
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