It’s Round-Up time!
Published 3:00 am Tuesday, September 5, 2023
- Canadian bareback rider Orin Larsen rides Deep Springs for the day’s best score of 86.5 points on Sept. 15, 2022, at the Pendleton Round-Up.
PENDLETON — The 113th Pendleton Round-Up races into Pendleton this month with related events happening every day between Sept. 9 and Sept. 16. Here’s a primer on what you’ll see in the next week.
Dress-Up Parade
Hosted by the Main Street Cowboys, the Dress-Up Parade begins at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, in front of Pendleton City Hall. This event features floats, horse groups, performances by local ensembles and all the fun of a community parade.
Kick-Off Concert
Each year, this event welcomes a country music lineup to kick off the festivities of Round-Up week. This year’s concert is Craig Morgan and Clint Black. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9, at the Happy Canyon Arena, and the show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets to the kick-off concert are available at www.pendletonroundup.com.
Banquet, golf
The Hall of Fame Banquet at the Pendleton Convention Center is at 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 10.
Tickets are available to purchase by calling 541-276-5337.
The 33rd annual Round-Up Foundation Memorial Golf Tournament takes place Monday, Sept. 11, at Birch Creek Golf Course.
Rodeo events
Slack begins Monday morning in the Round-Up Arena. Slack is like an overflow rodeo for timed events — such as barrel racing, steer wrestling and tie-down roping — before the main rodeo begins on Wednesday. Slack admission is $5 or free to Pendleton Round-Up ticket holders. Slack continues daily Monday through Thursday.
PRCA Xtreme Bulls Finale sends dirt flying in the Happy Canyon Arena on Monday and Tuesday evenings. The event begins at 8 p.m. both nights, and gates to the Happy Canyon Arena open at 6 p.m.
Breakfast, Main Street celebration
Wednesday through Saturday, a popular start to the morning is the VFW Outdoor Cowboy Breakfast in Stillman Park. A fundraiser for the VFW, this breakfast features pancakes, ham, eggs, orange juice, milk and “cowboy coffee.” It’s all-you-can-eat when you buy a ticket and typically served 6-10 a.m.
Wednesday is also the first day of the Main Street Cowboys’ celebration on Pendleton’s Main Street. Vendors and live music will line Main Street for much of Round-Up Week. Find the details on performances at mainstreetcowboys.org.
Round-Up and Happy Canyon
The Pendleton Round-Up rodeo opens at 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 13. This award-winning rodeo fills the stadium with thousands of rodeo fans as well as more than a dozen food and merchandise booths and multiple bars. Each day of Round-Up begins with the grand entry and proceeds through fast-action competitive events like bareback bronc riding, barrel racing and steer roping.
Wednesday is Family and Senior Day, and Thursday is Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day.
Wednesday is also the opening of the Happy Canyon Indian Pageant and Wild West Show in the Happy Canyon Arena. Since 1914, this all-volunteer performance has been telling the tales of Pendleton and the surrounding area.
Wednesday ends with the opening of Goldie’s Bar at the Canyon. This 21 and older night club and gambling hall is only open four nights a year at the Pendleton Convention Center and Happy Canyon Arena. Admission is $5 or free with a Happy Canyon ticket. Each evening will feature live music.
On Thursday, there will be two different rodeos at the Round-Up Arena: one for professionals and one for children with special needs.
Sponsored by the InterMountain Education Service District, the Children’s Rodeo invites rodeo cowboys to help with stations to give special needs children a chance to participate in a rodeo. Invited children are able to safely participate in roping and riding events. Spectators may attend and cheer on the participants.
Thursday also welcomes the Junior American Indian Beauty Contest in Roy Raley Park. The American Indian Beauty Contest for adults begins at 9 a.m. Friday on Main Street.
Typically the best-attended and most often sold-out day of the rodeo is Saturday for the Pendleton Round-Up Finals. This day puts the best-of-the-best against each other to take home the final prizes.
Buy tickets for most Pendleton Round-Up events at pendletonroundup.com.
Parade, Mounted Band
The second of Pendleton’s parades opens with a cannon blast at 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 15. The Westward Ho! Parade is completely non-motorized and features a number of historic and creative entries.
Anyone staying in a hotel in downtown Pendleton may begin their day with a one-of-a-kind alarm clock when the Pendleton Round-Up Mounted Band rides through downtown Pendleton with its annual Wake-Up Calls at around 9 a.m. Saturday. The musicians play a variety of pep and parade music while on horseback and stop at multiple hotels, Stillman Park, Hamley’s and the Rainbow Cafe.
For details and tickets, visit pendletonroundup.com.