Frontier Days Fashion

I guess we all just missed another Frontier Days, but the New York Times didn't:

After 109 years in operation Cheyenne Frontier Days lays claim to being the oldest continuously running rodeo, the largest outdoor rodeo and the biggest Western celebration in the world. With over 1,800 cowboys and cowgirls competing for $1 million in prize money, it unquestionably fields the largest group of competitors in the sport.

It's funny that this article comes in the fashion section of the NYT, because it seems like the writer barely made a bow toward the fashion aspects. Instead, he focused on the rodeo ethos:

"You just get a wild hair to do it," explained Tate Stratton, a 20-year-old bull rider who was ranked No. 16 in the world after the Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo. Like many who practice the sport, Mr. Stratton was reared on a ranch and got his start riding home grown steers.

His rationale is as good as any for partaking in an activity that, as the seasoned rodeo announcer Justin McKee explained, inspires riders to risk killing themselves for an eight-second ride and a cash prize that would barely constitute tip money for an athlete in the National Football League.

We just came back from the latest dude ranch vacation. The wranglers there generally constitute a mixture of aspiring rodeo types and washed up rodeo types. If you're interested in pictures, here they are. I put titles on them individually, or you can view them with the snazzy slide show feature of Flickr.