It's that time again: Nine days and nights of freewheeling fun, country music, rides, livestock shows, food, shopping and, most of all, rodeo! With multiple stages, the music alone is reason to head to Denton for the North Texas Fair and Rodeo. Headliners this year on the Budweiser Stage include Josh Abbott Band, Steve Wariner, Jake Hooker & The Outsiders, The Damn Quails, Shane Smith & The Saints, Casey Donahew Band, and the original one-and-only Charlie Daniels Band. The PRCA Rodeo begins Friday night and runs the entire week with events like bareback riding, steer wrestling, saddle bronc riding, calf roping and a calf scramble. And you won't want to miss the team roping, barrel racing and bull riding.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, enjoy Mutton Bustin' (where kids try to stay on the back of a sheep) and the 21 and Under Rodeo. Mutton Bustin' is open to registrants ages three to seven (as of September 1) with an entry fee of $30. For the 21 and Under Rodeo, categories for men and women include breakaway roping, bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, tie down roping, team roping, goat tying, barrel racing and bull riding. For livestock, enjoy the Junior Livestock Show featuring steers, heifers, pigs, lambs and goats. The Open Livestock Shows include open beef, open Boer goats and open breeding sheep.
Each night's carnival features pulse-pounding rides like the Kamikaze, the Scorpion and the Starship 2000, plus plenty of kids' rides including a carousel, Raiders and Go-Gator. The tractor pull will also be a highlight of the fair and runs nightly in the Peterbilt Kid Zone. Come hungry and leave tired and dirty. That's what the fair is all about!