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Rodeo

South Dakota's State Sport

In towns across South Dakota, people gather to watch and participate in a time-honored tradition – Rodeo.

Add a South Dakota rodeo to your itinerary for a blast of entertainment. Rodeo is an exciting way to take in the culture of the area. It’s a South Dakota experience that you’ll talk about for a lifetime.

The sport of rodeo evolved from the daily chores of ranchers in the West and Midwest. Cowboys first began competing against one another on the ranches where they worked to see who was better at certain everyday tasks. They began competing against neighboring ranches and, shortly after, an association was formed and the sport of rodeo was born. The first rodeo in South Dakota is thought to have taken place in Rosebud in the late 1890s. Rodeo continues to provide an exciting and thrilling tribute to ranch life from generations past.

South Dakota is home to past and present rodeo greats like Casey Tibbs, Mattie Newcombe and Billy Etbauer. 

There are more than 100 rodeos that take place annually across our great state, varying from PRCA to 4-H and high school-level events, so, "cowboy up" and plan to attend a South Dakota rodeo.

2011 Rodeo Events Schedule