‘Welcome to the wild side!’ − 2019 Rupununi Rodeo underway
DPI, Guyana, Saturday, April 20, 2019
If you enjoy the thrills of Vaqueros straddling wild bulls or attempting to milk wild cows, then the Rupununi Rodeo in Lethem, Region 9 is definitely the place to be this weekend. This is the time that the border town of Lethem comes to life; planes landing more than usual, buses and pickup vehicles flooding in, hotels booked out and stores are filled with persons doing last minute shopping for their cowboy hats and plaid shirts.
The highly anticipated event got off to a great start today, as cowboys and cowgirls from the Rupununi and neighbouring Brazil battled in adrenaline-pumping competitions of calf roping, cow milking, wild bull riding, saddle bronco and bareback bronco.
The activity commenced at approximately 13:00hrs at the Lethem Airport today, with Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock leading a large parade of Vaqueros into the Rupununi Ranchers Rodeo ground where hundreds of local and overseas visitors gathered to witness the thrilling and exciting activities.
Declaring the event open, Minister Allicock said that the Rodeo is ‘special’ for the people of the Rupununi and presents great opportunities for social cohesion since persons of all ethnicities visit the region to witness this unique event. Therefore, Minister Allicock said that the government is committed to supporting events such as this.
“Rodeo is a celebration of our identity and our culture and your government commits to support these events… it is events like these that contribute to Guyana earning the number one eco-tourism destination in the world, not the region or in South America, but the entire world how amazing is that… the ministry and the government will continue to work with the region and the villages to make this a bigger activity in the future.”
Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr. George Norton noted that the Rupununi Rodeo has been a part of the country’s national calendar of activities, however, he said more emphasis needs to be placed to promote and market this activity locally and internationally.
“We need to have a special budgetary allocation to see how much we can help this unique activity in the Rupununi advance …. and as a government, we are prepared to give the support to get there.”
Minister Allicock also presented a cheque valued $1M to the Rodeo Committee, which is an organ of the Rupununi Livestock Producers Association. This is an annual contribution from the government to assist with the organisation of the event.
The Rupununi Rodeo has its origin dating back in the 1960s when, before the rainy season every year, the ranching community would get together to hold a large round-up of the cattle which freely roamed between each other’s herd. This round-up was done to ensure that the cattle was safely medicated, branded and accounted for before the region drastically changed with the coming floods. After the cows were rounded up, the cowboys boasted of their skills in lassoing, bull riding or taming of horses. So, to celebrate a successful round-up, the ranchers would hold a competition where the cowboys showcased their adventurous lifestyle, inviting neighbours from Brazil and other regions across the country.
It is out of this that the Rodeo was birthed, as an organised event and tourist attraction, retaining much of its spectacular wildness, adopting the slogan ‘Welcome to the wild side’. Today, this event is deemed one of Guyana’s signature events during the Easter weekend.
Sunday’s activities at the Rupununi Ranchers Rodeo ground will see tug-o-war, barrel races and horse racing competitions; and then all roads lead to the Sand Creek Rodeo on Monday.
Synieka Thorne.
Images: Keno George.