Teepee Creek Stampede - Historic Annual July Stampede & Rodeo, CPRA Rodeo Action

95 Years of Western Tradition at The Teepee Creek Stampede

The Teepee Creek Stampede Association (TCSA) will be celebrating our 95th year in 2011 as we feature 4 full nights of Chuckwagon Racing and Pro Rodeo July 14, 15, 16 & 17, 2011. The Teepee Creek Stampede is a CPRA Pro Rodeo and we also feature races from the Western Chuckwagon Association GMC Pro Tour and the All Pro Canadian Chuckwagon & Chariot Association Taste the Dust Pro Tour.

We have a number of third and fourth generation board members and volunteers involved in the Teepee Creek Stampede Association today. The people are 100% volunteers that continue to work diligently so that the tradition of the Teepee Creek Stampede stays alive. Without the hard work of the volunteers that work tirelessly today and all those that came before us, the Teepee Creek Stampede would not be.

Traditionally, the Teepee Creek Stampede was an amateur rodeo for many years and we are excited to now be a part of the Pro rodeo world. For many years, The Teepee Creek Stampede was the largest amateur rodeo in the north and one of the largest amateur events in Canada.

The Teepee Creek Stampede’s logo and brand is the Bar over T P. In the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, the TCSA ran its own herd of bucking horses that were raised just for bucking at the Teepee Creek Stampede. These horses wore the Bar TP Brand and this is the root of using a bar over TP as our logo for the Stampede today. We use the Bar TP brand as the logo for the Stampede in our advertising, on our buckles, throughout the Stampede grounds, and on official Teepee Creek Stampede Apparel.

Gathering Rope

One of the signature events of the Teepee Creek Stampede is the TEEPEE CREEK TERROR. This is a bonus Saddle Bronc event that has a lot of history with the Stampede. The First Teepee Creek Terror took place in 1954 and to this day it is still held as a part of the Stampede. The Terror was always the rankest horse in the pen and the rider was required to stay mounted for a full 10 seconds for it to be a qualified ride (a standard ride is 8 seconds). The “lucky” rider for the Teepee Creek Terror is drawn at random from all registered riders for that day and is awarded $250 for getting on and an additional $500 if they can complete the ride. There have been many riders jump on the back of the Terror over the years and many of them went on to ride in the Pro circuit. Today, we invite our Pro competitors to try their hand to the Teepee Creek Terror!

The Stampede originally started out as a sports day and community picnic where local resident got together once a year for ball games, horse races, bronc riding, water sports and even boxing matches!!!! The first Teepee Creek Stampede was help in 1917 and it has continued to evolve into the event we present you today. The first Teepee Creek Stampede included a horse race across a full ¼ section – it cost $0.50 to enter and the winner took home $5.

Rough Stock events became an integral part of the Stampede in the 1930’s and Chuckwagon Races were added starting in the 1940’s. Teepee Creek has a long history with Chuckwagons – the first wagons ran in 1946 and they continue to tear up the track in Teepee Creek to this day. Today we run the Western Chuckwagon Associations GMC Pro Tour of thoroughbred chucks and the All Pro Canadian Chuckwagon Association Taste the Dust Pro Tour pony chuckwagons. Every year our wagon performance gets a little larger and last year we had over 50 chuckwagon teams participate in the Stampede.

Wagon Racing

As a part of the Stampede, Teepee Creek actually boasts having once had its own musical ride. In the mid 1940’s, A group of riders was assembled and a musical ride was orchestrated. In addition to putting on this show for the Stampede, this group traveled for miles and miles to perform their show at other venues across the north.

The Teepee Creek Stampede Dances need no introduction and have been a material part of the Stampede since day 1. Barn loft dances in Mackenzie’s Barn are reminisced about by many and we carry on that tradition today with our nightly dances under “The Wagon Tarp”

Permanent bucking corrals and chutes were built in 1946 – this was possibly the first formal setup. Today, we have a full set of 10 permanent bucking chutes at The Teepee Creek Stampede grounds. To our knowledge, we are one of only a few rodeo grounds that have 10 permanent bucking chutes.

Pari-mutuel horse racing also has a long history in Teepee Creek – the “Flat Races” at Teepee Creek are well remembered by many. While we do not host any flat races in Teepee Creek today, they are a very important part of our history.

The “hay day” of the Teepee Creek Stampede was in the early 1970’s – during this period, the Stampede was one of the foremost events north of Edmonton and attracted people from near and far. In 1971, 12,000 fans attended the Stampede and in 1974 there was 15,000 fan in attendance. During this period, the Teepee Creek Stampede was the largest rodeo in the north and one of the largest amateur rodeos in Canada.

Through the 80’s and 90’s the Stampede continued on through hard work from many volunteers but as amateur rodeo became less popular both with contestants and spectators, the show and the size of the crowd began to suffer.

In 2007, the board of the Teepee Creek Stampede Assoc. made the decision to move to a CPRA Pro Rodeo event. It was a difficult decision at the time but one that we have not looked back on. Today we bring some of the best cowboys and cowgirls in the world to compete in front of Teepee Creek Stampede crowds – all while maintaining much of our history and some key local events such as the Wild Cow Milking, Wild Horse Race, and The Rawhide Race.

Everything about the Teepee Creek Stampede has been growing exponentially over the last 5 years. Since moving to a pro show, we have completed massive amounts of work to our grounds and expanded our wagon show from 2 nights of chuckwagon racing to now including 4 full nights of racing with a final dash for cash. In 2005, less than 1000 people passed through the gates during the Stampede. In 2009, we hosted more than 9,000 spectators!!!!

For the 2007 Stampede, we did a complete modernization of the south end of the grandstands building a new beer gardens area as well as a new Chuckwagon Racing Announcers Stand.
In 2008, we did a complete overall on our race track and rebuilt it – making it wider, banked the corners, installed a new shiny red steel inside rail, and replaced old fences with new chain link. We also did a major upgrade to our bucking chutes and built a 50 x 70 coverall building that now houses our beer gardens and nightly rodeo dances.

In 2009, we tore down our old rodeo announcer’s stand and replaced it with a new larger and higher announcer’s booth. We also introduced Canada to a brand new event known as the TP Toro Totter.

We have big plans for 2010 and are pleased to present a Video Board as a new addition to the Teepee Creek Stampede. This 9’ x 15’ Video Board will be a great new feature as it will allow us to do instant replays, slow motion, and make sure everyone has a great seat to see all the action! This is the first time a Video Board has been available in the Peace Country and we are thrilled to introduce our crowds to this amazing technology.

We are all looking forward to celebrating our 100th year in 2016 – what a milestone that will be for the Teepee Creek Stampede!!! Stay tuned for a lot of excitement as we build towards that highlight!