Although the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo does not officially get underway until this coming Thursday, there is plenty of activity on the Joe Freeman Coliseum grounds.
This year's event marks sixty years that San Antonio has been celebrating eighteen days of excitement which includes, livestock expositions, star studded concerts, games, carnival rides and hundreds selling their wares. The first exposition took place on February 17, 1950.
Expectations are strong that more than a million will visit the grounds, surpassing the attendance record of 2009.
Jack Pyland, owner of Jack's French Frys concessions will be operating a breakfast concession stand primarily for the livestock exhibitors, something he has done for the past three years. He will be located away from the midway area and closer to the animal handlers and exhibitors.
"We will be ready to serve our biscuits and sausage gravy and breakfast tacos beginning at 4: am on Thursday," stated Pyland as he supervised the setting up of his food concession stand.
Last year's attendance is reported to be 1,313,785 which was an increase from the previous year which also included seven days where daily attendance records were surpassed.
Butch Doughman from Goliad County was also setting up his original 1867 chuck wagon with the help of family and friends. "This is my eighth year that I have been coming to the San Antonio Show and we are known as the Soup Bone Cattle Company," Doughman said. "We will be having mainly biscuits and gravy with cowboy coffee most of the day, but we might have beans with cornbread and peach cobbler."
Doughman has traveled to other livestock shows in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Waco and most recently took part in the Star of Texas Fair and Rodeo in Austin, Texas.
The San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo begins on February 4 and ends on Sunday, February 21, 2010. The event will include over 4,000 volunteers and in 2009 generated $1,561,000 in scholarship funds. "
