Gladstone to host inaugural rodeo

• Local rams will be supplied by the Gladstone community for the upcoming inaugural rodeo. Image supplied. 

May 24, 2023

The first ever Gladstone Rodeo is set to come to town this November.

After 12 months of searching Gladstone Hotel owner Cathy Willis has secured a plot of land suitable to run what is set to be a mammoth event for the greater North-East community. 

Mrs Willis said that searching for the land was a tedious task, but she is now looking forward to what is destined to become an annual event at Boobyalla Park. 

“Just finding the land has been the biggest challenge thus far, but I think it will all be worth it,” she said.

“I really want to see the community come together and celebrate this event, and also encourage people from further afar to come and see Gladstone for the first time.”

The inaugural rodeo is set to run on Saturday November 4 and whilst it is a long way off organisers are hoping punters will lock the date away in their calendar.

The rodeo will feature something for the whole family including ram rides for the little ones.

“We will be supplying all the sheep for the ram rides from the Gladstone area,” Mrs Willis said. 

The event is run in conjunction with ID Rodeo Promotions featuring all the classics including steer rides, open bulls, roping events, barrel racing, broncs and more. 

There will be lots of camping available on site with land manager Rick Mundy already getting preparations underway to ensure a comfortable stay. 

The bands will kick off when the main event is over with local food trucks on site to ensure no one goes hungry.

Mrs Willis said that the event is running at a great time of the year with a good gap between the Gladstone event in November 2023 and the Scottsdale Rodeo in March 2024.

“We are first cab off the rank in the local area for rodeos in the season, we are expecting up to 4000 people,” she said.