It looks like there will be two rodeos held during the week of Fiesta.
After Earl Warren Showgrounds and Old Spanish Days severed ties and announced they would not bring back the Fiesta Stock Horse Show and Rodeo this year, the two groups announced their own rodeo events to be held in early August.
On Tuesday, Earl Warren Showgrounds leaders said they will host Santa Barbara Rodeo Days and a “fiesta-themed” carnival. A few hours later, Old Spanish Days leaders announced their own rodeo which will be held at the Santa Ynez Valley Equestrian Center.
Both rodeos will have events Aug. 1-3, during Old Spanish Days Fiesta.
Earl Warren’s rodeo will feature the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) in events such as bull riding, barrel racing, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, mutton busting, and saddle-bronc riding.
“We’re excited to bring a professional Rodeo back to the Showgrounds and continue the proud history of celebrating our community’s Western heritage,” said Ben Sprague, CEO of Earl Warren Showgrounds.
“This year marks a special moment for us, as we take the reins of rodeo,” Sprague said. “We are honored to carry forward the equestrian and vaquero traditions that have long defined California’s cowboy culture, and we look forward to sharing this iconic experience with the community.”
The carnival at the showgrounds will be free to enter and will feature rides, food, entertainment, and a mercado for shopping.
The free Old Spanish Days Fiesta Rodeo will be focusing on youth and local participants with events such as ribbon jerking, dummy roping, barrel racing, and mutton busting, organizers said.
There will also be a ticketed barbeque at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 2, with live music.
Old Spanish Days El Presidente Fritz Olenberger said they’re looking forward to having the rodeo in North County, where many of the participants live.
“The rodeo up in Santa Ynez is going to focus on youth, which I think is very special,” Olenberger said. “It’s very much focused on the family.”
In April, the Old Spanish Days Board of Directors announced that the annual rodeo was cancelled due to financial constraints and an inability to work out a deal with Earl Warren Showgrounds.
Olenberger said on Tuesday that he doesn’t see the two rodeos as competing against each other.
“We don’t see it as competing, they’ll have the PRCA, I don’t think theirs is going to be a family event,” Olenberger said. “It won’t have locals. Ours is more family oriented, and it will have local participation.”
Olenberger also said Old Spanish days is focusing on a vibrant downtown for this year’s Fiesta. The annual Mercado De La Guerra will begin July 30 at 11 a.m. and will be expanding into Casa de la Guerra, an events center at the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation.
The full Old Spanish Days Fiesta schedule can be seen here.
The Fiesta Rodeo at the Santa Ynez Valley Equestrian Center will begin Aug. 1 at 9 a.m. with kids aged seven and under events and roping events at 2 p.m. Sorting and Penning events will begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday Aug. 2 with mutton busting at 5 p.m.. Junior events will be held Aug. 3 starting at 9 a.m..
The Santa Barbara Rodeo Days at Earl Warren Showgrounds will begin at 7 p.m. Aug. 1-2 and 1 p.m. on Aug. 3. Tickets for the rodeo will go on sale June 16.
