People come from near and far to live in our awesome city. And a rite of passage for all new Calgarians is to take part in their very first Calgary Stampede. When one of my friends first moved here to Calgary, he was so excited to take in all the Stampede festivities. He gussied up in all the best Western gear to fit the part of the cowboy: the jeans, the boots, the bolo tie and of course, the cowboy hat. At his first Stampede party, he had fully embraced his inner rhinestone cowboy and really felt like he fit into the country Western experience. That is, until the song, “Cadillac Ranch” came on and everybody headed onto the dance floor to take part in the country line dance. He quickly realized there was a lot more to the Western experience that he needed to know about.
The “Cadillac Ranch” is a staple of the Stampede experience – and Calgary in general. Those of us who grew up in Calgary are taught line dancing in school (remember those “social dance” modules in gym class?). But fret not newbies! You’ve still got plenty of time to get your toes tapping right before Stampede rolls around.
The guys in the video below may have more enthusiasm than finesse, but they do have the steps down. The ski mask burgler/Flames fan effect is a bit jarring, but also quite amusing. Take a look, practice the steps and get ready to boot scootin’ boogie. Like buddy says in the clip, “See you down at Ranchman’s!”