The Blue Ridge Rodeo

I know this is probably a sentimental and overly romantic view but there is some things about small town rural American life that strike me as pure and clean and genuine.

What prompted this gush of emotion is that Meredith, Mike and I attended the 18th Annual Blue Ridge Kiwanis Club Rodeo. We’re not talking about a huge rodeo like the Cheyenne Frontier Days or the Calgary Stampede. Those are state fair-sized affairs. No, this was more like something you would find at a county fair. It lasted two nights, and the arena probably held less than a thousand people.

This was a big event for little Blue Ridge. In the overflow crowd I saw mothers and fathers with their young kids, grandmas and grandpas and geezers with grey beards who looked like they had just driven in from the farm. There were wanna-be cowboys, chattering young girls with their obligatory smart phones, teenage boys duded out in their best blue jeans and coolest t-shirts, older women trying to look like younger women and high school couples on dates. There were kids running around the grounds, young children crying because their balloons had floated away and family members hugging each other in greeting as they met in the stands.

The boy scouts handled parking. The 4-H club sold cotton candy. Other civic and community groups circulated hawking soda, bottled water, popcorn, glow sticks and boiled peanuts. Behind the stands the small kids entertained themselves until they were sick in those inflatable bounce houses—$5 for all night. The loud speakers blared good old country music with an occasional southern rock classic thrown in. Of course, Meredith, Mike and I dressed for the occasion in cowboy boots, blue jeans and cowboy hats.

The show started at 8:00 pm when the arena gate burst open and two riders entered at a gallop.They circled the arena carrying large American flags to the applause of the crowd. They were followed by a precision riding team consisting of 10 young girls riding big horses and carrying banners. These were local kids from Blue Ridge and Blairsville and Ellijay. The youngest couldn’t have been more than 12 years old. Clearly, being part of a precision riding team is what these kids do in their spare time. I couldn’t help but think that your average urban teenager would not have a clue.

After the drill team had finished their elaborate routine, the announcer asked everyone to stand and bow their heads while he led the crowd in a cowboy prayer. I swear to you that everyone—and I mean everyone—rose, became quiet and bowed their heads. He described heaven as a place where the grass was green and stirrup high, and he prayed for the Lord’s blessing on all in attendance, on the men and women serving in the military and on the United States of America, all in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. I don't think anyone in the crowd was offended by that. 

After that the announcer talked about the sacrifice that our servicemen and women have made for this country, about the little girl whose father will not be returning from his deployment and about the veteran who will never be able to walk again after encountering a roadside bomb. Why, he asked, did they make these sacrifices? For freedom, at which point he cued up Aretha Franklin singing “freedom, freedom, freedom” from the song “Think.” The crowd responded with more cheers, whistles and applause. He then asked all servicemen and women and veterans to stand and be honored by the crowd. If I’m any judge, crowd’s reaction was genuine and heart-felt.

Finally, the announcer asked everyone to remain standing, remove their head covering and sing along as the National Anthem was played. I can remember going to high school football games in Pinellas County and getting pissed off at the number of kids walking, talking and sitting when the National Anthem was played. There was none of that in Blue Ridge at the rodeo on Saturday night. Not only did everyone stand respectfully with hands and hats over their hearts for the National Anthem, but I’d say that the majority of the people sang along…loudly and proudly.

At the conclusion of the anthem a young woman dressed in cowboy finery entered the arena astride a huge horse at full gallop with a giant American flag streaming behind her. As she circled the arena at full speed, the crowd erupted with the loudest burst of clapping, cheers and whistles of the evening.

I admit that this display of small town patriotism and devotion caused me to get a little choked up. I had to wipe the corners of my eyes under the pretense of cleaning my glasses. Only later, on the way home, did Meredith and Mike acknowledge that they were affected in the same way.

As I said, this is probably a sentimental and over-romantic view but I’d like to believe that Saturday night at the 18th Annual Blue Ridge Kiwanis Club Rodeo is the way that America once was and the way it should be. It may be hokey and jingoistic, but if you’re some liberal, east coast, pretend-to-be-sophisticated, ashamed-of-America jerk who looks down on the south and the in-between states, you can just kiss my small town, proud-to-be-an-American ass.