Make The Transition To Acreage Living

Reading Time: 3 minutes For horse enthusiasts, it’s easy to get caught up in the lifestyle dream of acreage ownership. For the uninitiated, there are key considerations to keep in mind to prevent your dream from becoming a nightmare. “The most important thing to keep in mind when you’re buying an acreage for horses is that your buying decision […] Read more

Horsemanship Savvy Put To The Test At Stampede’s Cowboy Up Challenge

Reading Time: 3 minutes The Calgary Stampede’s Cowboy Up Challenge is what the “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth” is all about: horsemanship, showmanship, legacies and cowboy bravado. In only its second year at the Calgary Stampede, the Cowboy Up Challenge draws participants and spectators, as much for the appeal of the heritage implied in the competition’s name as for […] Read more


This Cowboy Up Competitor Cut His Teeth In The Mountains

Reading Time: 2 minutes Glenn Stewart is one of those tall telling cowboys the West is known for. He lives where he grew up, near Fort St. John, BC and can point out the spot where he first climbed on the back of a horse. “We weren’t allowed to ride with a saddle,” he says. “They thought it was […] Read more

Blacksmiths’ Competition Contestants Vie For $10,000 And Bragging Rights

Reading Time: 3 minutes Every year, thousands of Stampede visitors take in the World Championship Blacksmiths’ Competition, where competitors demonstrate their skill and creativity forging steel into horseshoes in the time-honoured tradition of blacksmithing. These days, it’s not only men who become farriers, women have shown a keen interest in the profession. “Right now, at the school in Langley, […] Read more


Coke-Fired Forge Still Preferred By Blacksmiths

Reading Time: 2 minutes For all the bells and whistles of the midway, what still draws local and international visitors to the Stampede is the celebration of western traditions. And, in the World Championship Blacksmiths’ Competition and the Metal Arts Showcase, those traditions are brought to life around genuine coke-fired forges. “Up until the mid-1990s, we still used coal […] Read more

Turning Steel Into Hand-Crafted Magic

Reading Time: 3 minutes Although we live in an era of mass produced everything, the appeal of original artwork is still very much alive … perhaps especially in forged metal work where the romance and raw physicality of hammering raw steel into visions of beauty is awe inspiring. And this is what’s celebrated in the Calgary Stampede’s Metal Art […] Read more