The heat isn’t stopping people from showing up to the Calgary Stampede as the grounds continue to see people pour through the gates.
The latest attendance numbers show that over 905,000 people have gone through the gates over the first six days of the 10-day event.
The stampede is on pace to beat last year’s attendance and it’s very possible there could be a new record for total attendance, finally beating the 2012 centennial year when 1.4 million people showed up.
This year’s version has already set the single-day attendance record when more than 200,000 people showed up at the park for Tim Horton’s Family Day on Sunday.
2024 Calgary Stampede attendance numbers as of Thursday
- Thursday, July 4 – 40,499
- Friday, July 5 – 161,403
- Saturday, July 6 – 135,645
- Sunday, July 7 – 201,260
- Monday, July 8 – 90,843
- Tuesday, July 9 – 141,053
- Wednesday, July 10 – 134,669
- Total to date: 905,373
Attendees say it’s all about timing, depending on when you get to the grounds you could move through at rapid pace, or you could be waiting a while.
“The lines are usually pretty long here,” one patron tells CityNews. “But, we got here early.”
Vendors have noticed long lines as well, with ice cream and lemonade being the big sellers during the sizzling weather.
“The heat always holds people back from eating food,” one vendor says. “They like their drinks and their ice cream more. Hopefully over the next few days when it cools down it’s a little bit on the easier side for us.”
Shade continues to be a hot commodity as people look for breaks from the heat, and accessing water fountains to fill up bottles have proven to be a challenge for many.
A heat warning from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) first issued Sunday is expected to last for most of the week.