Attending a rodeo is a great way to spend an afternoon. This rodeo was one of the dustiest events ever! Looking at the ring, it was hard to see the competitors and the drill team that performed was hidden from view. Every once in a while, a horse or a flag would appear out of nowhere. It made for some great photos however a tough day for the riders.

I think the water truck was the saving grace for the competitors. It settled the dust down at least for a while. I was sitting at the end of the arena directly opposite the gate where the riders entered and up as high as I could get in the stands.

I watched other photographers along the fence and wondered how they would ever get their cameras clean - I think dust is almost worse than shooting in rain. I tusually have a camera rain cover to protect my camera from the dust however it does look ‘weird’. When you have no dust on your camera, you will find that ‘weird’ works though! Driving home, I was brushing dust from my face. Guess I needed a rain cover for my face as well!!

I was pretty happy that my end of the arena was almost dust free. The ‘normal’ dust when the horse dug in for a turn wasn’t a problem.

This rodeo was part of the Ram Rodeo circuit in Ontario. There is another rodeo circuit as well - the Rawhide series. Each series offers something different and as they are always in different cities, you can attend both rodeo events as long as you don’t mind the drives. Rawhide rodeos are in Ontario as well as in Quebec.