Next up was the Florida Westgate Saturday Night Rodeo and what a mad night it turned out to be. The weather wasn’t great to start with, and we found ourselves driving down some of the darkest Florida lanes imaginable before parking in what can only be described as a mud pit of a car park.
As Brits, the only rodeos we’d ever seen had been in films, so we weren’t entirely sure what to expect. We paid our entrance fee, made our way inside, and climbed up to the bleachers to grab a seat.
Unfortunately, the photographs aren’t great, It’s not easy to get a nice sharp image of a bucking bronco unsurprisingly. I have some videos of the night which i will add at a later date once they are edited.
First Impressions
The place was already packed.
What followed is not meant to be disrespectful, but the crowd could only really be described as hillbillies and trailer park folk. Coming from a family of Little Englanders raised among the rolling hills of Derbyshire, this felt like a completely different world — one we found ourselves staring at in mild disbelief.
There was whooping and hollering from the regulars, an obligatory hats-off, hand-on-heart rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner, and hot dogs that almost certainly contained the remains of horses and bulls that hadn’t quite made the grade on the showground.
It was all a bit… unnerving.
The Rodeo Itself
As it happened, the night turned into one of laughter, amazement and outright weirdness.
There were cowboys riding bulls and horses, children chasing calves around the arena with absolute determination, and a level of crowd excitement that bordered on unhinged — at least to British eyes.
It was loud, chaotic, and completely unapologetic about what it was.
Enter Trevor Dreher… and a Toyota
One of the strangest moments of the evening came when it was announced that champion trick roper and specialty rodeo performer Trevor Dreher would be appearing.
We assumed this would involve a horse.
It did not.
Instead, he appeared riding on the back of a Nissan Qashqai.
Dreher is known in rodeo circles for blending traditional trick roping with comedy and crowd interaction, often performing in unconventional ways. Seeing a world-class rodeo performer demonstrating his skills from the back of a pickup truck somehow felt perfectly in keeping with the rest of the evening.
Could the night get any stranger? Probably — but at that point we’d stopped questioning it.
Over the Top, but Entertaining
Despite the oddness of the whole affair, it was genuinely entertaining.
The crowd’s enthusiasm was a little over the top for our tastes, but the atmosphere was infectious. It was one of those experiences where you’re not entirely sure whether to laugh, stare, or applaud — so you do all three.
Final Thoughts
Needless to say, despite the sheer strangeness of the evening, we had a fantastic time.
I wouldn’t think twice about attending a rodeo again if we found ourselves near one on a future American road trip.
It’s very American. Very cowboy. And, once you get over the initial shock… very enjoyable.
Relaxing in Florida: Crazy Golf, Storms and Slowing the Pace
Our Florida Holiday: Final Thoughts & Would We Do It Again?
