Australians say ‘G’day’ to the rodeo
International visitors flock to livestock show as annual event gets off to busy, soggy start
For Jack Watson, not everything appears to be bigger in Texas.
The 18-year-old Australian, who’s working the Houston rodeo, said cattle ranches here are smaller than those near his hometown of Tamworth, located about five hours northwest of Sydney. Some stations — the Australian word for ranches — are as big as 1 million acres, while some of the largest in Texas are about half that size.
The stereotypes also seem to be outsized Down Under. Even though Watson is a 20-hour plane ride away from home, he said people won’t stop bringing up his nationality.
“I wanted to experience the other side of the world,” he said. “But everyone here keeps coming up to say ‘G’day.’”
The 86th annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo got off to a soggy start Tuesday as throngs of visitors, ranchers and buyers mingled through NRG Park. More experienced visitors wore clear, plastic covers over their cowboy hats, while others used damp book-
lets to protect their teased-up hair-dos. The clouds parted by the afternoon, brightening up the complex’s steamy parking lot.
Among the visitors were dozens of folks from at least 70 countries. Some, like Watson, come to work as ranchhands, while others arrive to buy and sell cattle.
Julie Shannon, chairwoman of the rodeo’s international committee, said she expects her group to facilitate about $2.6 million in trade. The majority of foreign buyers come from South and Central America, namely Nicaragua and Guatemala. They typically come for the Brahman cattle, a breed that does well in more tropical environments.
In recent years, she said there’s been growing interest among buyers from Japan, South Korea and Australia.
Texas has the most cattle in the nation at 14 million head, according to department of animal science at Texas A&M University. The beef cattle industry represents the largest sector in the Texas agriculture industry and accounts for a sixth of all U.S. beef exports.
Mark Beckman, president of the Australian Brangus Association, brought 30 countrymen with him to Houston’s rodeo this year after visiting for the first time in 2017.
“If I’ve been consuming alcohol, I’ll say we’re about five miles ahead of the Yanks,” he said, laughing. “But seriously, we have a lot to learn. There are some things we may not do as well as you do here, like genetics and calf evaluations.”
Others crossed into the United States for a chance to sell their livestock.
Murray Skippen, herd master for Big Island Lowline Ranch in Edmonton, Alberta, drove about 46 hours from Canada to Houston. It took him three days to get here, not counting the two days he and cowhand Kacey DeRudder were stuck in Montana after a snowstorm shut down a stretch of interstate highway.
The two drove between 15 and 16 hours a day, stopping once near Denver to turn the cattle out at a friend’s property and again at a property in Groesbeck. The ranch breeds lowline cattle, or Aberdeens as they’re called in the States.
“The cows love it — they haven’t seen grass since the fall,” Skippen said, referring to Canada’s harsh winters. They started the trip with a herd of 10 cattle, but after selling four on their way south, they brought six to the rodeo.
For some, the pilgrimage to Houston’s rodeo is a family tradition.
Watson’s father, Neil Watson, first came to the Houston-area in the 1990s after winning a competition in Australia. He ended up staying at the Wendt Ranch in Bay City with Gene and Nancy Kubecka – the same family Jack is staying with now.
This trip represents Jack’s first time in the United States. He tried a chicken-strip sandwich at Whataburger last week, which he described as “decent” fast food, and salivated over his first Texas barbecue plate, which was filled with brisket.
On Tuesday he helped wash and blow-dry Simbrah and Fleckvieh cattle with the Pitchford Cattle Co., based out of Athens, Texas. Darrell Pitchford, who owns the ranch, said he’s had several Australians come work on his farm over the years.
“Australia is pretty neck-andneck with America when it comes to cattle,” Pitchford said Tuesday.
Watson said there are some noticeable differences in cattle ranching between here and in his pocket of Australia. White dust coats, a dress requirement to show animals in Australia, are nowhere to be found at the Houston rodeo, replaced with blue jeans and plaid shirts. Also missing were akubra hats worn by Australian cattlemen, so Watson settled for a navy blue baseball cap.
That choice in headwear left some displeased.
“I’ve been told I’ve disappointed people because I don’t have the ‘Crocodile Dundee’ hat,” he said.