April 21, 2000

The 2000 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo reached new heights with record auction champions and attendance—including visitors from around the world plus a live downlink from Space Shuttle Endeavor.

"The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo begins its legacy in the new millennium by breaking records and breaking ground," said Mike Wells, show president. "This year’s show set records for auction champions and attendance. But, before the ink in the record book is even dry, we will break new ground for a new football/rodeo stadium and an exhibition facility that will allow us to set our sights even higher."

The following are highlights of the 2000 show:

• All junior auction grand champion and most reserve grand champion records were shattered: *grand champion steer, $560,000; *reserve grand champion steer, $350,000; *grand champion lamb, $165,000; *grand champion barrow, $130,000; *grand champion work of art, $129,000; *grand champion pen of broilers, $115,000; *grand champion turkey, $105,000; *reserve grand champion turkey, $100,000; reserve grand champion lamb, $75,000; *reserve grand champion pen of broilers, $65,000; *reserve grand champion barrow, $64,000; and reserve grand champion work of art, $50,000 (* denotes records).

• Total auction sales (including the Premier Horse Sale and the School of Art Auction) tallied in at $9,537,083. Of this amount, junior auction sales totaled $6,825,248.

• The junior auction totals included: market steer, $2,826,700; lamb, $1,068,360; swine, $1,103,750; poultry, $924,950; commercial steer, $223,638; and school art, $677,850.

• The ninth annual Premier Horse Sale posted sales of $336,950.

• This year’s livestock and horse shows boasted more than 37,000 entries.

• This year’s event recorded a total draw of 1,889,861 for general attendance, breaking the all-time record of 1,853,650 set last year.

• Two general attendance records were broken: the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que attendance was a record 176,290, and the Go Tejano Day general attendance was a record-breaking 133,029.

• Eleven of the 20 rodeo performances were official sell-outs, and 18 out of 20 were paid crowds in excess of 50,000.

• The paid attendance of 64,880 for the Go Tejano Day rodeo performance on Feb. 27 was the fifth largest paid crowd in Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo’s history, and Clay Walker left another mark in the record books with a paid attendance of 59,548, the Show’s 12th largest paid audience.

• The show hosted 2,714 visitors from 56 countries.

• Since Feb. 1, the show’s web site has recorded more than 300,000 hits, with more than 1 million pages viewed.

• RODEOHOUSTON produced two pay-for-view telecasts, featuring a taped semifinals with the best athletes from the first two go-rounds and a live broadcast of the finals.

• Houston’s world championship rodeo competition drew a total of 509 contestants competing for a share of $767,500 in prize money.

• A new Astrodome record of 88 points was set by Billy Etbauer, Edmond, Okla., in the saddle bronc riding event. Sean Culver of Grandview, Wash., tied the Astrodome record in the bareback bronc riding event with a score of 86 points.