There’s always something going on during the summer in the Black Hills. We’ve got the First Fridays Markets in Spearfish and Summer Nights in Rapid City, theater productions at the Black Hills Playhouse, events like the Sturgis Bike Rally and the Black Hills Overdrive and of course rodeos.

This July marks the 87th anniversary of one of the top outdoor rodeos in the country which attracts the nation’s best cowboys and cowgirls to the Black Hills. On July 21-25 in Deadwood, the Days of ‘76 Rodeo, Best Rodeo, No Bull, will be back to continue its legacy.

The Days of 76’ originally started out as a small celebration to commemorate Deadwood’s past. With time, the celebration evolved to include parades, entertainment and 500-600 of the nation’s finest rodeo athletes competing in bareback riding, steer wrestling, saddle bronc riding, team roping, tie-down roping, barrel racing and bull riding. You’ll see quite a few of the same rodeo stars competing in Las Vegas at the National Finals Rodeo.

I’m not going to try to pretend that I’m any sort of a rodeo expert. My first rodeo experience was just after my freshman year of college with my roommate and her family in Dupree. Even though I didn’t completely understand all of the events, I had a blast. The rodeos I’ve been to since then have been a great time, and just judging by the list of awards the Days of ’76 rodeo has received, it’s probably something you want to mark on your calendar.

The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association named the Days of ‘76 Small Outdoor Rodeo of the Year four times and Midsize Rodeo of the Year each year from 2004 to 2008. In 2007, the Days of ‘76 was also named the Badlands Circuit Rodeo of the Year.

Also, you’ll get a chance to see the antics of some 40 rodeo clowns from the Rodeo Clown Reunion (ok, how could that possibly not be fun?), the Belgian Hitch and reenactments of the death of Wild Bill and a stage coach holdup.

To learn more about the Days of ’76, take a look at daysof76.com or the Deadwood Chamber of Commerce. If you’d like to purchase tickets to the rodeo, call 1-888-838-BULL, or purchase online at blackhillsvacations.com