Lifestyle & Entertainment
3 April, 2026
Great Western Rodeo bucks into Easter fun
The 2026 Morris Transport Great Western Rodeo has kicked off bringing crowds, colour and country excitement to the Grampians region this Good Friday.
Now in its 26th year, the rodeo has been entertaining thousands of people since it first began in 1999, only missing two years due to wash out and COVID, while also serving as a major fundraiser for the Great Western Football Club and a broader boost for the local community.
Event organiser Shannon Notting said the rodeo remained one of the district’s most significant annual events. “It’s a major fundraiser for the football club. It’s how we raise money for the footy club and other local organisations are involved as well.”
Mr Notting said the event typically attracted between 4500 and 5000 people each year, with many visitors staying in the region for several days.
That strong attendance creates flow-on benefits well beyond the rodeo grounds, with local businesses and community groups also feeling the impact. “It means a lot to the area, it’s not just the football club that benefits from it, everyone in the community benefits from it in some way,” Mr Notting said. “It would be hard to put a number on it but it would be in the hundreds of thousands.”
Held on the start of the Easter weekend, the rodeo also provides families with a major day out when many other activities and businesses are quiet. “Nothing much is open on the public holiday but it’s a bit of activity, family fun from midday onwards,” Mr Notting said. “There are also market stalls and we’ve got a family area of amusements, inflatables and the bucking bull and all that sort of stuff.”
This year’s rodeo will feature 15 categories, ranging from junior events through to the headline attraction, the open bull ride, “It’s a major draw card,” he said. “We found the last few years it’s been a lot of travelling as well, they come from everywhere for our event,” he said.
While the financial benefit is important, Mr Notting said the rodeo was about more than dollars alone. “We couldn’t do it without our sponsors every year and our volunteers,” he said. “It’s not just a monetary value for us. It’s putting on a good event for everyone and making sure the community benefit from it.”
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