Calgary Stampede is here! Calgary Stampede is here!

The Calgary Stampede has arrived. It is by far the biggest 10 days in Canada, well at least as far as rodeo enthusiasts and the city of Calgary are concerned. The annual Calgary Stampede turns downtown Calgary into one big salute to the cowboy. You will find everything that you are looking for from the rodeo itself to a midway and from chuckwagon races to free pancake breakfasts.

Calgary Stampede Rodeo

The rodeo part of the Calgary Stampede involves some of the finest cowboys in the world. They will be competing for glory and fame in such events as Bullriding, Barrel Racing, Bareback, Saddle Bronc, Steer Wrestling, and Tie-down Roping. You can even watch the little cowboys and cowgirls compete in wild pony racing.

Calgary Stampede is more than a Rodeo

There are so many other activities at the Calgary Stampede to enjoy besides the rodeo. If you are looking to catch a good show full of music and wonderment, then you are going to want to catch the Grandstand Show. The Grandstand show this year is based around a Dream Catcher theme to honor and recognize all the people that came to Canada full of hopes and dreams. The Grandstand Show is described as Broadway … Western Style.

Calgary Stampede Brings Big Music

If Broadway shows aren’t really your style, then you can always catch a great musical act at the Pengrowth Saddledome or the Coca-Cola Stage. This year brings many popular acts to downtown Calgary. So grab your cowboy hat and your dancing boots and come and catch the sounds of Sugarland, The Judds, Kid Rock, Natasha Bedingfield, Dierks Bentley, Finger Eleven, or the Plain White T’s.

Calgary Stampede Brings Big Screams

Finally, if you want to try your luck at the Calgary Stampede midway; there are plenty of games for you. You can do everything from target practice games to the ring toss to Whack-a-Mole. Now, if you are more of a daring cowboy, you can climb on into a seat on one of the many rides. The midway brings many adrenaline-pumping, heart-racing rides this year.

Forget all of this talking about the Calgary Stampede, we are grabbing our best pair of jeans and our boots and heading north. See ya there, eh?

*Photo by Calgary Stampede

N@ked Cowboy and the Blue M&M

N@ked Cowboy Sues M&M’s.  That almost sounds like a title to a comedy film, except it is an actual story. New York City’s famous “N@ked Cowboy” has filed suit against Mars Corporation, the maker of M&M’s.  The N@ked Cowboy, also known as Robert Burke, is claiming trademark infringement by the candy maker.  Apparently the blue M&M is dressed like Burke on the large animation screen outside of M&M’s Times Square store; and Burke claims that the may be construed as his endorsement of the product.

History of the N@ked Cowboy

The 37-year-old N@ked Cowboy walks around Times Square playing the guitar in nothing but a cowboy hat, white underwear, and white cowboy boots.  However, Times Square isn’t the only place that you can find the N@ked Cowboy.  He seems to make his way to New Orleans every year for Mardi gras; and he has even seemed to make an appearance or two in our very own Lone Star capital, Austin, Texas.  If you want to catch him here, start looking in March during the South by Southwest Music Festival.

N@ked Cowboy Look-a-Like

Now if you are finding yourself wanting to emulate the N@ked Cowboy, than you are probably going to need to swing by Allens Boots and get yourself a nice pair of white cowboy boots.  I am sure that you will be able to find exactly the boots you are looking for among our large selection of Justin, Lucchese, Tony Lama, and many other boot makers.

Now that you have your boots picked out, you will need to wander over to our hat section and see if you can’t find yourself the perfect Stetson or Resistol.

As far as the last part of the outfit, the white underwear … Well, as much as we would like to say we have everything you need, we got to tell you that you are on your own with those.

*Photo by LinksmanJD

Motorcycle Boots Galore

Motorcycle boots are on our mind. It’s probably because the Republic of Texas Biker Rally, otherwise known as the ROT Rally, is coming up on June 12th through June16th.

The city of Austin transforms into a biker’s dream over ROT Rally weekend when more than 40,000 motorcycles roll into town. Some may say, “Wow, that’s a lot of bikes!” We at Allens Boots say, “Wow, that’s a lot of boots!”

Motorcycle Boots: Not All about Looks

Although we prefer horses over hogs, we still love bikers around these parts and we still know a lot about what they are wearing on their feet … Motorcycle Boots.

When purchasing motorcycle boots, you new to remember that it isn’t just about how good they look; it is also about how well they function when you are riding your bike.

Motorcycle Boots Are Built Tough

There are several attributes that make a boot a motorcycle boot. Most motorcycle boots are at least six inches tall and have ankle padding to protect the ankle. Taller motorcycle boots offer extra protection of the legs against flying objects like rocks.

All motorcycle boots come with durable outsoles to assist in stopping or in sharp turns. Some motorcycle boots even come with steel toes to offer even more foot protection during stops and minor accidents.

Finally, the best choice for motorcycle boots are ones made of leather. Leather boots provide better protection against the elements and in minor accidents.

Motorcycle Boots and Charlie

We hear that the Charlie Daniels Band is playing the last night of the ROT Rally and they play some fantastic foot stompin’ music. The kind of music that makes you want to take off those motorcycle boots and leathers and put on a pair of cowboy boots and jeans. This is the Republic of Texas Biker Rally after all.

*Photo by Paul Menard

Summer Camp for Summer Break

Summer Camp is the perfect way for you little cowboys and cowgirls to spend all that free time during their favorite break … summer break. There are several cowboy and cowgirl summer camps throughout the country. One of the cowboy summer camps that we know about isn’t too far down the road in Humble, Texas.

Cowboy City Texas, founded by Mike and Mary Wall, is home to six cowboy and cowgirl summer camps a year. The summer camps are offered to boys and girls ages seven to fourteen and are chocked full of cowboy boot wearing activities.

Summer Camp Teaches Horsemanship

Summer camp at Cowboy City Texas is all about fun for the beginner and immediate horse riders. But don’t you worry; Cowboy City Texas provides the horses for all summer camp participants.

Cowboy and cowgirl summer camp is centered on horsemanship. Summer campers will learn and work on horse grooming, riding, barreling, cutting, roping and many other rodeo type activities. In fact, there is a summer camp rodeo at then of the summer.

Summer Camp Chocked Full of Western Fun

Other activities summer campers will enjoy while at summer camp are western theater, nature awareness trails, mud fights (be prepared to wash camper’s jeans every night), archery and more.

Attendees of cowboy and cowgirl summer camp also have the opportunity to learn western arts and crafts, play sports with other cowboys and cowgirls, go swimming (make sure you take off your cowboy boots and cowboy hats first), and even go shovel surfing. Now, we aren’t quite sure what shovel surfing is, but it sounds pretty fun.

Western Gear for Summer Camp

Before you take your little cowboy or cowgirl off to summer camp, whether at Cowboy City Texas or another western summer camp, swing by Allens Boots and we will make sure your summer campers have all the western gear they need.

*Photo by Cowboy City Texas

Mules in the Hot Sun

So it’s hot outside and you really want to wear your cowboy boots with your new jeans or your new skirt or dress; although the mere thought of having all that leather on your legs in 90 degree weather causes you to instantly break out into a sweat.

There is an answer to having the boot look without all of the boot … Mules! And we aren’t talking about the four-legged kind.

These Mules Were Made for Walking

Mules, by definition, are backless and very often close-toed shoes. The open-toe version is called a slide. They are very popular among women and are believed to have gotten their start back in the 18th century. Mules gained popularity in the 1970’s as clogs, but re-emerged in the 1990’s and haven’t looked back.

Mules, Mules, Mules

Mules come in all sorts of colors and styles, they can be dressy or casual and they are extremely comfortable. In fact, Allens Boots has yellow mules, red mules, black mules, multi-color mules made by Charlie 1, Old Gringo, Frye and Ariat. You name it; we have it to go with all your summer styles.

Mule Rules

Now before you run off with your mules, there are a few things you should know about proper mule fit.

• You need to make sure that your heel fits on the back of the mule properly. Take care that your heel isn’t hanging over the edge, sitting right on the edge or not close enough to the edge. Just a little edge showing is perfect.
• Make sure you get up and walk around in the mules you are interested in buying. That way you know they stay on your feet and that they look right with your legs.
• If you are planning on wearing socks or hosiery with your mules, make sure you bring them with you when you try them on.

Cowboy Museum’s Annual Memorial Day Event

The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, located in Oklahoma City, will be celebrating its 18th Annual Chuck Wagon Gathering and Children’s Cowboy Festival this Memorial Day weekend. The festival will run from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm on both Saturday, May 24th and Sunday, May 25th.

Dressing like a Cowboy More than Alright at Cowboy Museum

Grab your kids, put on your jeans, boots and cowboy hats and head on down to what the American Bus Association has named one of the Top 100 events in North America. You, your family and more than 10,000 other Old West fans will sure to be pleased with all the exciting activities and food planned for this jam-packed weekend.

Chuck Wagons Circle the Cowboy Museum

There will be authentic chuck wagons present offering up some of the finest wrangler food from Oklahoma and Texas. Festival goers even receive their very own tasting bowl to fill up with cowboy favorites such as brisket, biscuits and gravy, stew, and cobbler.

Children’s Cowboy Festival Events at the Cowboy Museum

There will be plenty of good ‘ol western entertainment for the family at the festival. Little Cowboys and Cowgirls can get pony rides, stagecoach and wagon rides, learn how to make a rope, design a bandana, and even pet a Longhorn steer. For the older cowboys and cowgirls, there will be entertainment from the likes of Don Edwards and Red Steagall.

There is even a cowboy bootmaking demonstration, which we here at Allens Boots are the most excited about.

Cowboy Museum has More to Offer than the Festival

The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum was founded in 1961 and is considered an institution of Western history, culture, and art. More than 9 million visitors a year come to see the Cowboy museum’s collection of Western art and artifacts and to garnish an insight into the Old West.

*Photo by National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

7th Annual CMT Awards

The CMT Awards, the only fan-voted music awards in country music, were held in Nashville, Tennessee on Monday, April 24th, 2008. And just like seasons past, the red carpet was overflowing with country music’s biggest stars donned in cowboy boots and cowboy hats. Even Rodeo Star, Ty Murray, was on hand in his best western wear to find out who the country music fans picked as the best of 2008.

2008 CMT Awards: Performances

The 2008 awards were hosted by the father and daughter team of Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus, who is also known as the star of the Hannah Montana TV series. However, they weren’t the only stars on stage. Between the announcements of the winners, musical performances by some of the hottest country singers filled the air. Performers included everyone from Kenny Chesney and Keith Urban to the biggest winner of the night, Taylor Swift who went from shoeless while presenting to sporting her best pair of boots for her big performance.

2008 CMT Award Winners

The fan-voted winners of this year’s CMT awards were as follows:

• Video of the Year: Taylor Swift, “Our Song”

• Duo Video of the Year: Sugarland, “Stay”

• Male Video of the Year: Trace Adkins, “I Got My Game On”

• Wide Open Country Video of the Year: Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, “Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On)”

• Collaborative Video of the Year: Bon Jovi featuring LeAnn Rimes, “Till We Ain’t Strangers Anymore”

• Female Video of the Year: Taylor Swift, “Our Song”

• Performance of the Year: Kellie Pickler, “I Wonder”

• Comedy Video of the Year: Brad Paisley, “Online”

• Tearjerker Video of the Year: Kellie Pickler, “I Wonder”

• Supporting Character of the Year: Rodney Carrington, “I Got My Game On”

• Video Director of the Year: Michael Salomon

• USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year: Kellie Pickler, “I Wonder”

• Group Video of the Year: Rascal Flats, “Take Me There”

History of Cowboy Church

The history of Cowboy Church goes back to the Old West. During this time, cowboys and ranch hands rarely had access to churches. So when they could, they would gather with their families in a local meeting place, usually the saloon or a barn, and have their own church service. Today, Cowboy Churches exist all over the country and still believe that it doesn’t matter where you get your religion as long as you get it. There are even rodeo ministries that travel around to different rodeos and provide a church service to the participating cowboys and cowgirls.

One of the most famous cowboy churches is the Nashville Cowboy Church in the Opryland area of Nashville, TN. The Nashville Cowboy Church has a yearly attendance of over 20,000 and has visitors from all 50 states and several countries, such as Australia, Scotland, Brazil, England and Russia.

Boots, Jeans and Hats are Proper Attire at Cowboy Church

Cowboy Churches have a very unique dress code in that cowboy boots, cowboy hats and western wear are all considered proper attire. The thought is that if you are welcome to come as you are, than you are more likely to come. Just make sure that you remember to remove that cowboy hat during a prayer, but as soon as you hear “Amen,” you can put it right back on.

Cowboy Church Offers More than Just Church

Most of the cowboy churches offer many events to bring the parishioners together. Almost all churches offer horse riding outings with the pastor; and some even offer rodeo style contests such as boot races.

There is a Cowboy Church near You

If you are interested in checking out Cowboy church, you are in luck because chances are there is one near you. Check out cowboychurch.net for a listing of all Cowboy Churches in North America and Canada. We here at Allens Boots even have one not too far down the road.

*-Photo by April M. Fronick - EAGLE 102 News

Ariat Boots for Women: Always In Style

Why we don’t see more Ariat boots on ladies’ feet, we’ll never know. Fashionable, a great fit, a lasting investment, and affordable to boot Ariats make a girl smile. Not just your browns and blacks, Ariat covers the color wheel, lingering over the reds and pinks. And we dare you to find a pair of Ariats priced anywhere over $200–a rare find among quality boots.

Ariat Boots: A History

Ariat Boots was founded in 1990 by two women who were fed up with clunky, stiff cowboy boots. For three years, they worked with a team of the world’s top footwear engineers and designers to develop a dependable line of boots for both English and Western riders. Only then did Ariat release its first pair of boots, in 1993. Ariat Boots is a company founded on the drive to achieve the best results in equestrian footwear, but that drive tributaried into something else: one of the most fashionable lines of women’s boots. A classic example of form following function.

Ariat Boots + Allens = A+

Ariat Boots is the “Official Boot and Belt” of the National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSRA), one of Ariat’s many honors. Allens Boots is proud to be one of the 4,000 retailers in the world at which Ariat boots are sold. It’s incredibly easy to put your best foot forward in a colorful pair of Ariat Boots, whether for fashion or function.

After a visit to Texas, Guy Kawasaki, popular entrepreneur, venture capitalist and blogger, decided he needed some new Lucchese boots. A short Google search later and Guy found a great pair of Lucchese Classics on AllensBoots.com. We talk with Guy about his boot buying adventure.

Q: How did you discover Allens Boots?

A: I was trying to find some Lucchese boots on Zappos, but it simply didn’t have the selection that I wanted, so I went to Google and typed in Lucchese and came upon [Allens] Boots.

Q: You were in town for SXSW. Did you make it by the store?

A: I was, but I didn’t know about the store then. Nor was I looking for boots. It’s a long convoluted story: I met a bunch of crazy web folks from Houston at SXSW. In a few weeks I’m speaking in San Antonio, so I decided to hop on over to Houston to see those folks again. One day the guy who taught me how to ice skate showed me his Lucchese [boots], so I decided I had to have a pair for my San Antonio-Houston boondoggle. That led to my search for boots online.

Q: Cowboy boots don’t necessarily seem like the natural footwear choice for someone from Hawaii who went to school at Stanford and became a tech executive and author. When did you start wearing boots, and why?

A: My wife made me buy a pair years ago, but I hardly wore them. Then I spoke in Phoenix for a fast-food association, and they gave all the guests a pair of boots. I liked them so much that I decided I wanted another one in black. My wife told me to buy Lucchese from Zappos.

Q: How often do you wear your boots?

A: I go in spurts. I’ll wear them every day for a week, then not at all for a month, then every day for a week. I like to travel with them because they’re easy to put on after passing through airport security, but having to pack three pairs of shoes (sneakers to work out in, dress shoes for speaking in and boots) can be a pain.

Q: What do you wear your boots with - traditional blue jeans, slacks, khakis?

A: Jeans. Boots are only made for jeans.

Q: How many pairs of boots do you own?

A: Four, not counting the one I ordered.

Q: What made you choose the Men’s Lucchese Classics Tan Mad Dog Goat?

A: It’s the simplest design I could find. I don’t want to look like a pimp who is trying too hard, and ostrich gives me the creeps.

Q: You have a lot of projects going on - what’s your biggest at the moment and why?

A: My primary project is Alltop.com. This is a collection of sites covering a diversity of topics on the Internet like wine, food, art, music, fashion, politics, economics, journalism, cars, gadgets, design, environment, etc. We assemble all the top stories and present their headlines on one page. You can think of it as an “online magazine rack.”

Q: What’s next for the cowboy boot wearing Guy Kawasaki?

A: There’s lots of work to do with Alltop. I’m also a venture capitalist looking for the next Google. Incidentally, as a venture capitalist, I have to deal with a lot of bullsh*t, so that’s why I need boots.

About Guy Kawasaki

Popular entrepreneur, venture capitalist and blogger, Guy Kawasaki is a managing director of Garage Technology Ventures and a columnist for Entrepreneur Magazine. Previously an Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, Inc., Guy is the author of eight books including The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, and How to Drive Your Competition Crazy. Currently Guy is focused on Alltop, a metasite providing immersive content on dozens of topics.