Rodeo heat

By Bridget Brady
ABOUT 10,000 people enjoyed the thrills and spills of the 10th Cranbourne Rodeo on the weekend.
Locals and visitors witnessed two nights of jam-packed action at Victoria’s largest rodeo on Friday and Saturday night.
But event organiser Shawn Mathrick said he was very close to cancelling Friday night’s competition because of the extreme weather conditions and the impact it could have had on the animals and competitors.
“I was still tossing it up about 4.30pm on Friday and we were going to cancel but then the cool change started to come through,’ Mr Mathrick said.
“The animals were looked after well with plenty of water and feed and shade.”
Despite the sweltering weather on Friday, Mr Mathrick hailed the rodeo a success, and said there was an increase in the number of young adults who attended the event.
“The heat really knocked us. It was hard setting up in the middle of the day because there was no shade. But everything went well and the crowds were great. It was wonderful.