DRCA Stampede Breakfast is almost here!

A Cowboys Breakfast: Why Pancakes for Stampede?

Haystacks, race tracks, and flapjacks are nigh—it’s that time of year again, folks! If you’ve been

in Calgary for long, you’ve experienced the hubbub of country-music filled festivities that

breathe new life into Calgary every summer. This year’s Stampede will run from July 5 to July

14, and we’re excited to participate by hosting our very own Pancake Breakfast on June 22.

Pancake breakfasts are as much a part of Stampede as the Rodeo or Grandstand Show. Why

pancakes, you ask? The roots of this tradition lie in the old west, finding their start in the food

that fuelled cowboys on cattle drives. Typically, the cast of a cattle drive included a “cookie”,

who was a central character responsible for cooking for the cowboys. Prepared on the griddle

set up from the chuck wagon, flapjacks were a standard breakfast served alongside coffee at

the brutal hour of 3 AM. Flapjacks and coffee are a wonderful breakfast, but we’ll pass on the

early morning! Our Pancake Breakfast will begin at the much more humane hour of 9AM.

More specifically to Stampede, the practice of giving out pancakes in a lovely show of Albertan

hospitality began with one chuck wagon racer named Jack Morton in 1923. In order to show off

their chuck wagons and join the festivities, several chuck wagon drivers brought their wagons

down to Stephen Avenue where people had gathered to dance and celebrate Stampede. The

drivers unloaded their griddles and began making pancakes, and Jack gave out pancakes to all

who came to watch. There, a tradition was born. Pancakes for all! Yeehaw!

Join us at the Deer Run Community Centre as we continue the tradition on June 22 from 9AM-

12PM. We hope to see you there!