Stock Show Insider: Departure day

Sunday was move out day at the Fort Worth Stock Show for vendors and exhibitors. The 2017 Stock Show’s overall attendance was 1,219,300. Attendance has exceeded 1 million for the past seven years.

Vendors, exhibitors and livestock owners loaded up and moved out of the Will Rogers Memorial Center on Sunday after a 23-day day run (Jan. 13-Feb. 4) at the 2017 Fort Worth Stock Show Rodeo.

Attendance for the 2017 Stock Show was 1,219,300, a 3 percent drop from last year. In 2016, a record 1,257,900 visitors attended.

Despite the slight decline in attendance from last year, Matt Brockman, the Stock Show’s publicity director, termed the 2017 Stock Show a success.

“I’m not going to get hung up on 3 percent,” Brockman said. “No one expects to set records every year. But it will always make us try harder. However, when we’re within 3 percent of an all-time record, we’re happy.

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“We can never get around the fact that the weather does play a role. We had some days that were overcast, cloudy, damp and cold. By comparison, we had spectacular weather the year before day after day. Last year, it seemed like every Thursday through Monday was 70 degrees and sunny,”

Brockman said the Stock Show has drawn more than 1 million visitors each year since 2011. He said he’s pleased with the Stock Show’s overall attendance in recent years.

“We’re 17 years into the 21st century and people still like stock shows and rodeos,’ Brockman said. “They’re coming out in bigger numbers. It makes us feel like we’re doing something right.”