HARRISBURG, Pa. — The First Frontier Circuits Finals Rodeo is a crowd-favorite Pennsylvania Farm Show event that brings people from across the state and beyond.
"My favorite experience was definitely the rodeo," said Xavier Wade from Harrisburg, who attended his second rodeo with his mom. "Honestly I think this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me."
Friday's performance brought a sold-out crowd of over 6,500. There was an energy in the arena like no other event at the Farm Show.
"This facility just erupts the energy you can feel it in the ground," said Kelsey King, a breakaway roping competitor at the rodeo. "It’s just a really great feeling, the horses can feel it, there’s just tons of people, you can have a bad run and you still want to look up and smile because there’s so many kids and people here for us."
Organizers of the rodeo say it's a stop on their circuit they always have marked on their calendars.
"This place is amazing, I love coming to the Farm Show. We have great crowds," said Kevin Clanton, the president of the First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo.
Thousands cheered on competitors from around the country and from right here in Pennsylvania.
"The most fun part about all of it was just the support the crowd gave for all the athletes," said Dana Booker, a resident of Harrisburg. "They’re a lot of homegrown Pennsylvanians that came in first in their event last night so that was really fun to watch."
The homegrown competitors don’t take the fanfare for granted.
"It’s really cool being from Pennsylvania myself and this place just brings a lot of energy, it is a great place to have finals," said Milton native Brock Hower, who is a board member and team rope competitor in the First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo. "This is probably the biggest rodeo in our circuit hands down."
They say it's a chance to help grow the sport and the agricultural industry.
"This is so much more than just gold buckles and championships. The fact that we get to do this and inspire so many people... I always try to keep my head up and be a good example," said King.
"The goal of any competitor is to grow the sport. Get new young faces in," said Hower. "There's a lot of people that see it for the first time. It really is a great way of promoting the event and it's just because of people being out at the Farm Show seeing different things."
Organizers say that's the ultimate goal of the rodeo at the Farm Show.
"It's great because [the Farm Show] is already filled with our people. It's already filled with agriculture people or people who are curious about agriculture," said Clanton. "It lets us show them another side of the business and the industry."
An example the rodeo's competitors and organizers hope will inspire the next generation of riders.
"I loved being here," said Wade. "Honestly, seeing people here from all across the world shows how much impact this can make on people’s lives."
Saturday's final is already sold out, a positive sign for competitors that hope to continue to see their sport grow.
"Get out here, even if it's not this year, and see it," said Hower. "We'll be back here next year again."