Rodeo in Lethem

The Lethem Rodeo is held every year in the Rupununi Savannah area of Guyan. To reach the Rupununi Savannah you have to pass through the IwokramaRainforest,a 360,000 hectare protected area in the Upper Essequibo Region, used for the promotion of sustainable rainforest management and for 

research which should bring ecological, economic and social benefits for the 

indigenous peoples, the people of Guyana and  the world in general.The Rupununi Savannah is located in the southern part of Guyana, some 360 miles 

from the capital town, Georgetown, and extends into neighbouring Brazil.  It is 

understood that this area is considered the largest open range savannah in the 

world. It lies between the tropical rainforest of Guyana and the Amazon Jungle in 

Brazil. The Lethem Rodeo or Rupununi Rodeo is held each year in the Easter 

weekend by the ranches in the area. It  is  said  that  the  rodeo  was introduced by an American from Dakota  by  the  name  of  Ben  Hart  in 

the late nineteenth century. His idea of entertaining guests was then 

picked up by the local ranchers and became an annual tradition in the 

Rupununi.  This sports event, which is now developing to a popular cultural 

festival, attracts many visitors and participants from every where, from 

the coastland as far as Berbice and from neighbouring Brazil.  In addition, 

the rodeo has growing support, not only from the local ranches, but also 

from the private sector in Georgetown. All of this has strengthened the wish to give the Lethem or Rupununi Rodeo more regional and international exposure. The fun kicks off on the Saturday and continues to Easter Monday with day time activities like wild bull riding, horse racing, wild cow milking, wild horse riding, a female barrel race,  steer roping, etc. The evening 

programme presents festivities in the form  of  a  cultural  fair  with  food, 

games, music and the lively so-called “Faha” dance, which is a pair dance and, is said, to have its origin in the popular Northeast Brazilian ”Forró” dance. There is also a variety of other activities including In the wild cow milking competition the challenge for competitors is in roping the 

wild animal and trying to milk them. If this would be a daily routine in dairy 

production, our population would have a diet very low in lactose. One of the major 

attractions is bareback bronco in which Guyanese as well as Brazilian competitors, 

including one female vaquero, challenge each others skills in the riding and breakin of wild horses. The winning vaquero is the one who manages to stay the 

longest time on the back of the untamed bucking horse. The same principle 

applies for the wild bull riding, which looks like a far more dangerous event 

not only in terms of the bull’s temper but also for its weight.