SALT LAKE CITY — An annual tradition returned to the streets of Salt Lake City as the week-long celebration of Pioneer Day began Tuesday morning.
For the second time while in office, Governor Spencer Cox helped lead a herd of longhorns through downtown on his trusty steed, along with his wife, First Lady Abby Cox. Cox grew up on a farm in central Utah and started riding horses around Fairview as a youngster.
Pioneer Day festivities and the Days of '47 Rodeo are expected to attract thousands of people from around the state and country to Utah, which is a nice economic bump right in the middle of summer.
“It’s big for downtown, but it’s big across the state from an economic perspective," explained Cox. "But more importantly, an opportunity to remind us of our heritage here, some of the things that make Utah really unique and awesome. And remember that there were a lot of people that sacrificed to give us this incredible city in this amazing state.”
Cox and the First Lady were accompanied by several other cowboys and cowgirls, a covered wagon and a handcart all keeping an eye on those Longhorns until the drive arrived at the Utah State Fairpark.
Besides the bucking broncs and steer wrestling, there will be a young guns of rodeo, team roping and a frontier fun zone for the younger cow pokes and events for the whole family that run through Monday.
