Last Chance Stampede & Fair

About Last Chance Stampede & Fair

The Last Chance Stampede & Fair is a five-day PRCA rodeo and county fair at the Lewis & Clark County Fairgrounds on West Custer Avenue. The first Stampede was held July 30, 1961, after Bill Carson arranged a 99-year, $1 lease of the old Montana State Fairgrounds land from the state to the county; the county fair was folded into the same week in 1969. The 2026 event is the 66th annual, running July 21-25 with three nights of PRCA rodeo, two headline concerts, a carnival, a downtown parade, 4-H exhibits and roughly 20 food vendors.

Gate admission and parking are free every day. Rock band Daughtry opens the fair Tuesday, July 21 (gates 6:30pm, show 7:30pm), followed by Travis Tritt with opener Downtown Avenue on Wednesday, July 22, both in the Cool Alley Arena, with tickets running $50-$80 depending on seating. PRCA rodeo runs Thursday through Saturday, July 23-25, gates 6:30pm and go time 7:30pm, with C5 Rodeo Company supplying stock. Dreamland Carnival opens at 5pm on July 21. The Stampede Parade moves through downtown Helena at noon on Saturday, July 25.

What happens

• Three nights of PRCA rodeo (July 23-25) with C5 Rodeo Company stock, trick rider Madison MacDonald-Thomas and rodeo clown Matt Merritt
• Headline concerts: Daughtry (July 21) and Travis Tritt with Downtown Avenue (July 22) in the Cool Alley Arena
• Dreamland Carnival midway
• Downtown Helena parade Saturday at noon
• 4-H fair, open-class exhibits and roughly 20 food vendors

Tips

• Gate admission and parking are free, only the rodeo and concerts require separate tickets
• Concert and rodeo tickets go up $5 starting July 20, so buy before fair week if you know your night
• Rodeo and concerts both start at 7:30pm with gates at 6:30pm, arrive early for grandstand seating
• The Saturday parade runs through downtown at noon, separate from the fairgrounds activities