The children came up to us and said, 'We love to fish, but the river is just too dangerous for us. Pig Robertson died in 1984, but that spirit of community support remains to this day. Though the Salem Parks and Recreation department organizes the rodeo, area merchants donate money to cover much of the cost of the trout and prizes to be awarded to lucky little anglers. The format has changed little since the first rodeo in 1951. There are also weekday events for disabled children and for nursing-home residents.
Large crowds are the norm.
Kids and their eager guardians sit and stand nearly shoulder to shoulder around the two small ponds. Crowds of 500 children are common. There is no shortage of trout, either. Each year about 5,000 pounds of fish are stocked for the rodeo. Most of the fish are large, and some are huge.