Horses paced on the deep pad of dirt spread across the floor of the Caesars Superdome Friday afternoon, listening to a sound check booming from the enormous concert stage.
The Superdome doors would open in just a few hours to welcome fans to the Hondo Rodeo Fest, a combination of championship riding and roping, and country rock.
Nearby, Gov. Jeff Landry, Mayor Helena Moreno, Hondo Rodeo CEO James Trawick and other officials gathered for a press-conference officially announcing the three-day country and western entertainment extravaganza. Like an Old West poker game, all of the participants were betting big that a typically rural attraction could succeed in an urban center like New Orleans.
Trawick surely had the most in the pot. He wouldn’t say exactly what it cost to produce the mega event, but he laughingly said “it’s expensive.” Landry had tossed $2 million in from from Louisiana’s Major Events Fund. And Moreno was all-in on an event that could bring thousands of visitors to the cash-strapped city…