Sixty-two years after she became Calgary's first Stampede Queen, Patsy Rogers helped kick off 'The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth' by serving as marshal for the legendary Stampede Parade.

She said a lot has changed since the annual event began -- and all for the better.

"Oh, it's so much bigger," she told CTV Calgary. "Bigger and better. It's wonderful the way it has grown."

The parade, a long-time tradition of the Calgary Stampede, was expected to draw about 350,000 people.

Some of those watching Friday's parade had been regular attendees for more than 50 years. Others, like Moncy Abraham Mattathal, were witnessing the event for the first time.

"It's fantastic, marvelous," he said. "A new experience in my life."

Grace Deguzeman, a new Calgary resident, said her two children would likely be watching the parade for years to come.

"They love it, especially the horses," she said.

The parade featured 170 entries, including floats, powerful marching bands, horse drawn carriages, western riders and more than 800 horses.

In pre-parade celebrations, musical groups, dancers, singers, martial arts experts, equestrians and belly dancers performed for spectators that arrived early to secure a good viewing spot.

The main parade proceeded through a 4.5-kilometre route in downtown Calgary.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was expected to attend the Stampede President's reception at the Round Up Centre in Calgary.

Stampede president George Brookman says the best part of the event is that visitors can get involved in a celebration of the cowboy way of life, and boasted that the event is not like the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, where many are unaware that it's even taking place.

Lower turnout expected

The Calgary Stampede usually attracts about 1.2 million visitors annually but rising gas prices may put a damper on the turnout.

RV groups usually travel from all over North America to attend the Stampede but tour operators say their numbers are way down this year.

"We're a little less than half of what we were last year as far as numbers of rigs here at the Stampede so it's a 50 per cent drop basically across the board," Paul Mitchell, with Fantasy RV Tours, told CTV Calgary.

Charlie Ward and his wife made the trip up from Washington but, due to gas prices, many of their friends decided to stay home.

"We originally started out with about 11 units of us but... it dwindled down to three of us," he said.

Even those travelling within Canada are feeling the pinch. The Dewberrys and the Coopers decided to travel together from Ontario in an effort to save money.

"It's made a big difference," said Peter Dewberry. "To get here from Ontario it's cost us $1600 worth of fuel... and we've still got to go back!"

With files from CTV Calgary's Kevin Green and Jefferson Humphries