Weather Cold, But Not Brutal at Most National Western Stock Shows of the Past, Says State Climatologist

Note to Reporters: A full history of snowfall and temperatures at the National Western Stock Show over the past 61 years is available by calling Emily Wilmsen.

If the National Western Stock Show is in town, there’s an 80.7 percent chance there will be no snowfall and only a 23.9 percent chance that temperatures will be less than or equal to 35 degrees.

There’s only a 9.1 percent chance that the weather will be below 25 degrees, which probably surprises people, said Nolan Doesken, Colorado State University state climatologist.

Doesken and his team at the Colorado Climate Center analyzed daily temperature averages during the past 61 years that show most days between Jan. 10 and 25 have temperatures of 36 degrees or higher. Doesken analyzed National Weather Service temperatures taken between Jan. 10 and 25 at the former Stapleton airport site between 1948 and 2009.

Based on those statistics, there’s only a 0.6 percent chance that more than 10 inches of snow will accumulate during that time period, but a 44. 3 chance that more than an inch will accumulate.

“People love to talk about ‘stock show weather’ and the cold temperatures, but the truth is, the stock show doesn’t set any records for cold,” Doesken said.

Fun statistics about stock show weather during the past 61 years:
• The coldest day was minus 25 degrees on both 1/11/1963 and 1/12/1963.
• The warmest day was 73 degrees on 1/22/2009.
• The most snow was 10.1 inches that fell on 1/15/1987.

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