Fire and water will be back in this year’s Cody Stampede Parade.
After dropping out of last year’s parades in protest, the Cody Volunteer Fire Department and the Cody Stampede Parade Committee have reached an agreement that will ensure the fire district’s engines and volunteers will be back in the parades July 3 and 4.
That means, according to the Cody Volunteer Fire Department, there will be “a little splash of classic parade spirit” along Sheridan Avenue. Water will also be back in the parade for the United States’ semiquincentennial.
“It's going to be great,” said Joe Bower, president of the Cody Stampede Parade Committee. “People missed them last year. The parade committee missed them last year. It’s good to have them back, and I hope everybody has a lot of fun with them.”
Insurance And Assurance
The Cody Volunteer Fire Department has been one of the longest and loudest entries in the Cody Stampede Parade for decades. That changed in 2025, when the department announced it wouldn’t participate.
The point of contention? Water balloons.
“In recent years, new rules and regulations have made our participation increasingly difficult,” Chief H.R. Coe said in May 2025. “We initially agreed to stop throwing candy from our trucks, provided we could continue the long-standing tradition of water balloons.
"Unfortunately, we’ve now been informed that water balloons are no longer allowed either.”
Instead of having all their engines and sirens blaring, one of the highlights for locals, the only fire engine in last year’s parades was the historic "Truck 00." It didn't spray or throw a single drop of water.
Historically, the volunteers have had buckets of water balloons they’ve thrown from their trucks. Parade attendees have, historically, brought their own balloons to toss back.
Water balloon fights between the volunteers and the crowds have become a long-standing tradition. The inability to use water balloons last year was the reason Coe specifically cited as "a beloved part of the parade" that promoted their exodus.
According to Bower, nobody wants to prohibit water balloons. The committee’s primary concern is safety.
“Our number one priority is to keep everybody safe on the parade route,” he said. “Hypothetically, if a water balloon were to hit a horse and send that horse off running, that could be a big deal. We just needed to sit down and discuss how to keep things moving.”
Water balloons might sound like harmless fun, but they are also a potentially enormous liability. Mack Frost, another member of the parade committee, said one of the most pressing concerns in recent years has been insurance.
“We are required to have liability insurance for the parade, and we can’t get the insurance premiums we used to get,” he said in May 2025. “We could lose our insurance if there were an incident caused by water balloons, and I’m sure there would be a very measured response if we couldn’t do the Cody Stampede Parade because of water balloons.”
Letting Them Go
In anticipation of the 2026 Cody Stampede Parade, the parade committee met with the fire department to discuss its participation. Bower said the two parties have “come to a good agreement” that ensured the department’s return to the parades.
“Everybody's in a good position now,” he said. “They're going to bring up the back of the parade and close it out for us.”
Water balloon safety was specifically addressed, and Bower said everyone reached a productive understanding of how to preserve the tradition while ensuring everyone’s safety.
“I'm sure they'll have water balloons,” he said. “They love throwing water balloons, and people love throwing them back, so we’re looking forward to that.”
Fire departments at other parades often use their hoses to spray crowds lining the parade route. Bower doesn’t know what the Cody Volunteer Fire Department has planned, but nothing’s been hosed down.
Above all else, Bower said the key point was ensuring safety.
“We’ve had unsuspecting people hit with water balloons before, and we’re trying to avoid that,” he said. “That’s what it all comes down to. We're asking them to put their best foot forward, and they should be able to do that. We’re all adults.”
One of the previous compromises was having designated water zones where people know to anticipate water balloons.
Those zones were at the intersection of Sheridan and 15th Avenue, right next to the fire station, and in front of the Silver Dollar Bar. The “water war” between the fire department and the Dollar is the stuff of local legend.
Based on the new agreement that prioritizes spectator safety, Bower indicates there might be more opportunities for water-related fun.
“At this point, we’re letting them go, as long as it doesn’t cause any issues,” he said. “We want to keep everybody safe on the parade route.”
Five Days Of Festivities
The Cody Stampede kicks off with Cody PRCA Xtreme Bulls on June 30, followed by the Cody Stampede Rodeo from July 1 to 4. Tickets for the July 3 and 4 events are sold out.
Cody has three parades. The Kiddies Parade will be held on July 2 at 10 a.m. The Cody Stampede Parade will start at 9:30 a.m. July 3 and 4 with the theme “250 Years of Legends, Liberty, and the Lasting West."
This year’s grand marshals are renowned Wyoming authors Craig Johnson, Michael & Kathleen Gear, and Paul Hutton.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
