The Illini 4000 celebrated the Fourth of July in Cody, Wyoming for our rest day.  The team sported red, white and blue as we enjoyed the towns festivities.  The team kicked off the day by witnessing the parade.  It was a true western parade complete with lots of horses and guns.  After the parade we got the chance to go shopping on the streets of Cody. The streets were packed with tourists (the town is said to double in population for the holiday) and vendors selling everything from homemade jewelry to antlers.  Many of us also got to experience wild game burgers at the Wyoming Buffalo Company restaurant.  The menu had everything including ostrich burgers, wild boar burgers, elk burgers, and buffalo burgers.  After a day on the town our evening was concluded with our big event.  The whole team got tickets to go watch the famous Cody Stampede Rodeo.  For many of us, it was our first time witnessing bareback riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, barrel racing, and bull riding.  The stadium was packed with over 10,000 people and the cowboys did not disappoint.  The night was concluded by a big and bold display of fireworks.  We could not have imagined a more spectacular way to celebrate the Fourth of July-  true western style.