The Calgary Stampede kicked off this past Friday.

It's not only the first major event to take place in the province, in well over a year -- but also the first major post-pandemic event to happen across the Country.

Albertans have been gearing up for a different kind of rodeo this year, inclusive of physical distancing, strict cleaning protocols and even proof of vaccination and rapid testing for some Stampede venues.

As the greatest outdoor show on earth made its return on Friday, COVID-19 numbers continued to look promising with 675 active cases across the province.

Falling in line with the kick-off to Stampede, this past weekend was the first in 16 months that the province didn't update provincial numbers. 

Alberta Health Services has moved to only providing Monday to Friday updates online. Alberta's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw didn't provide her usual update via Twitter either.

The province's latest tabled numbers can be found here.