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A Vancouver lifestyle consultant is coming to the Stampede this week to run a one-day, $500 seminar on the art of seduction.

Apparently, nobody told him that during Stampede you don't need to spend $500 on seduction classes, all you need is a pulse.

"Well, that may be true, but what do you do after Stampede?" says Ronald, whose course, Stampede Super Boot Camp, is meant to teach clumsy males how to wow the "Jessica Simpson-like prairie girls" that abound in Calgary's bars and clubs during Stampede.

That's how Calgary's cowgirls are described on his website, seductionboard.com, which describes Stampede as "one of the best social events in North America, a 10-day festival that is like a Miami spring break and a Mardi Gras, with hot cowboys and cowgirls all rolled up into one long event."

"The men and women at the Stampede are legendary gorgeous and they will be there in droves," the website continues.

To protect his clients' confidentiality, Ronald declines to divulge his last name. His introductory course, Seduction Level 1, includes an evening field trip in which he grades clumsy lovers on the tips they receive in classroom instruction during the day.

"A lot of my students are embarrassed by this and they want their participation . . . to be confidential. If somebody knows me and recognizes me with them, it can cause problems for them and, believe me, it has happened."

Ronald says many men are hopeless at talking to women because they don't understand some basic rules.

"Women don't care what you look like, what you do and how much money you have. What they do care about is how you make them feel. Once men get that, the art of seduction becomes easier for them," he said.

Some women at the Stampede begged to differ.

"If a guy is butt ugly, it's going to be difficult for him to meet women," said Sabrina Fetter of Calgary. "It all depends on the girl and what she's looking for. I had a friend and all she wanted was to meet guys with money."

Most men at the Stampede said they don't need a $500 course on seduction.

"Either you've got it, or you don't. Ladies like a guy who is confident, as long as you don't creep them out. You can't buy that," said Kail, a Calgarian in his early 20s who was drinking beer at Nashville North, a tent saloon on the Stampede grounds.

"Women like real men who chew tobacco," said Ragmore, a young man from Kamloops, B.C. He said he would pay $150 for a course "to see what I'm doing wrong" -- like chewing tobacco, perhaps -- but he balked at $500.

Women at the Stampede said most men need seduction classes.

"They have no idea how to make a woman feel special, how to open a door, hold your chair," said Nicole Brown, 25, of Invermere, B.C.

"Where do I meet the men who are taking this course?" asked her friend, Nicole Tiessen, 25, of Calgary.

Ronald said most men make two basic mistakes.

"Most of them are afraid to approach a good-looking woman because they think they don't have a chance. The other mistake is that they talk about themselves. Don't give away your life story in the first five minutes, because chances are you aren't that interesting."

"That's true," said Stacey Stewart of Kamloops, B.C., enjoying a beer with friends. "Men are intimidated by independent women."

Her friend, Maria Rende, said a sense of humour is the key. "If they make us laugh, you can overlook the crooked tooth."

Page, a young woman from Grande Prairie, said "about 80 per cent" of men could use a course in seduction.

"I'm an eye contact and smile person," she said. "In Grande Prairie, the guys don't hit on you, they grind you. They don't even care about your name."

Ronald said he started running seduction courses about eight years ago because he was having trouble meeting women. He contacted several seduction "gurus" on the Internet, but was turned off by their approach.

"Their focus was to sleep with as many women as they could. That may be OK for awhile, but it's not very fulfilling."

Ronald also runs a course on "wingman tactics," in which a guy can teach his buddies to help him meet and seduce women.

rremington@theherald.canwest.com

© The Calgary Herald 2006