PBR Set To Bust Out On Saturday
In the world of Professional Bull Riding (PBR) the premiere event is the world championships in Las Vegas. But to get to the world championships you have to ride a lot of bull and gain points out on the circuit.
It is a tough ride with a lot of bucking, excitement and a few extra bruises for the riders along the way and all of this is coming to Moose Jaw this Saturday night June 8th at 7 pm as the PBR “Unleash The Beast Tour” bucks its way into Mosaic Place.
Saturday night will see bull riding and a concert right here in Moose Jaw in Mosaic Place
But there is an added feature after the hard ride as Canadian Country Music Association’s group of the year as well as Juno Award winning break group The Washboard Union will also perform in a two for event.
“It is time for people to be ready for a good time,” says Chad Besplug with the PBR.
Besplug describes the event as not a rodeo but much more, it is tailored not only to entertain rural folk but urban dwellers as well.
“This is nothing like a rodeo, it is more rock and roll than country,” he said adding “the fewer cowboy hats I see the happier I get because you are connecting to a different audience…you can wear a cowboy hat if you want to but you do not have to.”
The event is planned to be for everyone whether you live in the country or the city.
“This is not a crowd you have to fit into to enjoy the event anybody can tap into the excitement…people just come and have a good time” Besplug explained.
Although Moose Jaw may be on the smaller PBR circuit the need to gain the necessary points to be one of the 30 lucky riders to qualify for the world championships has some of the top riders competing.
Among those who will be competing are Aaron Roy of Yellow Grass who has been Canadian champion twice and made it to the world championship on Las Vegas 10 times.
The top Canadian bull rider in the world right now Tanner Byrne will be competing as he strives to gain more points in an eight second explosion of power and make it to Las Vegas.
Asked about the addition of the concert right after the competition Besplug said they were aiming to making it a full evening event of excitement or a complete show experience.
Regarding concerns some may have the event encourages animal cruelty or the animals are harmed Besplug says that is the farthest thing from the truth.
He freely said he had no problem answering any concerns brought forward by critics of the sport and said addressing head on and truthfully was the best course of action.
“I have no problem answering those types of questions, straightforward and honestly,” Besplug said.
“The animals here are in top condition. They are physically fit, clean, fed extremely well and not abused in any way.”
“What they are doing here is like an athlete. We do not force them to buck they either do on their own or not. They are bred to buck like this they are not forced to do it. It makes no sense to hurt malnourish or mistreat the bulls in any way.”
“If you go into the back pens you will find they are fairly docile animals. You can actually go and pet them,” he said.
The safety and care of the bulls is paramount for their owners as they are expensive animals and if they are hurt it does not help the sport or owners, he said.
“Our lives revolve around these animals. We don’t want to see them get hurt. It is not very often that it happens.”
Besplug compared the life of bucking bull as comparable to a horse for pleasure riding.
The format of the event will be 35 rides in total with 25 rides in the long round. There are then 10 rides in the short round of the best riders to determine points and also who is champion in Moose Jaw,
Following bull riding portion, and a short intermission, at approximately 9:30 at the north side of Mosaic Place the stage will be set for The Washboard Union to perform. Check out their video below.
The Washboard Union has been described by at least one critic as “re-inventing country genre by resurrecting pop rock and adding a twist.”
They have a sound that reaches back into the country roots but extends into today’s sound. It is a lively and eclectic sound which is powering the group upwards in the music world. This is a band on their way up to greater stardom in country music.
Besplug said the show is more geared to young adults but it is not X Rated or parental guidance either.
“We want people to have the best tme they had all year with the bulls and then a concert with a really good group following it wth some very good quality music…it is a full night of entertainment.”
Advance tickets are available on-line at mosaicplace.ca/tickets or at the box office in Mosaic Place.