Published: August 21, 2007 11:06 pm      

Toughest sport on dirt coming to Huntsville

Pro Bull Riders to hold Stetson Shoot Out at Walker County Fairgrounds on Saturday

For those not wanting to wait until the Walker County Fair and Rodeo next spring to see some of the top bull riders in the country, don’t worry because some of them are coming to Huntsville this weekend.

The Discovery Tour, sanctioned by Pro Bull Riders, Inc., will hold the Stetson Shoot Out at the Walker County Fairgrounds on Saturday at 8 p.m. The Shoot Out is one of the final events for riders who are trying to qualify for the PBR Finals in Las Vegas later this year.

There will be 27 competitiors in Huntsville, facing some of the top bulls in the world that have already qualified for Las Vegas. Tickets for the Shoot Out are $20 (kids 6 and under are free) and available at Cavender’s Boot City.

“There are 27 guys on the bubble of making the top 45 to go to Vegas,” said Shane Davis, one of the event’s organizers. “The bulls that will be here, they qualify to go to Vegas, too. There are already 35 of these bulls that are already going to Vegas. So, you are looking at some of the PBR Finals bulls here that you will see in Vegas, and it is only $20.”

That’s quite a bargain, according to Davis.

“Normally, the cheapest tickets for an event like this is $65,” he said.

Some of the riders who will be featured at the Shoot Out include L.J. Jenkins, D.J. Domangue, Austrialian champion Jared Farley, Cody Whitney, James White, Ross Johnson and Rob Bell to name a few.

“There are going to be quite a few guys that have been to the finals before,” Davis said. “L.J. Jenkins got hurt earlier in the year and got cut from the Built Ford Tough cups, but he won $12,000 last week in Springfield, Mo. He is one of the hottest bull riders around, and he will be up against a bull that has never been ridden. This will be an awesome matchup.”

The bulls that will be featured at the Shoot Out are coming from all across the country. One of the more notable bulls at the event will be Bells Blue. Bells Blue is one of the best around and has only been ridden five out of 29 times in his career.

Four of those rides have come this year, but Bells Blue missed some time in the past after getting sick from overseas feed and almost died.

“One of the bulls that will be here is one of the most feared bulls in the entire PBR,” Davis said. “This bull jumps so high that you could drive a truck under him. The thing about him was he got real sick. We get a lot of feed and supplements from across the seas and some of it got stale. He got a toxic poisoning and almost died. But he made it through and is an amazing athlete.”

Each rider will get one ride Saturday, and the top 10 will be brought back for the short go-round with a shot at the money on the line.

Known as the toughest sport on dirt, bull riding has always been a highly popular event. And with some of the top riders and bulls set to compete in Huntsville, it should be an exciting evening for those who make it out to the Walker County Fairgrounds.

“These bulls will be the best-looking athletes you will see,” Davis said. “It will be fun for everybody. The top rider will get around 6 or $7,000 and the top bull will get around 4 or $5,000. It is a competition inside a competition. The top rider in Vegas will get $1 million, and who knows, he might be one of the guys riding here.”