Xtreme Bull Riders Christen Dickies Arena for PRCA
FORT WORTH, Texas – Several bull riders stared in awe while walking around the new, state-of-the-art Dickies Arena for the first time Tuesday night.
The plush arena, which opened in late October, hosted its inaugural PRCA event – the first day of the 2020 Division 1 Xtreme Bulls Tour – to a sellout crowd of 9,300 spectators.
“This is a change from the old Will Rogers Memorial Center, that’s for sure,” said J.W. Harris, a four-time PRCA bull riding world champion (2008-10 and 2013). “I’m glad I get to ride in it. This is what Fort Worth, Texas, is all about, the history. Now that history is continuing as they built an arena that caters to rodeo.”
The arena is a site to behold. It officially opened Oct. 26, and Jan. 21 marked the first PRCA competition at the arena: the SWELS – Xtreme Bulls. The season-opening Division 1 Xtreme Bulls event concludes Wednesday.
The Cowboy Channel will air the second day of Xtreme Bulls action from Fort Worth live at 8:30 p.m. (ET), Jan. 22. Check TheCowboyChannel.com for the latest schedule.
Dickies Arena was the vision of Edward Bass, a businessman and philanthropist who headed up the charge to build the arena.
The 14,000-seat venue – 9,300 for rodeo configuration – was conceived and developed by Bass and a public-private partnership between the city of Fort Worth, Tarrant County, the state and a group of private-sector participants, including foundations, individuals and organizations.
“It is always cool to go to an event in a new building,” said Cody Rostockyj, the bull riding representative on the PRCA Executive Council. “All these guys were so excited (Tuesday night). Everybody was getting lost trying to find the locker room, but it is always nice to be in an arena like this. Sometimes we are stuck outside in the rain and the mud, and if you get a tent, you’re happy. Then, you come to a place like this in the winter where it is warm, and it is such a nice building and the hospitality is out of this world. You can’t beat it and you can’t put a price on it.”
Dickies Arena is in the city’s Cultural District and adjacent to the Will Rogers Memorial Center campus. The venue will be owned by the city of Fort Worth and managed by Trail Drive Management Corp., a not-for-profit operating entity.
The partnership was approved by Fort Worth voters in November 2014, capping taxpayers’ portion at $225 million. The $540 million project will complement the Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum, which will continue to serve as a major equestrian show arena.
Bass’ goal was to make Dickies Arena a combination of a sports arena with a theatrical-facility feel like Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth. The sound system at Dickies Arena is top notch. Great care was taken to minimize or eliminate “echo.”
The first event at Dickies Arena was a Twenty One Pilots concert Nov. 8. The multi-purpose arena also has played host to George Strait concerts. The 2020 NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championship will take place at Dickies Arena, April 17-18.
The dirt in Dickies Arena is the dirt that was in the Will Rogers Coliseum. The scoreboard is the second-largest continuous 360-degree scoreboard in North America. The scoreboard measures 105 feet across and 26 feet tall.
“This is such a nice arena,” said Trevor Kastner, a four-time qualifier for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. “To me it is kind of bittersweet going from the traditional arena, but it is nice to have a new facility and all the amenities that it comes with.”
The arena also caught the eye of Trey Kimzey, who made his first appearance at the Wrangler NFR in 2019.
“This just shows you where rodeo is going in general,” Kimzey said. “There are really no words for this place. It’s so spectacular. I came in the hospitality room and I was just so overwhelmed.”
Just to the south and east of Dickies Arena is the Simmons Bank Plaza. The plaza is a 209,088-square-foot space that hosts fan festivals, outdoor concerts, and pre- and post-show events.
The PRCA Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo begins Jan. 24 and runs through Feb. 8.
“The Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo has been taken to a whole new level, with this arena,” Kimzey said.
The FWSSR has come a long way since 1896. In 1918, it was considered the world’s first indoor rodeo when it moved into the North Side Coliseum (now called Cowtown Coliseum).
In 1944, the event moved to the Will Rogers Memorial Center on the west side of Fort Worth.
The rodeo and the stock show have been held there since.
Now, the livestock show will solely be held in Will Rogers and all rodeo events will be inside Dickies Arena.
Boquet leads after Day 1 of Fort Worth Xtreme Bulls
Not lost in the new surroundings of the Dickies Arena was the competition on Day 1 of the SWELS – Xtreme Bulls event Tuesday.
Dustin Boquet leads the way with 175 points on two head.
“It feels great (to have the lead),” said Boquet, 25. “There are a bunch of good guys up (Wednesday), and if the good Lord’s willing, my score will hold up. We’re going to find out, and I’m just glad to get two knocked out. It’s cool to get to compete in this brand-new place, and it would be awesome to win the first Xtreme Bulls event here.”
Ky Hamilton was second with 172 points and Trevor Kastner (171 points) third.
Boquet finished second in the long round with an 87.5-point ride on Big Rafter Rodeo’s Living Life.
“I had never ridden that bull,” Boquet said. “That bull had a little something to him, but it all worked out.”
In the short round, Boquet climbed aboard Stace Smith Pro Rodeos’ Cow Banger.
“I saw I had Cow Banger, and I’ve seen that bull for a couple of years,” said Boquet, who made his lone appearance at the Wrangler NFR in 2018. “I knew he wasn’t going to be any fun and I knew I was going to have to hang on. He had me thrown off at a couple points, but I just held on and was hoping for the best. I was like, where was that buzzer at, because he was giving it to me. I had a lot of hard try and never gave up.”
Courtesy of PRCA