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WHEELING -- A rip-snorting, dirt-kicking spectacle will return to WesBanco Arena this weekend when the Professional Bull Riders Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour bucks into Wheeling.
One of the biggest events held each year at the arena, the tour will bring some of the best bull riders in the world battling the sport’s toughest, most burly bovine brutes in an electrifying primal showdown.
The PBR Wheeling Invitational will take place over two nights, with Round 1 beginning at 8 p.m. on Friday and the championship round kicking off at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
Robert Simpson, general manager of the PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour, said everyone from hardcore rodeo fans to newcomers of all ages will be greeted with "non-stop, edge-of-your-seat bull riding action" during the weekend event.
"These are top riders versus the top bulls in the ultimate battle of man vs. beast, all combined with high-resolution video, rock concert-quality sound and music, completed with theatrical pyro," Simpson said on Wednesday. "It’s fun for the entire family."
Simpson noted that in his past 25 years of promoting PBR events, he’s only had to market to non-fans once, "because once they attend, they are a fan forever!" he said.
PBR's Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour last traveled to Wheeling last October, when bull rider Austin Beaty of Bedford, Va. captured his career-first victory on the league's expansion series. Many veteran cowboys will be returning this weekend, including one of the top bull riders in the professional world today - Michael Lane, making his fifth appearance at a PBR event in Wheeling.
This weekend’s tour stop will mark the 20th Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour event of the year. The showdown is taking place just past the midpoint of the season, giving the sport’s newest up-and-comers a chance to compete against established stars vying for points to qualify for this year’s tour finals and eventually the PBR World Finals for 2022.
"We’re about three-fourths of the way through the season," Simpson said. "Every bull rider and every point is crucial at this point in getting riders in a position to qualify for all of the finals events, and ultimately the possibility of being a world champion - with all of the prize money and accolades that being a top rider in the PBR brings."
An international slate of riders from the United States, Australia, Brazil and Mexico will square off in Wheeling this weekend, which marks the eighth PBR Invitational in the Friendly City over the years.
Putting together the big event and transforming WesBanco Arena into a huge, state-of-the-art bull riding coliseum is no small task. The setup requires steel that stretches the length of six football fields that is erected inside and 750 tons of dirt trucked into the facility. In addition to the 45 riders who will battle it out, there are handlers and stock contractors who work with the array of bucking bulls - the "animal athletes" who are viewed as some of the superstars on the tour.
"More than 600 cubic yards of dirt are brought into the venue to provide the ‘playing field,’" Simpson said. "This weekend, Wheeling will bring more than 75 bulls from all over the U.S. to compete. A staff of 40 people will also work for the PBR in producing the action."
The PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour’s Wheeling Invitational is presented locally by Oglebay, which will be hosting special events this weekend - for a good cause.
Fans will have a chance to rub elbows with their favorite cowboys from the tour on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at Oglebay’s Ihlenfeld Dining Room, where a special pre-event brunch with the PBR stars will take place. There is a cost for adults and children ages 4-12, but it is free for children 3 and under. A portion of the event’s proceeds will benefit Wheeling Health Right.
Guests will also get a chance to meet and greet the PBR stars for free from 3-4 p.m. on Saturday in Oglebay’s Hickman Lounge at Wilson Lodge. The meet and greet is free and open to the public. Autograph cards will be provided.
For more information on the Cowboy Brunch benefit, visit www.oglebay.com/pbr or call for reservations on OpenTable at 304-243-4080.
As for the weekend’s PBR action each evening, Round 1 on Friday night will feature all 45 bull riders. Round 2 on Saturday evening will feature the top 30 riders from Round 1. The riders' individual two-round scores will then be totaled, with the Top 15 advancing to the championship round for one more out and a chance at the event title.
Tickets for the two-day event can be purchased online at WesBancoArena.com, Etix.com and PBR.com, or by calling PBR customer service at 1-800-732-1727 or the Etix hotline at 1-800-514-3849.
PBR Elite Seats are available for avid fans who want an exclusive VIP experience, and premium add-ons will be available, as well.
For additional information, visit PBR.com.