Canada’s top 25 bull riders will be hanging on for dear life in hopes of taking home the trophy buckle and $10,000 first-place money on July 29 at the Cochrane Ag Society grounds.
It will be Cochrane Classic Bull Riding’s 22nd year.
Organizer Jason Borton is back at the reins, and said he’s once again blown away by the local support the event has garnered.
“I’m surprised every year,” he said. “I keep thinking it can’t get any bigger, but it just keeps getting bigger.”
“They just keep out coming out and keep supporting these local events that we have here in Cochrane.”
And it’s not just ticket buyers who keep the event alive, he added.
“And the sponsorship – I know it's tough for everybody right now but these local businesses are just unreal. I cannot say enough about our local sponsors.”
Borton had just talked with his bull contractor before he spoke with The Eagle this week.
“He just had eight bulls at the Calgary Stampede, so these kids that are coming to get on these bulls better have their ducks in a row,” he quipped.
He said he’s even been getting phone calls from overseas looking for information about the event.
In 2018, the Cochrane Classic was recognized as the top bull riding event in the country by Bull Riders Canada, the largest Canadian-owned and operated bull riding company.
The Classic started up in the old hockey arena by Cochrane High School, then went to the SLS Centre, and then to the rodeo grounds behind the Lions Club Event Centre.
Their newest home is the Cochrane Ag Society next to Highway 1A, just west of the intersection with Highway 22.
Sanctioned by Bull Riders Canada, the event features the same bulls and a lot of the same riders that competed at the Calgary Stampede this year.
Sponsors this year include A. Clark Roofing and Siding, Costen Insurance, Dry Cleaning by Dave, Tony’s Western Wear, OK Tire, Nicole Henson/CIR Realty, The Hitch Shop, Hillstone Aggregates, Rocky View Brewing, Mountain Toys, North Forty, Cochrane Eagle, Cochrane Now 91.5, Fortis Alberta, Super 8, Ink’d Graphics, Cochrane Rental Centre, Cochrane Image and Auto Body and Steelhead Ventures.
Gates open at 5 pm on July 29. Complementing the bull-riding on display, the event will feature food trucks and beer gardens with music. The first bull is scheduled to bust out of the chute at 7 pm.
A barn dance with live band The Scarecrows will follow the bull riding, providing a night of toe-tapping fun late into the night for attendees.
Tickets are $35 for adults, $20 for students and seniors (65 and older), and are available at Eventbrite.ca.
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