The Wild West is coming to Boston, as the city is hosting its first rodeo Saturday in almost 100 years.
Crews were hard at work Friday night, dumping dirt onto City Hall Plaza to build an arena for professional cowboys and cowgirls to compete in the events.
The rodeo includes bull riding, steer wrestling and barrel racing. It also features a country beat festival with live performances and line dancing.
“All eight rodeo events, which is bull riding, bronc riding, tie down, all of the lassoing, so it’s all eight events so you can expect real bulls, horses, everything,” said Eddie McHugh, one of the organizers.
The rodeo is being put on by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. The PRCA said the last time Boston itself hosted a rodeo was back in 1936.
Gates open on Saturday at 2 p.m. at City Hall Plaza. General admission tickets are sold out for Saturday’s show but VIP tickets are still available on the rodeo’s website.
If you can’t make Boston’s rodeo, Massachusetts also has its own rodeo at the Rochester Fairgrounds on the South Coast. Every other week, thousands of spectators pack the stands to movie competitors from all over New England and even as far away as Brazil.
New England Rodeo also offers clinics for new bull riders and opportunities for visitors to get up close to the animals. For more information on the New England Rodeo and a schedule of their events, visit their website.
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