Professional Bull Riding Event To Return In June

Professional Bull Riding Event To Return In June
Tickets are now on sale for the bull riding event set to return to Ocean City in June. Pictured is last year's inaugural event. Submitted image.

OCEAN CITY – After a successful inaugural season, the professional bull riding event is set to return to Ocean City in June.

Resort special events staff this week confirmed the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) and Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) will return to Ocean City in June after a successful inaugural event around the same dates last year. The PBR has filed an application for a three-day event from June 2-4.

On its own social media outlets, the PBR this week announced the return of the bull riding event from June 2-4 at the Inlet lot adjacent to the beach, and that tickets were going on sale in February. The PBR social media outlets also advised to “look for a big announcement coming soon.”

The PBR application is just that and there are likely details about the event and each party’s roles and responsibilities to work out. That will likely come in the form of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the town and the PBR at a later date as the event draws near.

In advance of last year’s inaugural event, the arena at the Inlet was constructed with truckloads of dirt loaded onto a portion of the Inlet lot. The event, produced by Triple Creek Events, got started with early rounds of competition on Friday evening, followed by more qualifying events on Saturday. The professional bull riding competition culminated with the championship finals during a matinee on Sunday.

While no final details on ticket sales were provided, anecdotally the first-ever bull riding rodeo in Ocean City was a success, prompting an anticipated return this year and perhaps an annual tradition. Attendance on Friday appeared to be the lightest of the three days, likely due to the late arrival for many weekend visitors to the resort area. Saturday night’s event was sold out and attendance on Sunday was strong.

Again, truckloads of dirt were hauled to the Inlet lot to create an eight-inch surface on which the competition was held. Bleachers were installed with general admission areas and VIP sections, each of which were generally full during at least two days of the competition. When the event was over, the bleachers were removed and the dirt surface was hauled away, returning the Inlet lot to its previous condition.

Last year, in advance of the bull riding event, the Mayor and Council approved a request from Triple Creek for a $75,000 contribution for the town to offset some unanticipated upfront costs to produce the event in exchange for a revenue-sharing plan from the ticket sales. The town contributed the $75,000 in exchange for 10% of the revenue from ticket sales, or $5 per ticket, whichever was greater. Again, those details will likely be worked out through an MOU in advance of the 2023 event.

About The Author: Shawn Soper

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Shawn Soper has been with The Dispatch since 2000. He began as a staff writer covering various local government beats and general stories. His current positions include managing editor and sports editor. Growing up in Baltimore before moving to Ocean City full time three decades ago, Soper graduated from Loch Raven High School in 1981 and from Towson University in 1985 with degrees in mass communications with a journalism concentration and history.