OUR VIEW: Bring bull riding back to Corn Palace

• OUR VIEW

OUR VIEW

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We consider Mitchell to be in rodeo country, and we’ve always been avid supporters of all things rodeo.

So, when we heard that indoor bull-riding was coming to the Corn Palace, we were excited.

Well, excited and curious.

We wondered just how the Corn Palace, which had never hosted bullriding before, could be set up for such an event. We wondered if there would be any damage to the floor. We wondered how bad the dust would be.

Having attended the Friday-Saturday event and heard the reaction from attendees, city officials and the independent promoter, we’re convinced it was one of the best events the Corn Palace has ever booked.

A total of 2,650 people attended over the two evenings, which was nearly full both nights. The event was run incredibly smoothly. Bulls and riders came in and out of the arena with astonishing rapidity, and there were virtually no delays in the action. Many experienced rodeogoers said the bulls were as rank as they’d ever seen, and some of the rides were fantastic. An announcer and clown kept the crowd constantly entertained and informed, and the clown’s hilarious intermission dance routine will be as well-remembered as the bull-riding.

For those lucky enough to have table seating, the service was outstanding, with waiters and waitresses persistently and politely asking their guests if they needed more drinks or food.

And the atmosphere was unique. Those with table seating on the south end of the floor or on the stage had an incredibly close view of the action in the ring on the north part of the floor, and those in the soft seats also had good views.

It all made us wonder why somebody hadn’t thought of this before. Bull riding and the Corn Palace: Having seen it once, it seems like a natural fit. And we know there’s an audience for it in our rural and agriculturally rich area.

We congratulate everyone involved in the Wilbur-Ellis Corn Palace Challenge. It took some courage to propose and pull off a first-of-its-kind event like this, so it’s nice to see it paid off.

And we hope it becomes and annual event.

Tags: corn palace, bull bash, opinion, updates, editorials, local, mitchell