Osman Alvarez will be one of 25 professional Canadian bull riders hoping to hold on to their bucking bovine long enough to capture the first place spot at Chestermere’s Bulls on the Beach event next week.
The new Chestermere resident, who grew up with the sport of bull riding in Nicaragua, hopes to put in 150 per cent at the event and represent his new community.
“A lot of people say it's a passion, a lot of people say it's a way of living, but for me, being on a bull is like feeling alive,” Alvarez said. “I always tell my friends, ‘I don't know what I'm going to do when I retire.'
“For me, being on a bull is like the best thing that ever happens in my life. That's the next level of feeling alive.”
Bull riders know they are putting their life in danger every time they hop into the chute, but Alvarez said still going through with it is another level of life.
The second annual event, authorized by Bull Riders Canada and hosted by the Rocky View Chestermere Agricultural Society, will take place on July 22 at the Rocky View Chestermere Agricultural Society Corral, located a stone’s throw from the Chestermere Lake beach.
The gates open to the public at 5 p.m. and the bulls will start bucking at 7 p.m following some words from Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Leela Aheer and Chestermere’s mayor Jeff Colvin.
According to Dan Richard, Rocky View Chestermere Ag Society treasurer and Bulls on the Beach chair, the society hopes to sell upwards of 600 tickets to the event.
“What they can expect to see is the closest bull-riding action they'll ever see in their life. Our arena is small, very intimate, and I don't suggest they wear a white shirt or smile too big, because they might get some bull crap on them,” Richard said with a laugh.
He added that last year’s Bulls on the Beach spectators would likely concede they've never been closer to the action than they were in Chestermere.
“It's going to be a nice intimate evening with bulls and beer. Bulls, beer, and a band,” he said.
While there was no live music last year due to the COVID-19 restrictions being lifted just a couple weeks before the event, the cabaret will be in full swing with a live band this time around.
Local country artist Joel Ostrom and the Tin Star Band will take the stage to start off a night of two-stepping fun.
“This year, no COVID-19, so we're going to party,” Richard said. “It’s a pretty unique event for the bedroom community of Chestermere. We don't have a lot of cowboys in the area, but we do have some top contending cowboys and cowgirls.”
To register, participants need to be active members of Bull Riders Canada. Not just anybody can be a member until they’ve proven themselves in the sport of bullriding, Richard added.
Chestermere is just one of many stops in this year’s circuit for Bull Riders Canada.
During the event, 25 riders will first compete in the long-go to try and qualify for a spot in the top eight. The finalists then return to the short-go to fight for the title of the Bulls on the Beach champion and take home a $7,500 grand prize.
A new event, recently announced online that will be part of the 2022 Bulls on the Beach event, is the Bounty Bull to Send a Kid to Camp.
Pledges on how long the riders of a never-before-ridden bull can last will raise money for Camp Chestermere's Jar Jar's Kids program, as well as the rider.
Bull Riders Canada will return to Chestermere for a second time in 2022 in September, for the Chestermere Country Fair, which will host a smaller bull-riding event featuring just 15 riders.
The Chestermere Country Fair will also feature the lakeside community’s charity bull rider event, where six participants who have never been on bulls before step into the chute and ride a bull for charity.
“It was a lot of fun last year,” Richard said. “Totally scary for sure.”
Tickets are available at bit.ly/39ryZTH. Anyone interested in providing sponsorship for the event or who would like to volunteer is encouraged to email the society for more information at [email protected]
