Fort Worth Stock Show begins 23-day run with a look to the future
Think the Fort Worth Stock and Rodeo, which opens its gates Friday for a 23-day run, is stuck on tradition and resistant to change? Think again.
While many of the Stock Show staples — from the action-packed rodeo and the fun-filled midway to the mouthwatering food and enticing shopping — return as usual, work has begun in preparation for a new multipurpose arena that’s scheduled to open in 2020.
Meanwhile, visitors at this year’s 120th edition of the Stock Show will pay more for rodeo tickets and parking. Rodeo tickets range from $20 to $28, up from $19-$25. Parking in the Stock Show lots costs $10, a $2 increase.
The weather should be nice Friday for the first day of the show, with highs in the 60s, but Saturday’s All Western Parade will be chilly, with a 40 percent chance of rain and highs in the 40s — almost so-called Stock Show weather.
“People will definitely want to bundle up for the parade,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Jennifer Dunn. “It’s going to be cloudy. It’s going to be breezy.”
Temperatures will be seasonal the rest of the week, with highs bouncing between the 40s and 50s. A slight chance for a rain-snow mix Sunday night is forecast, with the low temperature dropping near freezing. But that weather system shouldn’t cause problems on roadways, Dunn said.
In other changes, the new 300-foot-long Tower Promenade, a walkway between Cattle Barns 1 and 2, will allow visitors to move easily from the parking lots on the south side of the Will Rogers Memorial Complex to the north side without having to walk through a barn, and all that implies.
“I think the first thing when people arrive is they’ll see a different footprint, a different layout than what they've been used to in the past,” said Matt Brockman, the Stock Show’s publicity director.
The promenade is part of $15.4 million in renovations that include improved lighting and ventilation in Cattle Barn 2, which dates to 1948. The project also added a 120-seat viewing area for a new milking parlor, improved hallways and restrooms, and wider walkways.
Upgrades to the barns will continue as funds are raised, Brockman said.
At this week’s Tarrant County Commissioners Court meeting, Ed Bass, chairman of the Stock Show board, said the $450 million multipurpose arena, which will seat 12,000-14,000 people, should be completed by the fall of 2019, in time for the 2020 Stock Show. The city and Event Facilities Fort Worth are splitting the costs.
“With the Tower Promenade, our visitors will begin to see the first installation of the main connector multipurpose arena,” Brockman said.
Construction has already started on a 2,200-space parking garage that must be built before construction can begin on the arena since that site is now used for parking.
Bill Hanna: 817-390-7698, @fwhanna
It’s showtime
The Fort Worth Stock Show begins Friday and continues through Feb. 8 at the Will Rogers Memorial Center at West Lancaster Avenue and University Drive.
▪ 817-877-2400 or www.fwssr.com. Mobile apps are available for Apple and Android devices.
▪ Grounds admission: $10 for adults; $5 for children 6-16; free for children 5 and under
▪ Rodeo tickets: $28 on Friday nights, weekends and some special events; $20 on weekdays. Rodeo tickets are good for general admission to the Stock Show the same day.
▪ Discounts are available for grounds admission and rodeo tickets for Star-Telegram Press Pass holders.
▪ Advance tickets: The office, at 3401 W. Lancaster Ave., is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily; 817-877-2420.
▪ Parking: $10 per vehicle
▪ On Saturdays and Sundays, visitors can take $5 shuttles from the parking lot just north of Billy Bob’s Texas in the Stockyards.
▪ Information booths: In the main concourse of the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall and the Richardson-Bass Building. 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday-Friday and 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday.
▪ Shopping: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday-Friday and 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturdays in the Amon G. Carter Jr. Exhibits Hall and Brown-Lupton Exhibits Hall (north and south).
Friday
8 a.m. AQHA Versatility Ranch Horse Show, Justin Arena
3 p.m. Junior Agricultural Mechanics — Tractors on Parade, Burnett-Tandy Dr.
7: 30 p.m. Best of the West Invitational Ranch Rodeo, Coliseum▪
Saturday
8 a.m. Junior Agricultural Mechanics Project Show, Equestrian Multi-Purpose Building
8 a.m. AQHA Ranch Horse Riding, Coliseum
9 a.m. Pigeon Show, Poultry Building
9 a.m. Poultry Show – Youth Division, Poultry Building
11 a.m. All Western Parade, Downtown
11 a.m. The Premier Texas Longhorn Sale, West Arena
Noon AQHA Best of the Remuda Sale, Justin Arena
Noon 4-H and FFA Goat Judging Contest, Swine Arena
5 p.m. National Santa Gertrudis Sale, West Arena
6 p.m. Celebrity Goat Milking Contest followed by Goat Creative Costume Contest, Cattle Arena
7:30 p.m. Best of the West Invitational Ranch Rodeo, Coliseum
Sunday
7:30 a.m. Southwest Intercollegiate, 4-H and FFA Dairy Cattle Judging Contest, Cattle Arena
8 a.m. Texas M.A.D.E. Competition, French Room, Watt Arena
9 a.m. All-American Dairy Goat Show, Swine Arena
9 a.m. AQHA and NRCHA Working Cow Horse Classes, Justin Arena
9 a.m. Cowboy Church provided by Shepherd’s Valley Cowboy Church, Auditorium
9 a.m. Pigeon Show, Poultry Building
9 a.m. Poultry Show – Youth Division, Poultry Building
10 a.m. Exhibition Poultry Workshop, Cattle Barn 1 Meeting Room
11 a.m. American Premier Boer Goat Show, Sheep Arena
12:30 p.m. Best of the West Invitational Ranch Rodeo Award Presentations, Coliseum
1 p.m. Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show Invitational Ranch Horse Show and Sale, Coliseum
2 p.m. Junior Agricultural Mechanics Awards Presentation, Equestrian Multi-Purpose Building
2 p.m. National Santa Gertrudis Cattle Show — Watt Arena, West Ring
3 p.m. Ayrshire and Milking Shorthorn Dairy Cattle — Open Show, Cattle Arena
4 p.m. Braford Cattle Show, Watt Arena
7:30 p.m. Best of Mexico Celebración, Coliseum
This story was originally published January 14, 2016 at 12:08 PM with the headline "Fort Worth Stock Show begins 23-day run with a look to the future."