BILLINGS — Outdoor rodeo is returning to Billings on Thursday night, with the start of Rodeo Billings held at the new grandstands and outdoor arena at MetraPark.
The $2.5 million arena can seat more than 3,000 people and replaces the grandstands that were demolished in 2020 in an effort to bring excitement and other outdoor events to the community.
Watch this video to learn about the goals for the future:
The facility will feature its debut event this weekend as the NILE hosts Rodeo Billings. In the past, the NILE has been featured inside MetraPark in the fall, but opted to change to the summer and have the competition alongside the MontanaFair.
“It’s here, and it’s exciting,” said NILE General Manager David Allen.
Allen said the event comes with some nerves, just as any hosted events do.
“There’s always the anxiety of the unknown if you’re a promoter or putting on events,” Allen said. "Because it's new, it's exciting. I think the community and the county are going to be pleasantly surprised by the venue and hopefully they'll be proud of it for the community."
The venue will likely be the talk of the night, especially for MetraPark General Manager Stoney Field. Field said the facility opens up all sorts of opportunities in the future for the arena.
“We built it the way that it needs to be to get us off the ground,” Field said. "At the same time, it's modular. That means we can expand as it becomes necessary."
The outdoor arena will also save the arena thousands of dollars, as well as protecting it from aging when moving the dirt in and out like in the past.
"It's wear and tear on the building," Field said. "It's a 50-year-old building and it's expensive. This makes it much more affordable for smaller events to be here."
Field said the project's original goal was to bring events into the community in an effort to help boost the local economy. He said there are already 26 events scheduled for next year.
“If we need to reconfigure dependent on the disciplines that are coming, even if it’s outside of the Ag and equine industry we’re fully capable of that,” Field said. "As of now, I already have events reaching out and we're super excited about that."
Thursday night will be an exciting moment for many, as it represents the first of many efforts to upgrade the sporting facilities in Billings.
“We’re all trying to help out in the community itself, bring people into our community to spend those dollars on the folks here,” Field said.
Allen said it's the start of a new tradition that he hopes continues for years to come.
“This is going to be here long after I’m not, so we’re approaching it with that kind of attitude,” Allen said.
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