to get the inside scoop on the many changes taking place in Denver. Fear not, the future looks nothing but bright for the National Western Stock Show. Just like all of us, Andrews and the National Western were devastated to have to call off the 2021 show. The silver lining in it all, he explained, was that it allowed them to accelerate construction on the new facility. The last time we visited what used to be the yards, there was nothing left. Much has changed. When trailers begin rolling into the show in 2022, they will be welcomed by the entirely new Cille and Ron Williams Yards and Buck and Janie Hutchison Stockyards Event Center. How do these new yards fit in with the historic feeling of the yards that we all know and love? All of the wood from the old yards will be repurposed and used in the new facility. The individuals who are instrumental in the changes taking place in Denver all cherish and want to preserve the history of the National Western Stock Show. They are taking that same love that we all have for the event, combining it with more space and new facilities to offer us all an outlet that we can use for generations to come to exhibit, market and network. What is the Stockyards Event Center? This new facility will take the place of both the Pepsi Arena and the Livestock Center. Not only will it be larger in size, it will offer a state-of- the-art sale arena, new international room and a hospitality area that can be utilized during sales and events. Located where the Pepsi Arena used to stand in the yards, the Stockyards Event Center will give us our first taste of the new National Western Center. The Cille and Ron Williams Yards The pen shows and sales are some of the events that make the National Buck and Janie Hutchison Stockyards Event Center
Western Stock Show so unique in today’s world. In the Yards, all 20 acres of which will have asphalt footing, will provide exhibitors with more pens and a safer area to enjoy those same traditions for marketing their cattle. Another aspect of the Yards that will debut in 2022 is a larger herd sire footprint. There is nothing quite like the Display Bull weekend in Denver. What many will also be happy to learn is that a long-term contract was just signed by the Yard Bar, officially known as the Stockyards Saloon. It will keep its same location and home next to the Historic Exchange Building for years to come. What will not change in 2022? The Hill shows, rodeo and horse shows will remain untouched. You will stall your cattle in the same barns, wash them in the same wash racks and show them in the historic Stadium Arena built in 1909. Looking to the future, the Livestock Center will offer its Grand Opening at either the 2024 or 2025 show. The Livestock Center, which is in design, will house the show rings and offer 30% more barn space! The 2022 National Western Stock Show will offer exhibitors and visitors a commemorative ticket to a piece of history. Built on the same historic acreage as the original National Western Stock Show in 1906, what was then 90 acres has expanded to 250 acres that will be the foundation for the new National Western Center. It will be the only time in history that the show can start from a clean slate and build from the ground up. The history will still be in the veins of the future of the show, it will just be bigger, better and stronger than ever! The National Western Stock Show means something to all of us. To The Showtimes, it is an opportunity for us to cover and connect with individuals from multiple breeds,
To some, it is the crowd around their display bulls who are anxious to see the next big time industry sires. To others, it is their pen in the Yards that has been in their family for generations. To many, it is the nostalgia of showing their cattle in Stadium Arena on the hill. To steer exhibitors, it’s exercising their steers in the crowded arena the night before the show, hoping it will be their steer that is named Grand Champion, is put on display at the Historic Brown Palace Hotel and sells for $155,000. To the Hereford breeder, it the prestige of winning the champion title on the hill with a packed stadium. To numerous cattlemen, it is hauling semi-loads full of bulls, cows and heifers to sell at one of the numerous auctions hosted in the Livestock Center. To producers, it is the platform for which they make a large percentage of their yearly incomes. To all, it is the feeling of being a part of a show that has a rich history in the western lifestyle. What does the future hold for Denver? The 2020 show exposed us all to the reality that big changes are happening in the Mile High City. Construction, diagrams of the National Western Center development plans and the cancellation of the 2021 show left us all wondering what we can expect from the National Western Stock Show. This past month, The Showtimes sat down with the President and CEO of the National Western Stock Show, Paul Andrews,
228
Powered by FlippingBook