Bull riding may be coming to Pittsburgh for the first time in more than 30 years, unless proposed legislation reinstates the city’s ban on such events.
Professional Bull Riders [PBR] has announced Unleash The Beast tour dates at PPG Paints Arena, Jan. 24 and 25.
PBR spokesperson Andrew Giangola said the company hosted events in Philadelphia, Allentown, Reading and Johnstown, and wants to come to Pittsburgh due to local demand.
Humane Action Pittsburgh, though, is asking PPG Paints Arena to cancel the event and legislators to take action.
In 1992, Pittsburgh City Council banned devices commonly used in rodeos and bull riding, including electric prods, bucking straps and spurs, which constituted a de facto ban.
During the final hours of state budget negotiations this July, unnamed state legislators entered a provision overriding local legislation banning rodeos. Pittsburgh is the only locality in Pennsylvania that had a ban.
“It all happened so fast,” said Natalie Ahwesh, executive director of Humane Action Pittsburgh. “It was signed by the governor, all in a few hours.”
Ahwesh was concerned that “undoing the will of local municipalities and local government could happen so fast without any time for public dissemination or constituent input.”
On Sept. 16, Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-West View, released a co-sponsor memo to garner support for legislation to repeal the preemption of local rodeo and bull riding bans. Senators Nikil Saval, Carolyn Comitta and Katie Muth, all Democrats, have signed on as co-sponsors. The legislation would repeal the fiscal code provision, allowing Pittsburgh’s rodeo ban to go back into effect immediately.
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Local elected officials weighed in on the matter with PublicSource. City Councilor Barb Warwick, D-Greenfield, echoed Williams’ position.
“It’s the local government’s job to make local legislation,” agreed Councilor Deb Gross, D-Highland Park. She opposes the “notion that Harrisburg would preempt and overrule ordinances on our books, overnight.” She said residents in her district have not voiced concern over the 1992 Pittsburgh rodeo ban, and doesn’t know why state officials felt the need to overturn it.
“We’ll be watching to see how the [Williams] bill progresses,” Gross added.
Connected lobbyists
According to Becky Boyle, spokesperson for Williams, Senate Republicans were behind the provision. Senate Republican leadership did not respond to requests for comment on the matter.
State disclosures show that Colorado-based Professional Bull Riders hired four lobbyists from Allegheny Strategy Partners to support the efforts. Two of the lobbyists are partners at the firm: Joe Scarnati, former GOP Senate leader, and Thomas Johnson, a former staffer for Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum and a former campaign advisor for Donald Trump.
PBR paid $37,575 to Allegheny Strategy Partners from July 2023 through July 2024, according to Pennsylvania Department of State records.
Less than a month after the budget passed, PBR announced its Pittsburgh shows.
‘Rockstars’ and injuries
Ahwesh said she’s concerned with the state’s ability to preempt local laws with virtually no public input.
“Animals should not be used merely for the sake of entertainment. Their place in society is not to be used and abused and taken out of everything that’s natural to them.”
Natalie Ahwesh, executive director of Humane Action Pittsburgh
“[Pittsburgh City] Council has to be somewhat hesitant to put too much time and effort into working on monumental and controversial legislation, if there’s a decent chance it’s just going to be preempted and undone,” she said.
“Animals should not be used merely for the sake of entertainment. Their place in society is not to be used and abused and taken out of everything that’s natural to them.”
Giangola countered that PBR’s animals are “treated like rockstars.”
“Bulls are competing because it’s in their DNA,” he added.
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During one of the last Pittsburgh bull riding events — which occurred before PBR’s founding — a bull was euthanized because of a broken leg. That was the impetus for the 1992 rodeo ban.
Bull riding is also one of the most dangerous sports for humans, with rider injuries occurring one in every 15 rides, according to the Associated Press. Two riders were killed during PBR events in 2019 and 2021.
The national advocacy group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals [PETA] maintains a 14-page list of rodeo incidents — including some at PBR events — dating back to 1995. Eyewitnesses report bulls being euthanized after sustaining broken legs and backs. During a 2022 PBR event in Fairfax, Virginia, a bull crushed his leg and collapsed. Handlers dragged the bull from the arena with a rope tied around his neck and legs. At other events, bulls escaped, charging into crowds and running into traffic, before being shot by police or captured and euthanized.
Giangola said PBR doesn’t use electric prods to make bulls buck, but they are used in “limited circumstances” for safety in trailers and back holding areas. In competition, bulls are fitted with bucking or flank straps, which encourage them to kick, but Giangola claimed it “does not harm or agitate the bull.”
Ahwesh disagreed. “The straps are put around the torso of the bulls so tightly that they’re in such excruciating pain, that they do the bucking. That’s how they get them to make that movement,” she said.
PBR’s livestock live all over the country and travel extensively for tournaments. The 1,200- to 2,000-pound bulls can spend up to 10 hours a day in trailers, standing on a “spongy trailer bed floor” coated with 6 to 10 inches of sawdust to cushion their weight, according to Giangola. After 10 hours, the bulls must rest for 12 to 14 hours.
“We want the bulls to glide down the highway,” said Giangola, “so they’re ready to go when they get to the arena.”
Rachel Windsor is a Pittsburgh-based writer and can be reached at rachelwindsor14@gmail.com.
This story was fact-checked by Spencer Levering.
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