Riding with the best: PBR picks 4 Diné to compete in Saturday event
CROWNPOINT
On Saturday, Justin Granger will be stepping inside the arena for the first time in over two months.
File photo
Justin Granger of Tuba City stays aboard his draw at the 2019 PBR’s Buckin on the Rez in Window Rock. Granger was selected to compete in Saturday’s PBR event at Red Rock Park.
Granger was selected to compete in the first-ever PBR Pendleton Whiskey Velocity Tour event at Red Rock Park. Show time starts at 7 p.m.
He is one of four Diné bull riders that will take their plunge during the one-night event. He will be joined by INFR world champion Latrell Long, Ramon Curley and Wyatt Betony.
“I guess it’s good that they still have faith in me,” Granger said of his selection. “It’s just a blessing to go in and ride bulls with some of the best riders in the PBR’s Velocity Tour division.
“It’s a good tour of the PBR and I got to do it for a few years,” he added. “I went all over the country competing in the Velocity Tour.”
Those early years in the Velocity Tour helped Granger reach the pinnacle of competing on the PBR Global Cup in 2019.
“That was an awesome experience,” he said. “It was a dream come true.”
As a fulltime truck driver, Granger said he hasn’t been on a bull since the Wild Thing Championship Bull Riding in mid-July.
“Everything will come back to me,” he said. “It’s all about muscle memory and I’m just going to go out there and have fun.”
The Tuba City cowboy expressed his gratitude to the Navajo Nation for bringing a PBR event close to the reservation amid the ongoing pandemic.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
Betony is also eager about competing against some of the PBR’s best as the field will have 40 bull riders. The format for the event will have all 40 attempt one bull ride with the top 10 earning another draw in the championship round.
“I’m excited and I’m determined,” Betony said, while adding that it’s very rewarding to be selected.
“I’m going to try my best,” he said. “Everyone entered has the ability to win it.”
Betony said the bull they’ll use on Saturday will be a handful as some will probably get selected to buck at the PBR World Finals in early November.
Like Granger, Betony said he’s been away from the sport and that’s due to injuries.
“I’m healthy again,” he said. “I haven’t been on a whole lot of bulls this summer as usual because of injuries. But as of late, I feel good.”
Tickets for the event are $33 if purchased online at PBRTIX.com before the event. On Saturday, the tickets will increase to $40 and the can be purchased at the Red Rock Park box office.
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