Group plans big rodeo restaurant in Everett

EVERETT — Deep in the heart of the city's industrial district, a group of entrepreneurs has plans for a Texas-size restaurant that will offer more than just ribs and steaks.

Also on the menu at the Rodeo Fever Grill & Steak House will be live indoor bull riding. The restaurant will be housed in the old Crown Distributing warehouse on McDougall Avenue between 33rd and 35th avenues.

Remodeling of the building may begin as early as Monday, according to Kody Johnson, chairman of the Rodeo Fever Development Committee. He expects construction to take four to eight weeks.

As the restaurateurs make preparations, they are also preparing to meet criticism from animal-rights activists who question the treatment of rodeo bulls. One group says it will launch an educational campaign on bull riding and what it calls the inhumane treatment of bulls.

Johnson said the restaurant will feature bull-riding contests Friday and Saturday nights in a 50-by-50-foot arena. There are also plans for country-music concerts.

Though it won't be as large as the nation's most famous rodeo restaurant — the 127,000-square-foot Billy Bob's Texas, in Fort Worth — Rodeo Fever will be one of the largest restaurants in Washington, with about 13,000 square feet.

"A few of us had been talking this over for a few years," Johnson said. They had considered locations in Eastern Washington, Southwest Washington and Oregon before settling on Everett.

"It's hard to find a building that has enough room," he said.

On Friday and Saturday nights, eight to 10 bulls will be kept in holding pens in the parking lot on the north side of the building. The pens, bucking chutes and indoor arena will be surrounded by 7-foot-tall "rodeo panels," which will be bolted to the concrete floor. Johnson said experts have recommended covering the floor with at least 16 inches of dirt.

The bulls will be provided by Rockin' J Rodeo, a company near Silvana that's owned by Johnson's brother, Kory Johnson. Rockin' J supplies bulls to rodeos across the state.

Kody Johnson said that safety — for both spectators and animals — will be a priority at Rodeo Fever. The bull-riding arena will be surrounded by two fences spaced 5 feet apart.

He said he has fielded several complaints from animal-rights groups.

"We've taken extra time to try to address their concerns," he said. "Watchdog groups are very important. We want to be able to work with all the groups."

Susan Michaels, a co-founder of Pasado's Safe Haven, an animal-welfare organization based in Sultan, says she is planning an educational campaign in a few weeks to "let the public know about what it is that makes those bulls buck."

Michaels said it is common practice for a jagged piece of metal to be placed on the inside of the "flank strap." She said the metal presses into the bull's groin, causing the bull to buck. "It's what we've seen at every rodeo we've ever attended," she said.

"I've never seen anyone use sharp metal in flank straps," Kody Johnson said. "I've spent a lot of time around rodeo. That's something I've never seen."

He added, "We adhere to the rules of PRCA (the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association), and they have strict guidelines for stock contractors. The use of metal objects in the flank strap is strictly prohibited."

Kory Johnson said the flank strap is "a soft cotton rope that is placed around the hips. It doesn't come into contact with the bull's genitalia at all."

The bulls buck, he said, because "the rope is loose enough that they kick to try to get the rope off." Bulls are also bred to encourage bucking.

He said skeptics are "welcome to come up and take a look."

"These bulls are all athletes," he said. "You have to keep them in good shape. They're not going to be able to perform if you don't treat them well."

In order to help ensure that the animals aren't mistreated, Kody Johnson said, surveillance cameras will be installed throughout the building. "We're going to police this very carefully because the last thing we would want is for our name to be associated with any kind of animal abuse," he said.

They will likely have a hard time convincing some animal-rights activists.

"Rodeo is something that we're pretty strongly opposed to," said Wayne Pacelle, senior vice president of the Humane Society of the United States.

"Bulls don't buck violently in the course of normal behavior. That is an induced behavior."

Because of the small size of the rodeo arena, bull riding is the only event that will be held, Kody Johnson said.

In bull riding, the rider mounts the bull in the bucking chute, holding onto a rope tied around the bull's chest. For a successful ride, the rider must stay on the bull for eight seconds.

The rider is disqualified if he touches the bull or himself with his free hand. The rider can receive up to 100 points. Half of the score is based on the rider's performance, and the other half on the performance of the bull.

Only professional bull riders will be allowed to compete. Kody Johnson said the entrepreneurs hope to draw some of the top professionals by offering an annual total of $250,000 in prizes. He said they have already had calls from some of the top riders.

Though rodeo seems to be gaining popularity nationwide, due in part to weekly coverage of the Professional Bull Riders tour on the Outdoor Life Network, it is an open question whether rodeo is popular enough in the Northwest for Rodeo Fever to be a success.

The Johnsons aren't worried, however. "It's going to be big," Kody Johnson said.

Mark Campbell, fairgrounds manager for the Evergreen State Fair in Monroe, said that even though the Northwest isn't normally considered "rodeo country," the sport enjoys a considerable following here.

During the fair, Campbell said, between 2,500 and 3,300 spectators attend each of the four days of rodeo events.

"It does seem to be popular," said Campbell, a former bull rider. "It's a very exciting sport — it's pure excitement, pure adrenaline."

Jesse Tarbert: jtarbert@seattletimes.com or 206-464-2540