Big Sky Is About to Have Its Best Week of the Year. Here’s What You Need to Know.

Big Sky Is About to Have Its Best Week of the Year. Here’s What You Need to Know.

We’re approaching Big Sky’s Biggest Week. Ten days of community events, western tradition, and three nights of the best bull riding in the world. We produce it. We’ve been producing it for 15 years. And this year, the town is buzzing in a way that’s hard to miss.

Here’s everything going on, what the market looks like heading into summer, and what our team says you shouldn’t miss.

The full schedule

• Friday, July 10: Big Sky Community Rodeo — 7 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena, featuring MSU’s finest rodeo athletes across bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, saddle bronc, barrel racing, bull riding, and mutton bustin’
• Saturday, July 11: Montana’s Premier Horse Sale — noon at the Big Sky Events Arena
• Sunday, July 12: Running of the Bulls Trail Race — 7 AM at the Big Sky Events Arena, choose your distance: 21K, 11K, or 5K relay
• Tuesday, July 14: Community Day, Mutton Bustin’ and Pinewood Classic — 2 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena, free admission
• Tuesday, July 14: Dick Allgood Community Bingo Night — 6 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena, benefiting a local nonprofit
• Wednesday, July 15: PBR Golf Tournament — 9 AM at the Big Sky Golf Course, benefiting the Western Sports Foundation
• Thursday, July 16: Bull Riding Night 1 — 6 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena. Gates open 4:30 PM, Calcutta 5:30 PM. Thursday after-party free and open to the public at Len Hill Park as part of Music in the Mountains
• Friday, July 17: Bull Riding Night 2 — 7 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena. Gates open 5:30 PM, Calcutta 6:30 PM. Friday Night After Party with Alana Springsteen at 9 PM
• Saturday, July 18: Bull Riding Night 3 — 7 PM at the Big Sky Events Arena. Gates open 5:30 PM, Calcutta 6:30 PM. Saturday Night After Party with Dylan Gossett at 9 PM
  
  

Tips from the Outlaw team

Our agents have been attending this event for as long as we’ve been producing it. Here’s what they tell people.

Michael Pitcairn
Book everything in advance. Restaurants, activities, lodging — all of it. Big Sky’s Biggest Week fills up and last-minute options get thin. While you’re here, get up to Kircliff at the resort for the views. Hike Ousel Falls if you want something short and beautiful, or push out to Storm Castle or Lava Lake if you have a full day. Don’t miss Community Day — it’s one of the best free afternoons of the whole summer.

EJ Daws
Start your mornings right. Hike Beehive Basin and take a cold plunge in the lake — it’ll wake you up faster than coffee. Ride bikes at Big Sky Resort to get the adrenaline going before the rodeo. Pregame at Tips Up, then get into the PBR early for food, drinks, and seats before the crowd fills in. Know what the Calcutta is before you get there and have a number in mind. Find Cord McCoy pre-show and ask him for his read on the teams.

Chris Eastlund
After Thursday’s rodeo, walk over to Music in the Mountains at Len Hill Park — free, right there, and a great way to keep the night going. If you want a casual hike with great views close to town, the Uplands Trail behind the arena is the move. And talk to people. Folks come from all over the country — ranchers, tech executives, families who’ve been making this trip for a decade. Some of the best conversations of the summer happen in those bleachers. Chris also knows the best fly fishing spots in the area. He will fill you in at chris@outlaw.realty or (952)567-1263.

Ethan Stokes
Ride the Mountain to Meadows trail — one of the best ways to see Big Sky before the chaos kicks off. Walk the vendor area at PBR before you find your seat; there’s always something worth stopping at. Then settle in for the show and stay for the sunset behind Lone Peak. There’s no backdrop like it in professional sports. Don’t leave early — the concert after the rodeo is part of the experience.

Graham Miles
Start the morning with Ousel Falls — it’s a quick out and back, and you’ll be glad you did it. Grab breakfast and coffee at Cowboy Coffee, then head to Beehive Brewery before the gates open. Get in early, check out the vendors, and spend some time thinking through your Calcutta picks before the auction starts. Going in with a plan makes it a lot more fun.

George Vincent
Get a round in at the Big Sky Community Course before the week gets too busy. Then ride up at the Big Sky Resort Bike Park and take the Mountain to Meadows trail into town ahead of the event. Arriving on two wheels with Lone Peak behind you is a pretty good way to start a PBR night.

Why this week matters beyond the rodeo

We produce the Big Sky PBR. We also sell real estate here. The people who come for PBR week and fall in love with Big Sky are the same people who call us in the fall asking about property. The lifestyle this event represents — western, outdoor, community-driven — is the same lifestyle that has made Big Sky one of the most compelling real estate markets in the country. With 193 active properties on the market right now and sellers priced for today’s conditions, it’s a good time to be looking.

Come for the bulls. Stay for the rest of it.

Outlaw Realty | Big Sky & Bozeman