NFR viewing parties continue to boom

Over the course of 10 nights at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, about 180,000 fans can attend in person. But easily double that number of people arrive in town each December for the annual Super Bowl of Rodeo.

And all those leftover fans get to see plenty of live NFR action, while hearing the same call that fans in the Thomas Mack Center seats hear each night.

How, you might ask? Well, there are literally dozens of Wrangler NFR viewing parties/after-parties at venues up and down the Vegas Strip, downtown and around the city. All those venues receive a live feed straight from the arena.

And believe me when I say these events are full of faithful fans every night.

Each year, I head out to several of these parties, all in one night. Saturday was that night this year, and the trek did not disappoint.

Let’s take all of you along for the ride.

5:45 p.m. Saturday, Gilley’s at Treasure Island

So here’s one of the worst-kept secrets of the Wrangler NFR: The viewing parties all around town are spectacular.

You could certainly make a case that, in many ways, the viewing parties are even better than being inside the raucous-and-rowdy Thomas Mack Center.

Take it from Jennifer Goyne, who along with husband Kyle made the sojourn to Vegas from Mountaintop, Pa. Goyne gave a huge thumbs-up to Saturday night’s viewing party at a jam-packed Gilley’s, inside Treasure Island.

“I just think it’s a great way to see the rodeo,” Goyne said from a table with a perfect view of all the action. “If you can’t get tickets down low behind the chutes, this is the next-best thing. And Gilley’s is the best place to watch. Everybody is here for the same reason.”

But it’s not just about getting up close to NFR action at a fraction of the price. It’s the camaraderie of rodeo fans from across the country. Seated at the same table as the Goynes were Chad and Chanda Mills, and their 14-year-old daughter Brinley. The Mills are from Veneta, Oregon.

“We didn’t know these people before tonight. I didn’t know their names til just now,” Goynes said with a laugh.

By watching them interact, though, you’d think the two families knew each other for years, rather than just a few minutes.

“When you’re in a rodeo situation, it’s easy to become fast friends,” Chad said.

Added Chanda: “Any country person is a good person!”

All five were having a great time, even the teenager in the bunch, because Gilley’s allows those under 21 to attend the viewing party portion of the evening. That’s a big plus for mom.

“I’ve never been to a viewing party. This is amazing,” Chanda said. “It’s our first time at Gilley’s. My kid is allowed to be in here and experience this. It’s a family thing where we can all watch the NFR. It’s so cool being able to do this together as a family.”

Chanda then summed it up nicely.

“If we’re not actually at the NFR, we’ll be here,” she said.

6:45 p.m. Saturday, KAOS at the Palms

For the moment, let’s call this NFR viewing party venue a hidden gem. KAOS is new to the rotation this year. But people are quickly finding out it’s a tremendous venue, thanks to all the high-tech audio/video elements, since KAOS was formerly a nightclub.

The sightlines, curved big screen and sound are excellent, and rodeo fans reveled in all of it – spread across two levels – during Saturday’s second go-round of the NFR. Among those fans was Steve Decker of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, which partnered with the Palms to create this new rodeo viewing experience.

“This is an awesome venue. It’s a former nightclub, so a lot of the audio/visual stuff is already set,” Decker said. “This is a natural, not only for the live feed and viewing experience, but the after-party concert. This room is a place where we can build a really cool experience for the fans.

“The Palms has been a phenomenal partner. They’re all in on rodeo.”

In just the first two nights of the NFR – Friday to Saturday – Decker said word of mouth had clearly gotten around town about the KAOS viewing party.

“We’ve had exponential growth already. Word will get out about this,” Decker said. “If I were a fan, I’d get here early to get a seat.”

7:30 p.m. Saturday, BetMGM Sportsbook at Mandalay Bay

There’s nothing quite like a Vegas sportsbook to soak in a major event. Such a venue is a perfect fit for the Wrangler NFR, already equipped with massive video walls that allow for a fantastic viewing experience.

The BetMGM Sportsbook inside Mandalay Bay is catering to the cowboy/cowgirl crowd this week. All the typical sportsbook seating has been removed, with hundreds of chairs set up each night to accommodate throngs of viewers on the main sportsbook floor and in the adjacent expansive bar area. With the huge screen, there’s not a bad seat in the house.

And once each night’s rodeo go-round ends, all the chairs are removed for a live concert, as the sportsbook turns into a honky-tonk.

Melinda and Steve Ledbetter of Weatherford, Texas, found the setup very much to their liking.

“We had a great position, the screens were good, everything is good here,” Steve said. “It wasn’t too crowded to where people were on top of you. It’s a really good venue.”

Added Melinda: “I just thought it was really neat. This is probably the next-best thing to being at the rodeo.”

9 p.m. Saturday, South Point Showroom

No viewing party/after-party trip is complete without a stop at the South Point. As the NFR announcers inside the Thomas Mack often say, “It’s where the cowboys go after the rodeo.”

And it’s where the cowgirls go, too. Not just after, but during the rodeo.

South Point has a big viewing party in its upstairs convention halls each night, and that’s certainly worth attending. But the real rager is in the Showroom. The evening opens with the viewing party at 5:45 p.m., but you better get there a lot earlier if you want to sit down.

After the rodeo ends, the Showroom hosts the go-round buckle awards, for event winners each night. Then there’s a live concert.

On Saturday night, 30 minutes before the buckle awards show started – it airs live on The Cowboy Channel, too – the Showroom was literally bursting at the seams. The dance floor was packed full of fans, and every seat around the joint was full.

Mother and daughter Joan and Bailey Lehr were soaking it all in, as they’ve done for several years. This is their fifth trip to Vegas for the Wrangler NFR.

“We’ve been all over Vegas, and the South Point is where it’s at,” Joan said. “If you come to Las Vegas for the rodeo, you’ve gotta be at the South Point Showroom. That’s the truth!”

So what makes the Showroom the truth?

“I would say it’s the friendly country atmosphere, where people just want to have fun and enjoy rodeo,” said Bailey, who in 2022 was named Miss Rodeo Nebraska.

There was plenty more pageantry at the Lehr’s table, as they were joined by 2022 Miss Rodeo North Dakota Elise Burwell and 2022 Miss Rodeo New York Ericka Vrooman, among several other party-goers.

Not that the Lehrs limited their socializing to just the rodeo queen community. Quite the contrary, which is part of why Joan so enjoys the scene at the South Point Showroom.

“We all have the same background. I could talk to anybody in this room, even total strangers. It’s wonderful,” Joan said. “It’s kind of hard to put into words, but there’s just something about the South Point.”

And there’s certainly something about Wrangler NFR viewing parties. You’d serve yourself well by checking them out.