Bixby Native Competes In PBR Circuit At The BOK Center

Friday night the Professional Bull Riding series is back in Tulsa for its 14th consecutive year. One of the riders competing tonight is a Bixby native and says he can’t wait to ride in his hometown.

Venn Johns is from Bixby, he says winning the PBR here in Tulsa with all of his friends and family watching would mean even more than winning the world finals next month. In PBR, eight seconds is the difference between winning and losing. Twenty-year bull riding veteran Venn Johns says he knows all too well just how much those eight seconds mean.

This is his first time qualifying to ride in Tulsa at the BOK Center and he tells us he has a good feeling about this year. Tonight he will be going head to head with “Jungle Love”, a bull he says is known for bucking off riders within seconds of leaving the chute. 

“Every bull is a bull, every bull can be ridden if we do everything right,” Johns said. “That’s what we are shooting for, doing everything right as best we can.”

He said he has spent his entire life chasing an adrenaline rush. Johns is a former Olympic-level gymnast, MMA fighter, American Ninja Warrior competitor, and now PBR participant.

“Still to this day, twenty years later, I get the same feeling when I get on a bull. Skydiving, bungee jumping, scuba diving, flying planes, nothing ever measures up,” Johns said.

At 47 years old, Johns is the oldest rider competing this weekend, but he says he hopes his age leads to a legacy.

“There are so many records broken here in Tulsa, so why not have this be another record-breaking weekend and be the oldest guy winning a PBR event,” Johns said.

Johns says he will continue with PBR as long as he finds it competitive and for now, he says he’ll see you next year.

The PBR will be at 6:45 p.m. Friday and Saturday night at the BOK Center.