Fort Worth’s professional bull riding team, the Ariat Texas Rattlers, is adding a new training center for its 12 members team.
The Performance Center in Decatur will be a 3,000-square-foot space within the Fit-N-Wise Fitness and Wellness Center, 901 Medical Center Drive, Decatur. It will also serve as a second home for the Fort Worth-based Rattlers, which compete in the Team Series of the Professional Bull Riders league.
“Through the first four seasons, we’ve distinguished ourselves as a championship team and one of the league’s top-performing organizations,” said Chad Blankenship, president and general manager of the Rattlers.
The Ariat Texas Rattlers Performance Center is an investment in the athletes and coaches and will help grow the sport, he said. While the team will remain headquartered in Fort Worth, establishing the training space in Decatur makes sense because the area is a primary hub for professional bull riders, Blankenship said.
“It’s home for many of our team bull riders, as well as our annual PBR Ride for Decatur charity bull riding event and legions of Rattlers fans,” he said.
The centerpiece of the Rattlers’ dedicated space will be an approximately 2,000-square-foot main training and recovery area designed to accommodate all team riders simultaneously.
The facility will also include team lockers; a dedicated physical therapy and rehabilitation area; nutrition and film-review spaces; coaching and management offices; and specialized bull-riding equipment, including a barrel used to simulate riding scenarios.
A separate recovery room will feature hot- and cold-plunge tubs, providing riders with a dedicated space for post-training and post-competition recovery. Riders will also have access to individualized strength, mobility, rehabilitation and recovery programming through the team’s athlete performance staff.
The Performance Center will also be used to market the team. Plans call for a “Snake Den,” a gallery celebrating the team’s championship history and connection to Texas. The space will include historical team photography, framed specialty jerseys, Cowtown-inspired elements and a replica of the team’s 2023 PBR Teams Championship trophy buckle.
The Rattlers’ investment comes as PBR continues to deliver growth among its live event and TV audiences. PBR Teams drew a record 272,315 fans in 2025, while broadcasts on CBS and CW Network reached more than 28 million viewers nationwide. Headquartered in Fort Worth, the PBR association was founded in 1992.
The Rattlers’ Performance Center will officially open Aug. 27 with a ribbon-cutting.
The Rattlers are owned by the Fisher family, founders of the Gap retail chain, and Fort Worth entrepreneur and former city councilman Leonard Firestone.
Bob Francis is business editor at the Fort Worth Report. bob.francis@fortworthreport.org.
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