GATES — For nearly one and one-half decades, thousands have made the annual pilgrimage to a grassy field off Paige Riddick Road near the North Carolina-Virginia border.

That yearly trek to rural Gates County will be witnessed again May 6-7 when Aaron Brown opens his Slo-Go Ranch to the public for the annual Gates County Championship Rodeo.

Come out and see these hard riding cowboys and cowgirls take center stage and vie for cash and points on the yearly Southern Rodeo Association and American Professional Rodeo Association tours. Many of the top-10 competitors on both those rodeo circuits are scheduled to compete at the Gates County event.

Gates open each evening at 6 p.m. The nightly show gets underway at 7:30 p.m. with the traditional “flag ride.”

The action will be fast and furious inside the Aaron Brown Roping Arena. There, competitors will participate in bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, team roping, cowgirls barrel racing, breakaway roping and bull riding.

Rodeo clown Mike Wentworth promises to keep the crowd thoroughly entertained during and in-between events.

“Wilderness Road” will perform following Saturday night’s event.

Advance tickets ($10 for adults; $6 for children) are now on sale at Brinkley’s Hardware and Red Barn Tack and Feed, both in Gates, McKeel’s Jewelry in Ahoskie, Blake Ford in Franklin, Va. and Rick and Roy’s in Suffolk, Va.

Tickets at the gate are priced at $12 for adults and $8 for children.

For more information, call 252-357-2412 or 252-209-1473.