June 2009 Issue

People often ask why I practice on calves or “mulies.” I like to rope smaller steers and the problem is that small steers with good horns are expensive. I found that by roping mulies I could make money when I sold them. That’s easier to justify than losing $100 to $200 per steer. The downside is that no one wants to come rope them, not many people like to practice roping calves around the neck and they’re easy to lay down if your horse doesn’t work correctly. When roping big steers your horse will drop his shoulder in order to get the steer’s head, which is one of the main problems with roping big steers. By roping small steers or calves your horse can stay up square and it makes you learn to handle steers for your heeler. If your horse drops out, your heeler doesn’t have a very good chance to catch.

True, mulies are harder to rope than steers. But all my life and career, my mindset has been to make things as hard as I could during practice. Roping mulies correctly requires a very precise shot. I’ve always set up difficult scenarios to practice so when I leave home, competing is usually easier than my practice and my chance for a successful run is much better. I would rather fail at home than away from home. A lot of people make their practice sessions easy and when the unexpected happens during competition, they’re not prepared.

All ropers should spend some time on the dummy. I recommend keeping three or four sizes of horns to practice on and do drills that include roping the dummy close as well as trotting up to it. You have to practice every possible scenario that may occur during competition in order to be prepared.

Everyone asks if I miss roping and I don’t think it’s been long enough yet. You have to remember that every day of my life was consumed with roping. When my first child, Hali, was born it was an awakening that changed my priorities. You want to build a life for your children and the more you think about it, the less you want to gamble with your ability to provide for your family. Those who do gamble for a living know what I’m talking about.

I roped to provide for my family, that’s what I knew how to do. Now, I have stability and still get to do something I love and that I’m passionate about. It’s gratifying to have the opportunity to make a difference in a sport that is so much a part of me.

My whole roping career has been about gathering information and making educated decisions when I back in the box. Developing Speed’s Match Roping (SMR) is also about gathering information and making decisions, very much the same way.
We’ve just completed a fantastic sponsorship program that we’ve been working on for two months. It’s very different than what sponsors are used to seeing.

One of the most enjoyable parts of my life is getting to spend time with my family every day and that is high priority for me. Being away from my wife and kids was a sacrifice I made for months at a time while rodeoing.

I’ll be traveling some this summer putting on SMR ropings. We’re going to have some SMR ropings at my dad’s memorial roping, in Florida the last weekend of August, and we plan to make it pretty special.

I haven’t left the team roping world. In fact, I’m involved on a much larger scale because I’m not competing.

For more information about Speed, including roping tips and video clips, visit www.speedzoneroping.com.

www.fastbackropes.com