On a steer that breaks and leaves running hard, you know that after your header ropes him there'll be about two jumps of drift between the time the header gets that steer's head and he's lined out for you to rope him because of the speed he's built up.

On a steer like that you have to ride farther down the arena before you make your corner so you end up behind the steer where you want to be.  If you started to turn in when the steer's head came around, you'd be way too far to the inside.

If a steer leaves there running about medium, but looks like he's wanting to slow down and drop his head, that gives you an indication that he might want to get a little heavy when the header gets ahold of him.  That steer's turn will tend to square a lot sharper.

The reason your turn will be a lot sharper on a steer like that is because there's no speed there.  A steer like that will just turn and go straight across the arena. 

If a steer leaves there running medium to fast and moving left from the get-go, that's an angle read.  The header's going to have to come back up the arena because of the left fence, so the heeler needs to get out around that steer and get set up for a quicker shot because it's an easier read.

You can rope a steer that goes to the left a lot faster because he's so predictable.  He's trapped, so he's basically taken three-quarters of the arena out of play.  you've got him cornered, so you can pinpoint where he's going to turn back and get a quick throw at him. 

When a steer leaves there going right and trying to beat you to the right fence, that's also an angle read.  That tells you you're going to be pinched up against the steer because you can't get out as wide as you need to be, since the fence is right there.  Your shot is probably going to be taken from a position that's farther inside from where it usually is.

A high-headed steer will usually jump real high behind when the header leads him off.  When the header pulls him, that pulls his head down, which pushes his hind end up. 

A steer that runs level-headed will usually have truer hops because of the levelness of his head. 

A steer that's naturally low-headed will tend to have a low hind end and maybe even drag because the header will pull his head up.  That'll push his hind end down.

When I leave the box, the first thing I do is try to get a read on the steer.  Knowing all these things immediately give me a game plan and puts me ahead of the steer's next move. 

It's nice to know what kind of steer you draw ahead of time in rodeo-type situations.  But at the same time, I like my moves to be based on reacting to what actually happens.  I want to make my moves based on the signs the steer shows me, just in case he doesn't follow his usual pattern.