Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2017 i The Team Roping Journal

Dear Roper, It’s been four years since I last made the trek from Colorado to Oklahoma for the USTRC’s Cinch National Finals of Team Roping. As we prepare this issue, I’m planning my travel back to the Jim Norick Arena to again watch ropers at every level from every walk of life converge to compete for millions in prize money and coveted national titles. In 2013 on my last trip to OKC, some friends and I went to dinner with Aaron Tsinigine the night before the US Open, and what struck me was how quiet he was that night. I asked him why he was so reserved while the rest of us laughed and joked, and he said, “I get to rope with the Champ tomorrow. I can’t blow it.…

Clay Smith and Paul Eaves tied Tyler Wade and Billie Jack Saebens for the average win at the Caldwell (Idaho) Night Rodeo, banking one of the biggest single paydays available to team ropers in late August. Smith and Eaves won $6,801 each, including a round-two win and short-round paycheck, while Wade and Saebens took home $6,781 a man for a second-place first-round check and the short-round fast time. “This was our first rodeo together,” Saebens, who rode his 9-year-old gelding Kevin, said. “Coleman (Proctor) went home to help get ready for his daughter they’re expecting, and Tyler came to help me make the final push.” Wade, who was aboard his black-and-white 17-year-old Paint gelding Bunny, and Saebens were third callback and had to be 5.6 to take the lead. They…

Oregon’s Hayes Smith teamed up with California’s Justin Davis to hit big at Baker, Montana’s Fallon County Fair & Rodeo with a 4.2-second run worth $3,661 each. That win came just days after picking up an even bigger win at Hermiston, Oregon’s Farm-City Pro Rodeo, roping two steers in 9.6 seconds for a total payday of $5,538 a man. “I won $20,000 all year long, and in the last 14 days we won $15,000,” Davis said. “I was rodeoing to help Hayes try to make the Finals this year. I went from 40th in the world to 22nd .” Smith started the year rodeoing with Russell Cardoza when Dustin Bird went home for calving and branding seasons, and has had six or seven partners throughout the year. The 24-year-old grew…

[Ladies Hybrid Jacket] cinchjeans.com , $100 Merging the best of both worlds, the new CINCH hybrid delivers the warmth of a jacket with a quilted poly-filled body, and provides the range of motion of a hoodie, with bonded fleece hood and sleeves. Lightweight and versatile, this ladies’ hybrid jacket is ideal for working at the barn or heading to the offi ce. XS-XXL. [Brushed Hybrid Jacket] cinchjeans.com , $120 Classic style gets a modern update with this brushed plaid hybrid jacket featuring bonded fabric piecing, zippered front pockets and leather logo patches. XS-XXL. OE Nutraceuticals [OE SCORE] oenutraceuticals.com , $50 A product designed specifically for ropers and their horses, OE Score calms your horse so that you can count on a more consistent ride. Available in a…

Becky Cannizzaro Folsom, La. Currently third in the USTRC Cinch Ladies Standings. Number and End I’m a 5 heeler. Louisiana Ropings We can go to a roping every weekend. We don’t have the little jackpot ropings during the week. When you get east of the Mississippi, you’re dealing with the blue collar people that work eight to 10 hours a day, Monday through Friday, and they’re off every other weekend, so they don’t go to ropings during the week. And they have to pick and choose where they go on the weekends. But if the horses are sound, we’re going every weekend. Favorite Roping They’re kind of all my favorite because I love to rope. If I miss, sometimes I start laughing and smiling, and you know, I’m not laying…

From the red dirt of Guthrie, Oklahoma’s Lazy E Arena to the concrete walls of the Jim Norick Arena in Oklahoma City, the United States Team Roping Championship’s Cinch National Finals of Team Roping has provided moments that have pumped life through the veins of the sport as the largest roping in the world since 1990. From record-breaking payouts to tear-jerking wins, the Cinch NFTR has been the only place to be each October for everyone who swings a rope. 1990 First-Ever USTRC National Finals of Team Roping Denny and Connie Gentry were in the hunt for a centralized location to create interstate commerce for the sport of team roping. The decision came down to the Dallas-Fort Worth area or the Oklahoma City area, and Guthrie’s Lazy E got the…

BREAKING THE ARENA RECORD AT ST. PAUL THE FIRST TIME I EVER GOT TO GO TO IT–THAT’S PRETTY AWESOME. When Joseph Harrison told his boss—legendary AQHA trainer Bobby Lewis—that he wanted to take a chance in 2017 to make the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, Lewis had one piece of advice. “My boss wanted me to do it,” Harrison said. “He wanted me to know, when I’m old and grey, that I did it. He didn’t want me sitting around wishing I had.” Harrison, who’d previously qualified for the Prairie Circuit Finals with Mike Bacon, was amateur rodeoing and jackpotting with a talented hand named Jackie Crawford—who happens to be married to eight-time WNFR header Charly Crawford. “Jackie and I had talked at the amateur finals about me roping with Charly,”…

Oklahoma’s Brandon Abney and Scott Keller took home the number-one spot in the #9 at the USTRC’s Chisholm Trail Classic in Enid, Okla. Their team took home a total of $6,950 plus 6,000 in flex earnings after turning in an accumulative time of 41.32 seconds on four head. “You can’t miss behind Brandon Abney,” Keller explained. “If you do, you know it’s your fault. He handles cattle too darn good.” Abney rode his 14-year-old buckskin gelding, Uncle Buck, while Keller cleaned up on the heel side aboard his 7-year-old gelding, Popcorn. Keller, a 4 on both ends, trades grain for a living. He married into a roping family who taught him how to rope just seven years ago. Along with his wife, Lindsay, and 2-year-old son, Trigg, Keller gives credit…

Curicyn™ [Wound Care] curicyn.com , see site for pricing Look no farther than the Exclusive Wound Care Product of the World Series of Team Roping for a wound and skincare product that can deliver impressive results on your animals–large and small. Offered in practical packaging that allows for safe and easy application, Curicyn™ will soon be the only product you’re reaching for in your care kit. E4 ROPES [Grenade Head Rope] e4ropes.com , $35 A lightning-fast, 4-strand, nylon rope with a minimalist feel, the Grenade is the new iteration of the Bandit. The smallest head rope available from E4 thrills with its stunning tip weight and rapid-fire handle. [Blue Mamba Heel Rope] e4ropes.com , $37.50 The Blue Mamba offers heelers a full-handed feel with this nylon and…

{ Vital Stats } AGE: 33 ROPE: GT4 MH by Rattler WNFR QUALIFICATIONS: 8 HOME: Morgan Mill, Texas PARTNER: Chad Masters CAREER EARNINGS: $1,469,749 When I was little, I spent time in front of the mirror looking at my swing, studying the angle of my rope. Back in the day, I’d stand at the saw horse for hours, figuring out the best way to get my tip to drive the whole way through with a big, open loop. Today, those skills are still as applicable as ever. The quality of your loop, from the time you leave the box the whole way through to your delivery, will make or break your heeling at any level. Whether I’m at a jackpot trying to catch or at a rodeo trying…

TREVOR BRAZILE HORSE: Boogie, 15-year-old gelding Bit: #6 Tommy Blessing Why? It’s still soft enough in the box but it lets me get a-holt of those head horses once they get going fast in the field. More: $119.99, nrsworld.com CHARLY CRAWFORD HORSE: Nasty, 10-year-old gelding and Sailor, 9-year-old gelding Bit: Kerry Kelly Why? Kerry Kelly makes a lot of different ports. One of the corrections that he’s made, I like. I’m not as comfortable with it, but it fits in the horse’s mouth really well and rides really well. A lot of the times if there’s any flaws with the bit it’s usually because I’m not riding it as well. More: $595 817-594-1775, kerrykelleyspurs.com TYLER WADE HORSE: Fonzie, 16-year-old gelding Bit: Mad Cow Company Ported Chain Why? I always put…

Texan Lane Ivy and Kansan Buddy Hawkins II won the Spicer Gripp Memorial Whiteface Ford Open Team Roping with a total time of 46.13 seconds on six head to take home $45,400 in prize money after coming into the short round in the number-three spot behind Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith and average leaders Bubba Buckaloo and Trey Yates. The top two teams legged in the short round, leaving Ivy and Hawkins II to secure the number-one spot. “A couple of teams got a leg, which allowed us to do good,” said Ivy. “We just did our job and it turned out good.” Ivy and Hawkins II needed to be 8.91 seconds on their short-round steer to move to the top of the leader board. The hot duo turned in…

Oklahomans Casey Runyan and Brandon Taylor took a weekend off from chasing their kids around to junior rodeos to take home the USTRC’s Chisholm Trail Classic #10 by roping four steers in 38.55 seconds to win $4,810 and 6,000 in flex earnings. “I think of how hard I have to work to make that much money, so I try not to mess up,” Runyan, who runs 3C Cattle Co. and manufactures 3C Cattle Feeders, said. “If you’re not nervous, you’re doing something wrong.” Runyan has 12-year-old twin daughters and a 16-year-old son, while Taylor has an 8-year-old daughter, and both ropers have busy full-time careers—so needless to say they fit roping into a very, very tight schedule. “I work most of the time,” Taylor, who is a manager within a…

{ Vital Stats } AGE: 22 NUMBER: 7 header, 9 heeler ROPE: Ultimate 4 XS & the Natural MS by Fast Back HOME: Herrick, Ill. Doug Rich began college with a rodeo scholarship to Western Oklahoma State College after taking the all-around, tie-down and team roping titles at the 2013 Illinois High School Rodeo Association State Finals. Rich is in his final semester at University of Tennessee at Martin, after representing both schools at the College National Finals Rodeo three times in those past four years. In July, he and header Morgan Jones qualified for The American 2018 when they took first in the average with 31.56 seconds on four head at the USTRC’s Eastern Regional Finals in Murfreesboro, and most recently Rich won the #15 heeling and…

{ Vital Stats } PHILIP AGE: 27 NUMBER: 6 Elite header ROPE: Classic Heat XS HOME: Loveland, Colo. { Vital Stats } ALEX AGE: 31 NUMBER: 6 Elite header ROPE: Classic Heat XS HOME: Timnath, Colo. It would be understandable for a couple of brothers, busy starting families and running the companies they founded, to let their team-roping hobby slide. After all, who has time while scouting projects, managing businesses, and building custom homes to work the arena, saddle the horses and find chute help? Alex and Philip Schuman make time. “It’s just been part of our life for so long, it’s our passion,” said Alex. “We enjoy team roping. I guess it’s what we love to do.” INTEGRATIVE REAL ESTATE Like their old roping buddy…

A roper’s left hand is his or her key to consistency and better horsemanship—something each of us could stand to improve on. Gaining better control across the line with your left hand is something you can work on today to speed up your times and up your catch percentage. { Vital Stats } AGE: 46 ROPE: Protégé SS by Cactus HOME: Abilene, Texas WPRA EARNINGS: $196,970 IMPROVE YOUR HORSEMANSHIP FOR BETTER CONTROL. 1. When holding your horse in the corner, you might have been taught to shove your hand up the horse’s neck as soon as you nod. That works for some ropers, but for many, you need to maintain contact across the line to stay in control. Often, you’ll see people nod and release then go back…

{ Vital Stats } AGE: 27 ROPE: Powerline MS by Classic HOME: Stephenville, Texas PARTNER: Junior Nogueira EARNINGS: $1,117,379 Knowing how to win means that when the ball is in your court, you capitalize on it. When it comes down to it and you do what it takes to win—that’s what you can consider being a winner. I try to focus and get ready to make my run. That’s what I’ve tried to learn to do throughout the year. Each steer matters. Each could be the difference between a gold buckle or not. Each one is important. On big days, like at the BFI, you have to bring your A game because everyone else is, too. I think about setting the run up and focusing on the start…

With the producers of the George Strait Team Roping Classic and Wildfire Open to the World calling it quits, the future of open ropings is a very hot topic for ropers at every level of this game right now. George and his brother, Buddy, put on the Strait for 35 years, and Billy Pipes produced the Wildfire for 19. Both events were hugely popular with the open ropers and their fans, as big money is at the base of the buzz in every sport. The first-ever Strait was held in Kingsville, Texas, in 1983. The King and his family court built it into a gold-standard event, complete with trucks, trailers and tall dollars to the champs. This year’s GSTRC winners, Aaron Tsinigine and Clay O’Brien Cooper, cashed checks totaling $203,300…