Dear Roper,

This is a fun issue. I hope you sit down with a cup of coffee and flip through it—because it’s packed with the goods. 

Calli Montague (our newest hire) took on the task of rounding up all the famous steers standing in pastures living the good life, starting on page 110. There are some massive corrientes tucked into the pastures of the best in the world, living the life of luxury after being the one stretched for a big check in the most famous setups in the roping world. 

Julie Mankin crafted a heart-wrenching follow-up to a story we ran in 2019 about Michelle Arbizo, a mother who picked up roping after the tragic death of her son. The follow-up was long overdue, as Arbizo qualified for her first Ariat World Series of Team Roping Finale this summer, and this story is worth celebrating on page 90.

I spent my month refreshing my memory on the biggest wins of the rope horses leading the graduating futurity class of 2025 (page 118). These 6-year-olds have come of age alongside the futurity industry. Their earnings tip the scales, making up $2.1 million in QData lifetime earnings.

This issue is really what we strive for—a cross-section of the team roping industry, from the everyday roper to the horses to the cattle—and stories and lessons from the best in the world sprinkled in between.

This month marks the start of another crazy travel season, so we’ll see you in Amarillo and Oklahoma City and Phoenix and… somewhere down the road. 

Chelsea

—TRJ—