Dear Roper,
This magazine starts its ninth year in existence as The Team Roping Journal this month. Nearly every anniversary is hard to believe—because sometimes those early days feel like yesterday, and sometimes they feel like a lifetime ago.
Since its inception in 2017, this brand has evolved 100 times over. Our digital presence has exploded, our podcast took off, we acquired and expanded Roping.com and so much more.
Within these pages, too, we’ve evolved. Our coverage has continued to honor the love you all have for this sport—with coverage of the everyday ropers who drive the industry—but we’ve grown across the rope horse industry, too, just like the sport itself.
We’re always talking about the best ways to entertain, inform and educate. Sometimes, that comes out most visibly online and in photos, as we’re constantly upgrading our camera equipment, working to give you the best visual experience in Western sports across media channels.
But we’re also fine tuning this print publication, too. A few months ago, I changed the department “5 Flat” to “Practice Pen”. This might not seem like a huge change—and really, it isn’t—but there’s an important distinction. When I’m planning my Roping.com shoots, I always ask the pros, “What have you seen at any schools you’ve taught that needs to be addressed while we’re here with cameras rolling?” And without missing a beat, they always tell me that ropers need to learn how to practice.
So in this updated section, we’ll be showing you specific practice-pen strategies from the best in the world. More often than not, this will be addressing a horse issue, because the second thing the guys tell me is that horsemanship is the everyday roper’s greatest chance for improvement. This month, you’ll find Wesley Thorp’s sled drill on page 52, with a step-by-step breakdown of how he gets his heel horses locked onto the steer. As an added bonus, the videos accompanying all of these drills are on Roping.com, and you can scan the QR code on page 54 to take you directly there. (If you’re a KeyCard Max member, this is included in your membership, so make sure you’re taking advantage of that perk.)
As always, we like to know what you think, so don’t be afraid to sound off in my inbox (politely, of course) at cshaffer@equinenetwork.com.
—TRJ—
