Brothers Jesse and Reed Boos have set their sights on the 2025 Great Lakes Circuit title after getting the win in Fort Madison, Iowa.
The White Cloud, Kansas, ropers roped one in 4.7 seconds to bring home $3,831 a man in Fort Madison Sept. 6, after drawing a steer that wasn’t supposed to give them a chance to win.
“We didn’t think our steer was going to be the best one,” Jesse, 22, said. “(Coy) Rahlmann had him a couple nights before and he drug. But it seems like when we draw one like that, we end up making a good run.”
On the heel side, Reed was given strict instructions: do not let the steer step to the right.
“Jesse does not like when they go right,” Reed, 25, said with a laugh. “He was supposed to go right and drag, so he just told me to not let him go right. But the steer stayed straight and hopped long enough.”
The brothers also got the win in Maquoketa, Iowa, for $1,486 a man after their 4.7-second run over Labor Day weekend.
“It was the same situation as Fort Madison,” Reed said. “Jesse said he hated the steer we had. He didn’t really drag, but he stepped on his front foot and fell down for the team that had him the week prior, and he hated him. I did go past that one a little bit and had to throw over my horse’s head.”
For Jesse, the run in Maquoketa had its share of ups and downs.
“I ran that steer at Manawa, Wisconsin, and I broke out and waved it off,” he explained. “So, we wanted a revenge run on her. My horse was actually trying to tie up; we ended up going to Iowa State (University) that night. I almost didn’t ride him, but I’m glad I did. Our goal was to try to catch the steer before she tried doing any tricks.”
The team is now sitting No. 1 and 2 in the circuit, with Jesse’s earnings at $28,600 and Reed’s at $27,482. After making runs on inopportune cattle all summer, the brothers have made it work and are now battling for the lead with Dylan Breitsprecher and Cooper Bruce.
Their original plan, once they decided to stay close to home, never included trying to make the circuit finals—it was a positive side effect of the winning they’ve done this summer.
“When we decided to rope at the beginning of the year, my plan was really not to rodeo, mostly just stay home and work,” Reed, who trains horses for a living, said. “We have 25 to 30 outside horses a month, and I have sale horses and personal horses of my own. We really weren’t going to go at all. But then we were like, man, we might have a chance. Next thing you know, August is over, and we’ve got almost $30,000 won. But it was not the plan to win.”
A push in their momentum came in Sikeston, Missouri, where the Kansas boys were 5.5 seconds in both the first and second rounds to place in each and win the average with 11 seconds on two to bring home $5,615 a man for their efforts.
“I would say Sikeston (was a big win),” Jesse said. “We just went and caught (our first steer) and ended up being fast enough to place. Then our second steer was a little stronger, and we knew we had to be faster than 6-flat to really have a good chance at winning it. I just wanted to try to go as fast as possible.”
The “first or last” strategy is something Jeese upholds no matter what, according to his brother.
“I consider myself more of a ‘just try to catch’ guy; he is more aggressive,” Reed said of his little brother. “He goes for first. I’ve had good partners the last couple years, but they always were more ‘If something was to happen, we’re going to try to place.’ But Jeese is more like ‘We’re either going to go for first or we’re not winning.’”
“That’s always been my style,” Jesse explained. “I’m horrible at jackpots. Rodeo’s always been my go-to, but my motto used to be first or last every time. It kind of changed the last couple of years, but I went back to it when I started roping with Reed, so it’s been good.”
The fast runs wouldn’t be possible without the head horse the 22-year-old has been mounted on. DRB Pocos 2, “Woody,” is the 13-year-old chestnut gelding that’s gotten the call since he decided to start rodeoing.
“My sorrel came from my other brother Kolby,” Jesse said. “He’s the best one I’ve ever got to ride.”
After selling his good one back in the spring, Reed now relies on 5-year-old Reys Time, “One Time,” who hadn’t been to a single rodeo until the day Reed’s older horse was sold.
“Everything happens for a reason,” Reed said. “I sold the one and then the next one was up. He didn’t have a choice but to figure it out. It just took runs away from home to put it all together. I bought him the beginning of his 4-year-old year out of a cow-horse deal; that’s where I buy the majority of my younger stuff.”
“He’s weird,” he continued. “He’s scared to death of cows, does not like them. You cannot ride him into a pen of cows. But when you back him in the box, it’s like he doesn’t care.”
The Great Lakes Circuit Finals will take place Nov. 13-15, 2025, in Louisville, Kentucky. With the last rodeos of the regular season wrapping up at September’s end, the Boos brothers have just a few weeks left to lock down the circuit lead.
