Secretaries and timers make our roping and rodeo world go round. They take the entries, keep things rolling by rattling off who’s up, on deck and in the hole with the speed and accuracy of world-class auctioneers, figure the payoff and cut the checks.
Generations of ropers on the Central Coast of California know and love Colleen Enk. But not everyone’s been around long enough to comprehend what a cowgirl badass she is, or the war she’s been quietly waging with that signature smile on her face.
What went down last Saturday night just before the short round at the 10th annual Average Joe Finals in Paso Robles was the sweetest surprise for Colleen. And a fitting recognition and reward for this beloved member of our roping and rodeo family.
Husband-and-wife Average Joe Producers Danny and Elly Leslie wanted their 10thannual event to include a new tradition of lending support to a member of our roping community who could use a lift. As they put it when they stopped the roping to make their first-ever Cowboys For A Cause presentation, “It is out of complete admiration and love that our first recipient is Colleen Enk. She is not only a friend, but has been the heart of our roping for the last nine years. She is the standard we should all look up to in so many ways.”
Months before this rain-delayed roping, Danny and Elly took their idea to Dustin Noblitt and Katie Whitney of Team Cactus, and right after providing the saddles for the world champs they graciously came through with a Cactus Saddlery saddle for this Cowboys For A Cause raffle. Tickets were an easy sell, as word made its way through the crowd—through everyone but Colleen, that is—that proceeds would help her keep fighting the good fight. Over $11,000 was raised for someone who never would have asked anyone for a nickel—ever.
“This amazing gesture took me by total surprise,” Colleen told me today. “I had no clue what was going on. I haven’t been able to be out and about or very social, because chemo knocks my immunity down. I just got done with the most recent round of that three weeks ago.”
They made the announcement and presentation right after the finals of the open and all-girl dummy ropings (which were presented by Black Top Rodeo Co.), and before the Average Joe Finals short round. Spencer Mitchell, who went on to win the Finals with Justin Davis, won the open dummy roping. And after a little prodding from friend and fellow Central Coast roper Cody Mora, Colleen won the all-girl—at 73.
Zero surprise there. Colleen Semas was a cowgirl force while college rodeoing for Cal Poly. Fifty-four years ago, she won the goat tying average at the 1972 College National Finals Rodeo. The following year—back when regular-season points carried into the finals to determine national champions—she won both the CNFR breakaway roping average and National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association title.
The love of Colleen’s life is Bill Enk, who’s been the director of judges for the National Reined Cow Horse Association for 25+ years. For all his expertise and years of service, Bill was inducted into the NRCHA Hall of Fame in a March 2023 ceremony held at the South Point in Vegas, aka Team Roping Central each December. As exciting as that was, Colleen was diagnosed with ovarian cancer that same month and year.
There was surgery to remove a huge mass, and multiple rounds of chemo have followed before and after remission and the return of the dreaded disease. Here’s hoping that’s all behind this cheerful cowgirl dynamo now.
Elly Leslie Photo
“73 is just a number, I’m still a puppy and I’m going to be here ’til I’m 100, because my parents are still alive,” she said in classic Colleen spirit.
Family patriarch Stanley Semas is 97 now, and Colleen’s mom, team roping pioneer woman Sally, is 94. Stanley Semas used to put on big muley ropings at their Semas Ranch Roping Arena up in Auburn, California. Stanley and Sally ran an ad for their ropings in the first-ever issue of Bob Feist’s Ropers Sports News back in the day, and those ropings were attended by the likes of Cali wolves Woodrow Rosaschi, Bobby Garcia, Jack Gomes, Jim and John Wheatley, and Cecil Nichol, who just headed to cowboy Heaven and will be celebrated on Monday at the Anderson Fairgrounds. Cecil was Grandpa to Average Joe heeling champ Justin Davis, and a forever friend to my family.
My dear dad roped at the Semas Ranch Roping Arena back in the day. It was north of the ranch he grew up on. There then came a crossroads in his life when he basically flipped a coin between moving up to Cecil’s country in Cottonwood and what became our tiny town of Creston, which we’ve called home since that decision was made in the 1970s. As fate would have it, my dad became Bill and Colleen’s vet and close friend. Dad’s horse Special came from the Enks, and as our rodeo-family circle of life goes that little sorrel horse my sons both rode at the Timed Event Championship at the Lazy E won the California Junior High School Rodeo Association state team roping title last year with Cody’s son, Colt, heeling on him.
To fill out Colleen’s Semas family tree, she’s the oldest, so leads the charge. In order, there’s then sister Kathy Johnson, who lives in Colorado now; sister Leigh; brother Aaron Semas of PRCA and PBR bull riding fame; sister Sara; and sister Heather, who’s married to John Wheatley’s son Vance.
Colleen says she’d never even gotten to see a dummy roping before, because she’s always been busy working in the office when they run it. It was perfect that Cody Mora was the one prodding her to participate, as he and his family have been there for her through the rough roads of her recent-times health challenge.
“The Moras have been a rock through it all, and the chance to go rope at their house gave me a reason to get out of bed when I didn’t really feel like it,” Colleen said. “When I was too sick and weak to get out into big, public crowds, I had roping with the Moras to look forward to.”
Cody had his arm around Colleen when she watched them bring that Cowboys For A Cause saddle. She didn’t have a clue it had anything to do with her.
“I had no idea what was going on,” she said. “Then they said my name, and I’ve been without words ever since. I’m astounded. And humbled. And grateful. I was proud to be part of the Average Joe Finals team as a secretary, timer and announcer for the first nine years. I never saw this coming on year 10. It was mind-blowing. Danny and Elly are doing a great job with this roping. They made me cry when they did this for me, but they’re happy, grateful tears.
“I’m still passionate about roping, and don’t see that or our love for good horses ever changing. It’s been a great life, and it’s all been centered around great horses. Cowboys and cowgirls are nothing without good horses. We’re only as good as our horse. And the amazing people in our lives. How blessed are we to live in this community of ropers? I am truly speechless at what they all just did for me. It’s overwhelming and sweet. When Elly said my name over that microphone, it grabbed my heart right out of my chest. Thank you, one and all. Your love has made my life better.”