Garrett Tonozzi won his fifth Mountain States Circuit year-end title while helping Conner Herren win his first in 2024.

While Tonozzi is a two-time NFR qualifier, Herren’s only 20 years old and finished his last rodeo season as a permit holder. As he prepares for his Resistol Rookie year, the Crooks, South Dakota, heeler knows his qualification to the NFR Open—held in Colorado Springs each July—could be vital to his rookie year.

“I think it’ll be cool—it pays a lot, and it’ll be fun,” Herren said. “Garrett’s been everywhere so it’s nothing new for him. It’ll also definitely be good if we can do good there because I’m going to go to Denver this year and maybe Tucson and stuff, so a few more than last year, but we’re probably just going to circuit rodeo again.”

Tonozzi and Herren won the 2024 year-end titles with $30,454.63 and $32,700.08 won on the year, respectively. For Tonozzi, who makes his home in Lampasas, Texas, his goals have shifted over the years.

“Anytime you can win a circuit, it means a lot,” Tonozzi, 39, said. “Especially since I’m not rodeoing here as much anymore, just going around to the circuit rodeos, so that’s the end goal of the year. And it’s always good to reach your goals.”

Tonozzi and Herren’s summer

A year ago, Tonozzi was looking for a young kid to work for him, and a mutual friend suggested Herren. When Herren went to Texas to meet him and rope, Tonozzi had another idea.

“I was like, ‘You don’t need to be working for me, you need to be heeling at all the rodeos,’” Tonozzi said with a laugh. “That’s kind of how it got started. And then he went back to Arizona for the winter, and he came back to my house in Texas in March or April and stayed there for a couple months. We just practiced and went to a few littler rodeos and then started circuit rodeoing in June when we got up to Colorado.”

Tonozzi and Herren kicked off their circuit partnership in June and really got the ball rolling at the Greeley Stampede where they won the short round and second in the average to pocket $6,878 a man. That gave them the perfect momentum heading into the toughest time of year for their circuit: July.

“The whole month of July, you’re roping against the best guys in the world,” Tonozzi said. “It’s the best rodeos and everyone’s in your circuit in July, so it makes the competition level high. But it’s fun getting to rope against everyone and there’s the big slack at Greeley and stuff like that.”

Tonozzi and Herren stood their ground against NFR teams, picking up $3,938 apiece at the Central Wyoming Fair & PRCA Rodeo in Casper between their round finishes and taking fourth in the average. They also won fifth in the first round of the Cheyenne Frontier Days for $2,688 each. 

“Greeley was really good, Casper was great for us, but we kind of just plucked along, too, at a lot of the smaller rodeos,” Herren said. “Just winning checks here and there always helps. The horsepower definitely helped; Garrett’s always riding a great horse, and my horse did good all summer.”

They added another $3,382 apiece to their July earnings, followed by $4,688 a man to wrap up their season in August. Tonozzi and Herren went into the circuit finals in Loveland, Colorado, Oct. 25-26, with a $5,488.21 lead on the head side and a $6,474.53 on the heels. They pocketed $3,367 a man to seal the deal on their year-end titles.

Opportunity of a lifetime 

The opportunity to rope with Tonozzi didn’t just bring on a year-end title, it’s also molding Herren into a better roper.

“He was very, very green—he still is, he’s young—but he seemed like he really soaked it in good,” Tonozzi said. “He was always wanting to learn and experience more and learn about rodeoing. It’s not just about going and catching the steer; there’s a lot more that goes into rodeoing. I think it was a little eye-opening to him and a good experience for him.”

Herren’s already noticed a difference himself, and he looks forward to putting what he’s learned to practice in 2025. 

“Riding better, keeping my horses good all summer,” Herren said. “I’ve just been more places, and I have more experience now. I feel like I hadn’t been to any of those rodeos and now that I have, I feel like it’s just an advantage for next year.”