Roping and Repping the YETI Brand: Cory Wiese
Cory Wiese talks about his start in the industry while repping the YETI brand.
Ropers’ Stories
Motherhood & the Mental Game with Jackie Crawford
Jackie Crawford is winning while balancing life on the road with a toddler.
The 1017 Project: How Roped-Out Steers Feed the Hungry
The 1017 Project Repurposes Roped-Out Steers to Feed the Hungry.
All in the Ropes: The Gonzales Family
In 1998, Jesse Gonzales was hired on at Cactus Ropes. As members of his family began following suit through the last 20-plus years, they amassed more than 250 years of experience building ropes.
Search and Rescue Pilot Scores in Las Vegas & Life
Two-time Finale money-winner Lowell Neshem’s mental grit results in a helicopter pilot’s dream job and roping that gets better year after year.
Trust the Process: What That Really Means in Team Roping
Being able to trust every aspect in team roping.
Bull Ropes to Head Ropes: Gilbert Carrillo
Gilbert Carrillo put down his bull rope in 2006 and is now an active team roper.
Force of Nature: Jim Scott
Arizonan Jim Scott returns to the roping arena in time for his 89th birthday.
Shared Success: Rockey Ramone's Gifted Buckle
Mathews Land & Cattle employee Rockey Ramone sports the Springfest 2018 Champion Heeling buckle that was gifted to him over a bet.
Mare Power: Greatest Mares in the Team Roping Industry
The team roping industry is one of the few in the equine world that relies so heavily on geldings. But over the years, a few exceptional mares have stood out from the pack to win world titles, major jackpots and millions upon millions in cash. We searched the records and mined the memories of ropings’ legends to come up with 13 iconic horses who happen to have the XX chromosome.
Traditional Cowboy Arts: Beau Compton
TCAA Artist and team roper Beau Compton looks forward in his silver shop and the roping arena.
Oil and Gas Pipeline Inspector and Roper: Darwin McGowan
Darwin McGowan, who works as an oil and gas pipeline inspector, finds time to rope on his days off.
The Allen Bach Factor: Luke Brown and Paul Eaves
Behind the Allen Bach Factor with Luke Brown and Paul Eaves.
Billy Pipes: From Producer to Participant
For Billy Pipes, founder of the Wildfire Open to the World, winning amounts to more than just payouts.
Born to Succeed: Roping Brings Braxten Nielsen Back from Paralysis
Braxten Nielsen turns to community, mental toughness and team roping to overcome paralysis.
LeMond Family Legacy or something
JoJo shares why he chooses to wear his 1996 San Antonio Reserve Champion USTRC buckle over any other buckle.
Boogie Man: Erich Rogers’ Scary Good Head Horse
Rogers to count on NFR head horse Boogie Man at 2019 Cinch Timed Event Championships.
LiL Wolf: Arizona's Superstar Little Michael Calmelat
"Little Michael" Calmelat, 10 years old, wins the Open Junior NFR
Ranching with Arizona's Fred Davis
Fred Davis has lived in Tombstone, Arizona, all his life. His great grandfathers arrived in Cochise County in 1867 and 1880, which makes 67-year-old team roper Davis the fourth generation to ranch there. Davis, who roped at the 1980 National Finals Rodeo, is the National Senior Pro Rodeo Association 60 and over world champion heeler. At press time the first week in December, Davis was about to rope with Charlie Robbins in the #11 at the World Series Finale in Vegas. Davis and his wife, Peggy, raised their children, Marlo and Jared, on the ranch, and the family now also includes Marlo’s husband, Beau Compton, and their sixth-generation roping rancher kids, Zane and Macy.
The Man, The Myth, The Legend: Earl Higgins
Earl Higgins, 80, lets nothing stop him from roping—and winning.
Buckle Up: Dick Yates' PRCA Presidential Rodeo Buckle
Dick Yates talks about his PRCA Presidential Rodeo buckle.
"The Daddy" Arena Director: Frank Thompson
Four-time Wrangler NFR bulldogger, Frank Thompson has been spending his time roping and working as the Cheyenne Frontier Days arena director.
Why Arizona Has Become Home to The Snowbirds
Just how and why ropers ended up becoming Arizona Snowbirds.
Paving Ways: Arizona's Beaver Bird
Beaver Bird paved the way for Wickenburg to become the Team Roping Capitol of the World.
Roping and Ranching with Bill Spratt
Bill Spratt is a Wyoming native who’s spent a lifetime in the saddle with a rope in his hand. The 78-year-old Bill and his wife, Pat, raised their two cowboy sons, T.J. and Ace, in the wide open spaces of the sprawling family ranch in Lysite, Wyoming. These days, Bill and Pat Spratt spend the winter months in Wittmann, Arizona, where they’re neighbors to the likes of brothers Brady and Riley Minor, and share their home with cousin Jake Minor.
Roping's Rocket Scientist
Technically, Colorado header Dylan White is a Systems Engineer who is working on a spacecraft—not a rocket—but it sits atop a rocket on its way to space, so, close enough for us non-rocket scientists in the room.
Attributions: The Causes To Winning or Losing
How our attributions are helping or hurting our winning process.
The Chute Master: Cinch Timed Event Championship's Delmar Smith
During his 35 years as the Timed Event Championship gateman, Delmar Smith has acquired a lifetime—and then some—of cowboy wisdom.
Arizona Evolution: How Arizona Became the Hot Spot For Team Roping
How and why Arizona became the winter hot spot for the sport of team roping.
Buckle Up with Riley Minor
Minor's 2017 RFD-TV’s The American Heading Champion buckle.
Purpose Driven: Arizona's Reeves Family is Changing Lives Through Roping and Ranching
Douglas, Arizona’s Reeves family has found purpose helping others find their own.
Bobby Roberts: Roper, Bull Rider and Stuntman
When asked what he does, Bobby Roberts has come to ask a question in return: Got a few minutes?
Relentless: Ariat's Cutting-Edge Cowboy Innovation
Behind the Relentless Ariat Innovation.
Running-Bred Head Horses
Race breeding looms large in great head horses, as we remember one of the best mares to ever score, run, and face.
Queen of the Tie-on: Donna Shedeed
Donna Shedeed’s list of accomplishments is even longer than her legendary career in the arena.
September's Legacy Member Highlight: Walt Arnold
WSTR Legacy Member and PRCA Hall-of-Famer turns 80.
Sky’s the Limit: Skyline Bits and Spurs
Carson Jorgensen is carving out his niche in the bit-making business with Skyline Bit and Spur.
SADDLE SAVY: Making Sure Your Saddle Fits Right
Yes, the fit of your saddle directly affects your catch ratio and your horse’s performance.
At Home With: Dick Yates
Dick Yates is the patriarch of the Pueblo, Colorado-based rodeo family that also includes son J.D., daughter Kelly, grandson Trey, and matriarch Jan, who’s the glue that holds them all together. Dick, who’s 81 now, roped with J.D. at 13 Wrangler National Finals Rodeos starting in 1975, when J.D. became the youngest NFR cowboy of all time at 15 years, 4 months. In 1984, Dick, Kelly, and J.D. became the only father-daughter-son trio ever to compete at the Finals the same year.
Having It All: Balancing Roping, Family and Work
Balancing the team roping lifestyle with having a family, running a business, or working full time is a monumental task. From early-morning practice sessions to all-night drives from junior rodeos to school the next morning, these work-life balance superheroes are pulling out all the stops when it comes to having it all.
At Home With Will and Kathie Osburn
Will and Kathie Osburn carry the team roping torch in the heart of the Empire State at their Osburn Arena in Campbell, New York. Their mom-and-pop team roping shop hosts NTRL/USTRC-affiliate ropings that draw ropers from hundreds of miles and allow them to accumulate earnings toward the USTRC’s Cinch National Finals of Team Roping, as well as NTRL qualifications. Will’s passion for team roping, paired with Kathie’s superior secretarying skills, keeps the sport thriving in their unlikely spot.
Trucking and Roping with Marlow Eldridge
After winning the #12 High Desert Showdown at the 2018 Wrangler BFI Week, professional trucker Marlow Eldridge is back on the road for work and for roping.