Situation:
Winning run from the Heart O’ (Waco) Texas Rodeo
Time:
3.7 seconds
Outcome:
Won the Heart O’ Texas Rodeo, worth $4,644 a man
a) START:
The barrier was even, but it happened very fast. It either comes together or it doesn’t, and it came together for us. Everything has got to be perfect for that to happen.
b) NECK SHOT:
When I’m going fast, I have a tendency to cock my rope to the left too much. I try to flatten it out, and honestly, I don’t try to rope the horns sharp. Most of the best guys are roping the horns really sharp but, for me, I just try to throw a big, open catch-loop at the steer’s head. I want to catch the steer. I don’t care how or what. At the end of the day, I want to catch and turn the steer.
c) STEER:
That steer was outstanding, and I missed him at Hempstead (Texas) the week before with Paden Bray. Luke Brown and Patrick Smith were 4.3 on him at Stephenville (Texas) and they made a good run on him. I got a little bit of redemption on him.
d) HANDLE:
When I whipped him, he kind of hit out a little farther than I would want, but it didn’t bother Billie Jack at all. He got in a good spot and set him down in a hurry.
e) SLACK:
You don’t want to have too much slack, so you need to make sure it’s tight to the saddle horn to the steer before you get going left. I got my slack fine, I just noticed that I caught the neck and I got it pretty sharp—happened fast. That horse is real forgiving and lets me do whatever I need to do. He made it easier to keep him on his feet.
f) HORSE:
That’s Spur. He’s 12. I’m pretty fond of him. I’ve never had one that I’ve really bragged on because I’ve rode a lot of horses that were mediocre in my life. He gave us a chance to win the BFI. He’ll give you a chance to win Cheyenne. He’ll give you a chance at the NFR. There’s not really a setup that he is bad in. If you ride him right and do your job, he’s going to let you win. He’s a pretty special horse to me because I’ve never had one quite that good.
g) BILLIE JACK:
He was in a good spot and, as soon as he was legal, he was ready to heel him. When Billie Jack heels one by two feet, he’s going to pull back on them. He did a great job.
h) LEFT HAND:
When you get it on the neck like that, you can’t come straight back. You need to keep going forward. You need to keep the steer pushed forward to keep him from whipping. I didn’t do a great job at it in my opinion, but the steers were older and had been roped enough that they kind of take care of themselves a little more.
i) LEGS:
I wouldn’t say that that is the perfect position. I kind of stepped my horse over and then I got in a bind watching the rope go on the steer’s head. I was a little too far to the front and got my feet behind me a little more than I wanted to. I’m not riding my horse perfect. At the end of the day, I’m not happy with the way that I rode, but sometimes you just have to get out there and make it work.
