Fundamentally, scoring is the most crucial part of the run. If you’re rodeo roping, you have to be within inches of the barrier, unless you have the perfect steer that’ll let you catch him fast enough and still win something. If you miss the barrier on a steer that runs, you aren’t going to win anything, no matter how good you rope. You can’t miss the barrier by a foot and place on a runner. If you’re one inch too early, you’re done, too, so it’s a fine line. No matter what level roper you are, scoring is the hardest thing to do. Scoring isn’t quite as crucial at a jackpot, where you’re trying to put a few runs together. What you win and lose is dictated by the steers you draw. If you draw at the slower to middle end of the herd, the barrier won’t be quite as crucial. But if you happen to have some runners and miss the barrier, you’ll be looking at placing at the bottom.
