Everybody’s headed to Vegas this month—me included—with huge expectations. Whether you’re in the Top 15 and on your way to rope at the Thomas & Mack, or you’re getting ready to rope at the Ariat World Series of Team Roping Finale at the South Point, December means big dividends to be won by team ropers in Las Vegas.
Everyone who’s ever roped grew up dreaming of winning a world championship. It doesn’t get any better than roping at the NFR, but it’s true what they say: You can’t eat those gold buckles. And I do not miss the year-round grind it takes to try and get there.
Nobody could believe it when Allen Bach became the first guy ever to ride into the Finals in 15th and leave the world champ in 1990. But with this year’s rounds paying $36,668, and the average paying $94,036 a man, the odds of doing that again are better than ever. Everybody has a legit shot now.
I’m always interested in teams’ NFR strategies. Some go for the rounds from the start, which is why we sometimes see legs place. But I’ve always said the average is going to enter the conversation before it’s over, and when it comes down to two or three teams right there at the end, a lot of the talk will be about who’s doing what in the NFR average.
I was always at the NFR to win the most money I possibly could, so if 10 was winning third in the round and I was roping toward the end that night, I probably wasn’t going to be going for first. It was great the years we left Las Vegas with world championships, but the most important thing for me was always leaving there with a pocketful of money.
Enter the World Series Finale, and for me being thankful not to have to travel hard all year long to get to rope in it. You put up $2,000, and get to rope at $150,000-$250,000. That’s a pretty great risk and reward ratio, and most of us get to rope in more than one roping.
I’m entered up six times—four heading and two heeling. Clay’s (Cooper) roping both ends there this year, too. We still practice every day, and it’s pretty cool for us to have big ropings to look forward to at this stage of our roping careers and lives. The numbers level the playing field for all of us, and lady luck’s going to come into play at the South Point and the Thomas & Mack. As always, most of the success will be had by the people riding good horses who also draw decent.
From a pressure perspective, there’s no gold buckle in the picture for us now. But to have a chance to win $150,000 or more in about four hours—that’s beyond what any of us could have dreamed of when we were young.
I’m roping in the #15 roping down to the #10, and will be heeling in the #10 and #11. Clay and I are roping together in the #15. It’s fun to be in our 60s and have the same goal of winning a pile of money to work toward. And I have six chances to do that.
My game plan for the World Series ropings is to rope aggressive without trying to set any arena records. I’m going to use my horse, but as a header I don’t see the World Series start as a variable or obstacle. The only way you can break the barrier there is if you take off when you nod and the steer doesn’t move.
What I’ve learned about scoring at World Series ropings is that you can’t be hesitant. Because if you miss the barrier, you’re in trouble. It’s not quite as bad as being late over at the Thomas & Mack, but you put yourself in the same bind. The way I see it, you have to roll the dice and hope that steer starts. Most of them will, and that’s a chance I’m willing to take. Because if he does go and you don’t, your pants are jerked down and you’re behind the eight-ball.
—TRJ—
