Developing a great swing is one of the first things that can improve your catch ratio. Obviously, your swing should look different depending on whether you’re roping horns or heels, but as you’ve probably noticed, every guy’s swing looks a little different.
However, I believe there’s a swing that is the most efficient – and it’s something you need to teach to your hand, elbow and shoulder so your muscle memory can take over in competition. It’s real important to have a mental picture of what your swing should look like.
One aspect of the swing that I focus on for my students is the “breakover.” Breaking your loop over in front means actually turning over the front of the loop, or rolling it over out in front of you. It’s turning your thumb down as you bring your loop around your head, and it’s very important where that point is in your swing.
If you break your loop over straight out in front of you, we’ll call that 12 o’clock. Some headers will break their rope over at 2 o’clock, and I notice that others even break it over further to the right than that. If as a header you break your tip over at 3 o’clock and try to deliver from there, you have to move your hand from 3 o’clock all the way across to 11 o’clock to cover the left horn.
The other extreme is true, too. If you break your rope over too far to the left, say at 11 o’clock, then if the steer moves to the right at all, you’ll end up throwing your loop behind that right horn.
Heelers sometimes break their tip over at 9 o’clock, and then when they’re turning the corner they’re still breaking the tip over too far to the left. If you’re turning in behind the steer getting ready to heel on the first jump, your tip should be right over the middle of that steer’s back. Where you break your rope over makes a huge difference in how easy it is to control the loop as it gets to the feet.
I teach heading students to try to break their tip over at 1 o’clock and heelers to break it over right over the steer’s back at 12 o’clock. And when heeling, I like to have the pitch of my rope flat over the steer’s back, about three to six inches above it. That way on my delivery, I don’t have to come down as far.
If your tip is way up in the air, you’ll have to drop it way down on your last swing, which is tough to do. I see guys sometimes dropping their tip six to eight feet, and that’s just too much area. So keeping your tip right over the steer’s back is important. Your swing sets up everything – including a perfect delivery.
I’ve been wondering…. are you guys benefitting from my articles? I’d love to know, so drop me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Thanks, and keep roping smart.
Visit smartroping.com for more.