We just got home from the National Finals. I want to thank MGM Grand for taking such good care of me during my stay in Las Vegas. Every year MGM offers some terrific NFR packages that include hotel accommodations and plaza seats at the rodeo. If you’re planning on going next year, it’s a fantastic deal that’s tough to beat.
I was at the Thomas & Mack nine of the 10 rounds, and yes, sitting in the stands it looks much easier than it actually is. Lots of people thought the team roping was pretty soft. But when teams make runs of 4.3, 4.4, or 4.5 and not win much, it causes others to try to be 3-seconds. And when you try to make a 3-second run, your catching percentage decreases dramatically.
It’s very tricky because some nights it takes a 3-second run to win and other nights a 4.5 may win the round. It’s a huge advantage to go at the end when the rounds are soft. And it’s a real disadvantage to be in the first few teams when the rounds end up being tough. That’s why they rotate the start by dropping two teams every night. It gives everyone a chance to rope at the beginning and the end of the roster. It’s ironic that Chad Masters and Jade Corkill both won the world – while roping with other partners. They had roped together for a couple of years and failed to have a great NFR. They switched partners this year and both came out on top. I read an interview where Jade said he missed more steers than ever before on the rodeo trail this year. However, Kaleb roped outstanding for him, but ended up a little short to win the world title.
Clay Cooper also came up a little short in his quest for an eighth world title. I thought he roped outstanding and had some really tough steers towards the end. He won almost $200,000 for the rodeo year, and that’s one heck of an accomplishment.
Though Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith didn’t win a world title, they roped exceptional this year and had a lot of big wins at big rodeos. I honestly felt like it was their world title this year. But they had some bad things happen on the last four steers, costing them a world title. What they accomplished during the year was amazing.
There has been a lot of partner changing already with everyone getting ready for the 2013 rodeo year. Since I will be in the mix this year, roping with Brad Culpepper, I will be talking about rodeos, where we’re going, and what’s happening on the rodeo trail. My goal is to qualify for the NFR and win a ninth world title.
While we were in Las Vegas, Jennifer roped at the World Series of Team Roping finals at the South Point Equestrian Center. Over $6 million was paid out during the finals. Even though she didn’t win anything, she came close to winning some fast times and made some great heel shots. I’m very excited with the progress she’s made. She is turning the corner and starting to catch consistently. This will allow me to start talking about some of the things she has struggled with.
While in Vegas, speedroping.com had a customer appreciation drawing where all subscribers were eligible to win a customized Priefert Score chute. The randomly drawn winner was Mike Hicks. Congratulations Mike! We will have more of these drawings in 2013 and prizes will include a deer hunt and a Fast Lane roping dummy, to name a few. Thanks to Priefert for being my partner in this give-away. If you are a speedroping.com subscriber, make sure we have your phone on file on our site, so I can contact you in case your name is drawn.
What’s new with me: After four or five years of (rodeo) retirement, I’ll be trying to qualify for the 2013 National Fnals and attempt to win another world title. On speedroping.com I will bring the viewers along on this journey where they can get a sense of what the rodeo life is really like.
I’m currently working on drills for headers, starting on the ground and then using the Hot Heels to make your horse work better. We now have 1,800 videos online. I’m very proud of our video library and invite you to stop by and see what we’re about. We now have speedroping.com caps and apparel available on our website.