Letter From Bob
By Bob Feist
It was great to see that the Red Bluff and Clovis Rodeos went to four-head muley ropings over a long score this year. I’ve always appreciated the old school type of ropings and rodeos where the ropers had to show consistency as well as good horsemanship. These types of four-head rodeo team roping formats put the “wam wam” rodeo run technique out of the equation and make the headers score and handle cattle in a totally different way to stay in the average.
Here it is July, and that means it’s Salinas California Rodeo time, which is always a favorite among team ropers. It’s a four-header with big cattle over a long score. To make it a little more challenging, both ropers come from the header’s side of the box and behind the same barrier string. Makes for some great watching. Many heelers will hit their right knee on the chute gate trying to get over for the haze on the steer before he gets to the rail on the racetrack. The slack at Salinas is well attended. Many mornings will find one seeking a jacket as the cool coastal air along with the morning fog can linger on well past noon.
In years gone by, there was always a good pre-roping a day before the rodeo. It was held at the Rodriguez Arena in Castroville about 20 miles away. Jim Rodriguez, Sr. produced some excellent ropings over the years, and the whole family would be involved in the production. The next morning at slack, it was always quite entertaining to listen to Jim Sr. He would call all of the contestants to the ready line at the timed event end of the arena. He had a great sense of humor, and if he had any gossip on you or your partner, he would let it be known to all those in attendance. He stood up on a plank catwalk that was in front of a huge contestant list board. He would check off the contestants as they went into the box.
Salinas has been so popular over the years that it draws back many of the old timers to compete in the Gold Card Roping competition, which is designed for the senior ropers. This event is held in conjunction with the main rodeo. It has become a great reunion for contestants, with some of them competing in the PRCA rodeo competition.
The Chowchilla Stampede of yesteryear was another old traditional California roping that had a long score in the close to 500-foot long by 200-foot wide arena. This was another roping in which the header and heeler both came from the same side behind the same barrier line. At Chowchilla, both ropers came from the header’s side of the roping chute. Over the long score, the first thing to do when you pursued your animal was to shape him up and hope for a steer that ran somewhat straight.
Dr. Lane Falk had a roping at his ranch in the Modesto, California area every February around the time of his birthday. Dr. Falk had a medical practice in the Modesto area and was an avid team roper. He, along with Dr. Robert West, were the arena-side urgent care providers back in those days. Dr. Falk loved long scores and roping muleys in the spring time when there was a lot of cattle available in California. His roping always paid out in cash. Some other California ropings would host muley ropings in the spring around the time Dr. Falk would host his roping. Red Vieu had one up north that was a pasture roping. Semas Arena in Auburn had one in a much smaller type arena. The Turlock Horsemen’s Club was also known for their Spring Muley Roping.
The 2025 Reno Rodeo was awesome as always; however, the rodeo team roping as a whole was not the best on the Cowboy Channel coverage during the rodeo. It just seemed there never was a performance that was outstanding to watch. I have always loved Reno Rodeo and all of the associated ropings that go along with it. This year the ropings held on the rodeo grounds were way down on teams. It seems it has been this way ever since Covid. In the years before Covid, the BFI and the Perry Di Loreto Ropings drew big numbers, and later the Reno Invitational carried on with big numbers which included multiple numbered ropings plus All Girl and Breakaway ropings. It never has come back to what it was after Covid and the BFI left. I think a lot of it is that the rodeo is the primary event there during that week, and it makes it hard for other events to come in with the limited space available on the grounds. I guess I’m saying it isn’t a fun destination to navigate around in comparison to other events going on at the same time within 300 miles.
The ropings held in Fallon, NV prior to the Reno Rodeo seemed to attract a sufficient amount of teams and contestants, and producers seemed to be satisfied. There are many events to choose from today, and it is getting more expensive to go anywhere anymore, so one has to think which is the most affordable and convenient roping to attend. I wish there were more affordable ropings to go to that had lower entry fees for the whole family to afford to rope.
I think roping is going to be somewhat like golf in the near future. By that, I mean some golfers pay a huge fee at the nicer golf courses. There is no money paid for winning unless you and your group have a side bet. Of course there are tournaments in which you enter for prizes and in some cases cash. Basically, you pay a fee to play, and the nicer the course is, the more expensive it is to play. Arenas have greater expenses these days, and I can see that the nicer arenas that offer good conditions and decent cattle can charge more for you to just come rope. If they had a jackpot, that would be separate. One could go with family and friends and practice or train on a new horse or a colt. I could see where an arena could have different training aids related to roping plus maybe a play area for the non-ropers. I know there are some arenas that are somewhat set up like this now, but they are far and few between. I feel going to the high dollar jackpots today are taking some of the fun out of the sport that we all love. Plus it is way too expensive. There are far fewer winners than those that go home with nothing to show but what they came with, including a lot less money. Arenas are very pricey to operate today, and they need to be compensated for their investment.
Travel safe and enjoy your summer run. Good luck!!!
