How Smoothing Out Your Start And Your Handle Will Speed Up Your Runs

How smoothing out your start and your handle will speed up your runs.

When we did this photo shoot, Jeremy Buhler and I were practicing together for the first time to get ready for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, which was just a few days away. With the short score in Vegas—not that different from the score most ropers see at the World Series of Team Roping or USTRC events—I was really focusing on getting a smooth, flat start and handling my steers for my heeler. In this article, I’ll tell you what I focus on to give myself the best shot every time and to do the same for my partner.

1 I really want my horse leaving flat and leaving off my hand. On short scores, I want to be able to throw fast, and I don’t want to be rocked back in my seat or I’ll be late. To achieve that, I make sure my horse is looking where I want to go, not turned to the right or left, but straight at the steer. If I get to pulling on a horse too much and he’s crammed in the corner, then he would squat and have to stand up before he could run. That would put me behind from the start.