#12 Shoot Out
2013 Cinch USTRC National
Finals of Team Roping
Tuesday October 29 2013
By Melinda Clements
By Melinda Clements
Every
once in awhile a couple of young guns rise to the surface and in reflection you
wonder where the heck they came from.
Like the old Jimmy Dean song says, “They don’t say much, kind of quiet
and shy and if you spoke at all you just said “Hi’ ” yet they subtly and
quietly made their presence known at the Cinch National Finals of Team Roping.
“These
boys aren’t afraid to win,” someone was heard to say. Oklahoma Team Ropers, Tyler Milligan and Jake
Cooper Clay don’t worry much about nerves or butterflies or money. They think about roping but they don’t worry
much about that either.
The
boys don’t have a lot to say they just tend to let their ropes do all the
talking. Perhaps it is just their
youth, their nonchalant ability to just let things roll like they are supposed
to roll. Regardless, for right now they
have everything under control and placed where it all needs to be.
The
pair was the third high team back coming into the Short Go Round of the #12
Shoot Out at the 2013 Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping. They had roped well all day long and it seemed
the trend would continue.
There
is a lot involved when you are roping at $108,300, Martin Championship Saddles,
Gist Championship Gold Buckles, Tony Lama Ostrich Boots and Western Horseman
Collector’s Prints. That is enough to
make even the veterans sit up and take notice.
Thirty
teams were coming back to rope in the short go round. Winning, in this case, was everything. The short round would be quick, fast paced
and extremely challenging. A lot was on
the line. A lot was at stake. Every roper had one goal in mind and that was
to win this roping and never look back.
Cyle
Denison and Jose Zambrano was the fourteenth high team back. They reached out and nailed down their short
round steer with a 7.11 and grabbed the lead in the average. They felt good and surprisingly so the pair
hung on tight. So tight, in fact, that
when Milligan and Clay rode into the box nerves were on edge.
Milligan
and Clay operated on a level synonymous with the youth. They would rope like they had been roping all
day; confident, assured, and care free. It seemed to be a characteristic of the
age group.
The
pair needed a time of 8.33 to move Denison and Zambrano. The kids were hungry, competitive and
aggressive. When Milligan nodded his
experienced sixteen years kicked into gear and he roped like a pro. He nailed the horns and Clay came in to
follow in the footsteps of his name sakes and grabbed two feet like a hungry
dog grabs a bone. The clock beamed with
a time of 6.95. They would not be
ignored and they would, indeed, make their presence known.
Two
teams were left to go. The ante had just
gone up. If there were butterflies
before they were magnified a thousand times now. The challenge had been issued. Anybody can catch the question is can you
win?
Both
the second and first high teams back faltered and failed and in the time it
takes to blink your eyes new champions had emerged from the depths of the age
old definition of victory.
Tyler
Milligan and Jake Cooper Clay were the 2013 Winners of the #12 Shoot Out. They were also $108,300 richer for their
efforts.
“I
knew Tyler would catch and all I had to do was catch two feet,” Clay said
confidently. “My job is the absolute easiest.
I don’t have to worry about the barrier or getting out. All I have to do is catch two feet.”
“We
treated this like any other roping,” Milligan said shyly. “I wanted to get out
of the barrier and get a rope on this steer.”
The
pair does not rope together much. They
had pooled their talents the day before in the Preliminary but it seemed the
#12 Shoot Out had their names written all over it.
“This
was my first US Finals Saddle,” Milligan said. “Being a calf roper most of the
time brings it all together to work for me.”
Clay
pointed out he had won the #9 Preliminary last year but this was his first
Shoot Out Saddle and certainly the most money he had ever won.
“I’m
glad I got to rope,” he said. “I couldn’t do this without my sponsors like
Allen Ranch Saddle Shop, Cactus Ropes and Pro Equine. They help me and support me and I want to
keep this up and try to rope this way the rest of the week.”
The
pair shared a subtle confidence in each other.
They were not worried they were not frazzled nor were they strung out or
nervous. They were here for a good time
in a good roping. Pause a minute and
hide and watch because it is pretty safe to say you will be hearing a lot more
about these two guys. They are hungry,
they are talented and they are not afraid to win.
