#10 Gold Plus Shoot Out
2013 Cinch USTRC National
Finals of Team Roping
Wednesday October 30 2013
By Melinda Clements
It
is a long long drive from Florida to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is a haul you
may not want to make on an ordinary day.
However, it is a haul that is essential if you have one specific goal in
mind.
“I
came out here to win a truck,” said Florida heeler, Jay Johnson. “That has been
my goal for a long time. I came out here
to do exactly this and I guess we got it done.”
Bob
Herrington and Jay Johnson are partners.
They rope a little in Florida.
“I’ve
wanted to do this in the Gold Plus for a long time as well,” Herrington elaborated. “The money and prizes always bring you to
Oklahoma City. How can you not come rope
in a roping of this magnitude?”
Johnson
had been hungry for a win in this roping since he has been coming to Oklahoma
City. He roped well all day. He and partner, Brady McCormick was the
twenty-fifth high call team going into the short go round. Johnson and Herrington was the first high
call back team. With any kind of luck
Johnson had a good shot at the prize line.
The
#10 Gold Plus Shoot Out offered an awesome prize line. The high money winner in the roping would
drive home in a 2013 SLT Crew Cab Ram Dually Truck plus $64,700. The second high money winner would receive his
choice of a Case IH Farmall Tractor or a Case IH Scout Utility Vehicle. It was enough to make your mouth water. No wonder the competition was fierce.
When
the twenty-first call back team of Darwin McGowan and Jake Fillmore took the
lead in the average with a time of 38.61 they had no idea it would hold. They did, however, maintain the lead until
the last two teams came back to rope. It
seemed the roping was at a stress level no one but those involved
understood. When the second high team
back rode into the box they wanted to change the trend. Gordon Coble and Jeremy McIntyre did exactly
that with a run of 10.05. There was one
team to go.
Jay
Johnson wanted this win. He trusted Bob
Herrington would do what was needed to give him a shot. It was like shuffling cards, you never knew
where the ace would appear. As Johnson
rode into the box he took a deep breath.
Everything Johnson and Herrington wanted depended on this one run. One steer, one run, all hinged on focus,
commitment, and promise. Nothing mattered but one steer, the last steer in the
short go round of the #10 Gold Plus Shoot Out!
The
pair needed a 10.78 to take the win. For
a brief second the world stopped and the pair left the box with nothing but a basic
team roping run on their minds. When the
dust cleared and the clock stopped it read 8.20. It was all the pair needed to win the average
in the #10 Gold Plus Shoot Out.
As
it turned out for Johnson he had enough winnings to lay claim to the 2013 SLT
Crew Cab Ram Dually. With emotions
flowing Johnson found his hands shaking and his emotions fragile.
“Be
careful,” he said so filled with emotion his voice quivered. “I may cry! I came
from Florida to get this truck and it finally happened. It is unbelievable.”
Herrington
mirrored Johnson’s emotions. “This is my
biggest win ever,” he said. “You cannot imagine what it feels like to win a
roping like this. I have wanted this
roping for a long time. I just wanted to
see what I needed to see, stay aggressive but not be overly safe. There are so many people I owe this roping
to. My boys, RT and Charles and Deb are so supportive. There are so many people who have put up with
me and helped me. My dear mother who is
still alive is so special. I owe them all so much.” In all the reflection Herrington’s voice
choked with emotion. “God is good all the time.”
Johnson,
as the high money winner, received $43,150 and Herrington would put $32,300 in
his pocket. The pair certainly agreed it
was worth the drive from Florida to Oklahoma for the 2013 Cinch USTRC National
Finals of Team Roping. It had been a
life altering experience. They would never
ever forget it or the feeling. It was
exciting, unbelievable and yet a most humbling revelation.
Team
Roping changes lives in a heart beat. There
is nothing like the highs and lows the sport brings. Nothing matches its impact on emotions and feelings. Herrington and Johnson will never forget one
afternoon in OKC where roping made a difference. They will not ever forget the #10
Gold Plus Shoot Out or the 2013 Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping. It will be imprinted in their hearts for many days
to come.
