Jr. Looper Shoot Out
2015 Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team
Roping
Saturday October 31 2015
They
say kids are like butterflies in the wind.
Some can fly higher than others and others cannot fly at all. However, each flies the best it can. Each one is different and each one is
special. Each one leaves a mark on our
hearts that we will never shake.
As
the arena floor at the 2015 Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping filled
with kids and anxious parents the message was huge. Team Roping is well and good and our future
is secure with the little gals and guys coming up the ranks.
Team
roping is a good place for family. It is
a good place to raise kids and, more importantly, kids are good for team
roping. It all kind of blends together. It grows and a following of fans,
participants and supporters come from raising kids around team roping.
Each
kid on the arena floor has purpose, a calling, a reason and an objective. It short, God has a plan. God made the design
and each kid will hit his/her mark at his/her own speed. We look into those little faces and see hope,
promise, objective and aspiration.
We,
too, must become as little children or we will miss the mark. Therefore, as the crowd gathered to watch the
Jr. Looper Shoot Out there was an air of excitement. The Jr. Looper Shoot Out was about to take
over the coliseum.
The
Six and Under event was the first event to get under way. There were six contenders. They included:
Dalton Dugan, Kayden Tsosie, Christopher Clark, William (Owen) Gillespie,
Hunter Phillips, and Gregory Mitchell.
It was a very serious, competitive group of young ropers. Perhaps they had been taking their cues from
their elders.
When
the competition finished up, Kayden Tsosie was the winner of the six and under
age group. Kayden just emphasized you
cannot ignore those roping girls. She is
six years old and in the first grade and calls Gallup, New Mexico home.
“I
have a horse named Cash,” Tsosie said. “I’m in first grade. I think I don’t know who my favorite team
roper is but it might be Derrick Begay.”
With a high five to announcer, Ben Clements, Tsosie took off, rope in
hand to sit on her new saddle. Her grin
was from ear to ear and this roping event was just another activity in the
course of the day for a six year old.
The
Seven to Nine Age group had five young ropers competing. They included Tyra
Bitsie, Chandler Ramone, Hoss Tate, Lyric Phillips, and Rylan Luman. Finally, at a distance of eighteen feet
Chandler Ramone emerged as the winner.
“My
dad taught me to rope,” Ramone said. “I’m from Borrego Pass, New Mexico.” I
thanked him for spelling it for me, by the way. “I’m nine years old and I’m in
fourth grade,” he continued. Ramone has
a horse and he is pretty sure he will like the new saddle.
“Dustin
Bird is my favorite roper,” Ramone said. When the distance for the roping
increased Ramone went and changed ropes.
It was a long, long rope but Ramone coiled it up, built a new loop and
roped the horns for the win. It was
exactly what he needed to win the seven to nine age group in the Jr. Looper
Shoot Out.
The
Ten to Twelve Age Group had six participants. They were Jayse Tettenhorst, Dace
Morris, Bryce Hart Reed Richison, Keith Gorman and Hailey Long. After some fierce competition Keith Gorman
took the win.
“I
don’t have any secret to winning,” Gorman told announcer, Ben Clements. “My dad
taught me to rope.” His favorite team roper is Derrick Begay and Gorman just
figures he might beat Begay in a rope off.
Gorman
is ten years old and is from St. Johns, Arizona. He is in fifth grade and has a horse name
Millions. Gorman won the Ten to Twelve Age Group at a distance of twenty-two
feet and Gorman likes to head best of all.
It
is a fact that without your kids your house would be cleaner and you would have
more money but, without a doubt, your heart would be empty. As the Jr. Looper
Shoot Out ended all the participants posed for pictures. How could you NOT love those little faces?
They are the future of our sport. They
are being raised on arena dirt accompanied with hard work and purpose.
I
would say the world of team roping is in good hands in the years to come. Our Jr. Looper ropers will be the contenders
in the big arena before we know it. They
are our future and they make me proud.
