Designed as a true introductory course for students learning to ride and rope for the first time. You may bring any kind of horse you own. It does not need to be a finished rope horse. Do not go out and buy a horse for this clinic! Our goal over the course of the clinic is to help you to understand what a finished rope horse is. A lot of time is spent talking about what to look for in a beginner’s rope horse, as well as how to approach the purchase of one. If you do not have a horse, we can lease you a seasoned lesson horse that will make the weekend a great experience. This clinic is designed to make your first experience with roping very safe and positive. We will answer all the questions you don’t even know you’re supposed to ask, like: “What equipment do I need?” “What’s the difference in all these ropes?” “Where do I go to practice?” “Do I buy practice cattle or lease them?” “How does the typical jackpot work?” “What does it mean to score, dally, handle, duck out, get out or break out? We will spend 70% of the time on horseback, learning to track cattle, rope, dally, and work our horses in the box. Man, woman, boy or girl, young or old, it doesn’t matter. We can teach everyone to rope. Our “Beginner’s Only” clinic students have ranged from 9 years old to 65 years old.
You will learn to rope the dummy on the ground, rope the dummy off a horse, track and rope a sled (Hot Heels, Heel-O-Matic, etc.) and a lead steer. You will put the rope on a live steer, track him, dally and stop him, and ultimately make your first attempt at catching a live steer if you are comfortable. We will teach the fundamentals of “heading” and “heeling” to everyone, so you can choose which end you want to rope after the clinic. You may want to do both.