Breaking it Down – February 2026
How incredible was the team roping at the NFR? It’s amazing there’s enough money up for grabs that Kolton Schmidt and Jonathan Torres could come in at the bottom and have a chance to win a world title on their last steer. I’m sure glad I never had a steer like that when I was trying to win my eight world titles and all I had to do was catch. That steer was dirty and my hat’s off to them for how well they roped, and having the opportunity to shock the world.
A huge congratulations to Andrew Ward and Jake Long for winning their first world title. Jake has been to the NFR quite a few times and it was sure fun to see them win their first gold buckle. Andrew Ward did a great job of spinning steers, giving them the opportunity. There were five teams going into the last round who all had a chance to win a world title. It made for exciting watching. Even without winning a world title, records were set for year-end earnings.
I’d also like to congratulate the WSTR for putting on another amazing event amid the challenges of the equine virus. So far, I haven’t heard of any horses that got sick from that event. For those who won life changing money there this year… a huge congrats! There were even people who placed in multiple ropings and can probably expect a new number if they haven’t already gotten it. My son ended up winning the #15 at the outside arena. He had a chance to place in the in the #16.5 and #15.5 consolation but didn’t quite drag them in the heeler’s loop.
I was on Hali’s detail helping her get ready for the Kimes roping and NFBR Finals. We were home practicing, but flew out to Vegas once the weather turned cold and rainy. When we flew home, we had three days to get Hali ready for the Kimes roping in Scottsdale. Last year she had to rope through the qualification process to be able to rope in the Kimes Million Dollar Breakaway. That was one of more nerve-wracking events in my lifetime because the opportunity is so huge in the Million Dollar Breakaway. The girls run ten rounds/calves, and first place pays $25,000 in every round and $60,000 for the average. This year, because she was in the top ten in the standings she automatically qualified. That was my only request when we left last year – that she end up in the top ten in 2025 so we didn’t have to sweat out the Last Chance qualifier. Dad’s old heart may not take that again.
It was good to see all the girls who took a chance at Kimes trying to get qualified. There was a 48-year-old and a 15-year-old who both made it and got to rope against the top breakaway ropers in the world. It’s like the Super Bowl of Breakaway where anyone can try and qualify to play on the big stage and it’s televised. This year it was live on CBS Sports.
Last year Hali caught all ten calves but broke the barrier twice. This year she placed on her first calf. She missed her second and I’ll take the blame for that one. My notes showed that this calf had extremely fast reflexes, meaning she could go when the gate clicked. I tried to back her down on the start even though he was fast. I didn’t turn my tiger loose like I should have. She missed the barrier and missed him. When you misjudge the barrier, it can really affect your confidence. By missing the start and the calf, it put her on edge and made her gun-shy. I didn’t prepare her for that calf because she had been leaving a little early all week. She ended up placing in three of the first six rounds.
We had a long discussion, and I explained to her that she’d already won $50,000. I said, “Yes you haven’t roped as well as you’d like, but you’ve won $50,000 and have a chance at $100,000 more. You need to shake it off, regroup and go back to what you do. Use your left hand, watch and read the calf. Take your first shot. You don’t have to win first. Second pays $20,000 and third pays $15,000.”
She placed in all four remaining rounds and ended up splitting the High Money title with Josie Conner with them each winning $115,000. That’s exactly what she won there last year. Hali placed in seven rounds but never won first. I was proud of her comeback and her mental toughness after a rough start. Believe me, I have firsthand experience at rough starts at the NFR.
Saturday night we drove from Scottsdale to Ft. Worth to rope the calves through in preparation for the NFBR. Immediately I noticed that with no one in the arena, and the back gate open, the calves ran extremely hard. After seeing this, Hali and I decided she’d better ride Redlight. She had planned on riding Blaze to give Redlight a few days off. She won the first round, missed her second calf, then won the third and fourth round and missed her fifth. Sometimes when you’re going that fast, little things happen and it doesn’t work out.
At the Kimes roping quite a few girls were not feeling good. Hali got it Sunday night so when we ran the calves through, she was extremely sick with chills and fever. I called our doctor in Comanche, Dr. Dickey, and he put her on antibiotics and by Monday night she was a little better. By Tuesday everyone in the rig was worn out.
At dinner she asked how many rounds I’d won at the NFR. I answered, “I won or split six rounds.” She said, “Dad, I’m going to shoot for that.” She tried to go a little too fast, but she wasn’t feeling good. She roped the ears on one to be fast, broke the barrier on one, roped one all around the head but missed the nose. She made a good run on her last calf with a 2.2, but it was a fast round and won last hole.
For all the dads with daughters who want to rope… there’s an opportunity for young ladies to make a living roping calves. Much of that is due to Kimes Ranch and all the breakaway jackpots. There is so much money to be won as a breakaway roper, not just at the NFR rodeos. It’s not as lucrative as team roping yet but is growing every year. As a father of a breakaway roper, and someone who teaches for a living, I can say the opportunity in front of these young ladies is outstanding.
With the popularity of breakaway, I have been teaching more girls. In my opinion, the fundamentals of breakaway are much closer to heading than tie down roping. We don’t have to get close or rope the neck sharp. Actually, it’s better if we rope a deep neck because it breaks off faster. In breakaway and team roping, both need to be ready to throw as soon as they leave the box to be fast enough to win. That’s why Hali uses a head rope from Top Hand Ropes, because it’s lighter, has more body and takes less strength to get it going.
