Guy—with Plenty of Ground to Make Up—to Launch 2023 Comeback May 3

Lari Dee Guy will return to ProRodeo competition at Helotes, Texas’s Helotes Festival Association Rodeo in slack May 3, jumping into the 2023 season after a five-month forced hiatus from an over-due shoulder surgery.

Doctors in Dallas repaired Guy’s rotator cuff Dec. 27, 2022, and she’s only been roping again for a few weeks. Jordan Jo Hollabaugh has $19,018.72 won in the No. 15 spot in the WPRA’s ProRodeo Breakaway World Standings, while Hali Williams leads the world with $91,913.77 in earnings already.

“I just have to do what I can do,” Guy, 51, said. “I probably look at the standings only two or three times all year long, anyway. I do what I do and if it’s enough it’s enough, and if not we’ll start again next year.”

Guy finished 2022 in fourth in the world with $88,584.52 won. She’s qualified for all three National Finals of Breakaway Ropings the WPRA has held, and she’s won 10 WPRA world titles across the heading, heeling, breakaway and all-around.

Lari Dee Guy’s Rehab Process

“I have been swinging a lot as part of my rehab,” Guy, a member of the Cowgirl Hall of Fame, said. “They just didn’t want me to throw hard away from my body. We re-evaluated at four months, and the doctors did some testing. I started throwing at 50%, then got it up to 75%. I’m still getting it to 100%. I feel good roping. It feels good, really, but I started riding my horse and chasing after calves after a month as soon as they let me take my sling off. I’ve been riding and following calves and scoring for a couple a months now, so I feel ready.”

Angie Green, a physical therapist who also ropes, helped Guy all of 2022 to get through the season after she hurt her shoulder in California. Since surgery, she’s ben rehabbing with physical therapist Chase Riley, who specializes in overhead athletes through his BodyWorx PT in Abilene.

“All we’ve done is strengthen muscles around it to protect it,” Guy said. “We’ve worked extremely hard at that. Having a team who understands your goals and your sport is so critical, and that’s what Angie and Chase both did for me.”

Read about Lari Dee Guy’s roping tips for a horse that’s nervous in the box.

Guy will rely on Rex, her 17-year-old black gelding registered as Peptos Black Quixote, to help her through the next few weeks, which also includes Guymon, Oklahoma’s Guymon Pioneer Days May 4, as well as Kansas City’s American Royal Rodeo and Springfield, Missouri’s Ozark Empire PRCA Pro Rodeo, both May 5. When she leaves for the summer, she’ll borrow Hope Thompson’s Supercrome Ink as her No. 2 mount.

“Rex and Ink make my job easy, so as long as I can rope, that’s all I need to focus on,” Guy said. “They’re rock solid, so thankfully, my horsepower is in great shape.”