Finer Points with Andy Holcomb: Making Smooth, Controlled Runs

This is Shes A Bossy Rebel, a 4-year-old daughter of Metallic Rebel out of Hello Kitty Hawk by War Bird Dog. She won the Old West Futurity’s 4-&-Under Heading in June, and this was our short-round run at high call. Here’s what she did so well to win it.

Shes A Bossy Rebel Carries Andy Holcomb to Old West 4-&-Under Heading High Call

Reading the Cow

She does a really good job of staying in her lane and running to the steer, just cowing up and staying good in her stride. You can see that steer get on the left lead, and she’s already matching it. I’m not having to pick her up or show her that it’s stepping left. She’s doing that herself, which lets me keep my left hand down and stay forward in my saddle so I can place my rope where I want it. The steer was pretty straight for a couple swings and then started stepping left, and I was almost in a good spot to throw. Instead of forcing a shot, it was smarter to take another swing and let her read the cow and really measure him off. Sometimes waiting one more swing lets your horse do her job and sets up a much cleaner run.

Stay Forward and Stay Balanced

Because she’s reading the cow, it lets me put my left hand down and just rope. It’s hard to pull on a steer and throw accurately at the same time, so I want my horse doing as much of that work as she can. I’m able to stay forward in my saddle and balanced instead of having to handle her, and that lets me place my rope where I want it. The less I’m interfering, the more natural everything feels and the cleaner the run comes together.

The Most Patient Spot

This is probably the most patient spot I want to be in during the run. The rope still has just a little slack in it, and I don’t want to rush getting it tight. I’m just picking up straight, getting her gathered, keeping my body square and my feet in the middle, just feathering her enough to keep her underneath me and under control. Everything here is about letting the run come to me instead of trying to force it.

Drawing Back Up the Arena

She comes through the corner really well and naturally wants to stay up and moving, but sometimes as you’re leading the steer out, you need to draw back just a little. I’ve got my right toe turned out and I’m putting that right spur on her while lifting toward the left side of her neck. I’m not dropping completely over her neck. I’m just trying to stand her body up and draw her back up the arena, which keeps the steer in tow and lets everything stay cleaner.

Setting Up the Face

Facing is really about the maneuver before it. How you go into it is what sets it up. By drawing her back up the arena, I’ve got her body stood up instead of falling through the turn. That lets her stay underneath herself and prepares her to fold in the middle instead of getting strung out. The setup is what makes the face easy.

Fold and Flow

What I see here is her coming around smooth, keeping her feet moving and staying soft through the maneuver. I probably have a tendency to draw back toward my right shoulder a little bit, maybe more than I need to, but she’s able to fold in the middle, keep her hip moving and keep her front end moving all at the same time. That’s what I’m after every run: making the face as clean and smooth as possible without having to over-handle the horse.

—TRJ—

Sharpen your fundamentals with hundreds of pro training videos on Roping.com.