ArizonaRealCountry.com 27 March 2019 Reprinted from @CraigSmithTeamRoping on InstaGram Iremember Cory Petska mentioning the horse he won the world championship on had gone from a practice horse to a first string horse after he didn’t have a tie down handy to put on him one day. He worked better without it, and so he decided not to use it on him anymore. To some ropers, the idea might seem kind of strange. Tie downs have been around the roping arena so long that they’re just treated as part of the required tack to use. But before we decide to use any certain tool or piece of equipment, it’s important that we understand the true purpose… and that we make sure using them isn’t just masking what could be improved with quality education and horsemanship. As a header, the purpose of a tie down for me is to rule out the possibility of my horse’s head getting in the way of my loop or throw in the middle of an intense, fast run (when my horse is likely to raise his head). While some horses might LEARN to brace on the tie down, the idea that they ‘need’ them to balance isn’t quite accurate. If a horse has an excessively high headset, either because they’re emotional, were never taught how to carry themselves, or aren’t responding to our hands, that’s feedback we want to know. Preventing a horse from showing symptoms of these issues doesn’t fix the root cause. In fact, chronic tension and bracing can create physical damage and ultimately lead to career- ending consequences over time. We want to develop the ability within ourselves to teach our horses to be emotionally balanced, healthy movers without outside aids. Consider challenging yourself to loosen or lose the tie down starting in general riding, and especially if you’re a heeler, consider whether it’s necessary. You might be surprised by the opportunities that present themselves to improve your horsemanship, and may find that your horse moves and performs even better with the full range of motion. When you do use a tie down, a general guide for adjustment is that you should be able to touch it to your horse's neck when in a relaxed position (give or take a bit). You may need to punch extra holes to get the specific length just right. Q: I’m new to team roping. What things should I look for when I go to buy my own horse? A: I would recommend finding an older horse that has had a lot of good experience to offer us. A horse that knows where his position needs to be and gives us an honest throw every time can really speed up our learning curve. For us to be successful in our roping, it takes lots of consistent runs to build correct muscle memory and to also get an understanding of the basics of team roping. If our horse can repeat the perfect run every time, we can focus on our roping and isolate our fundamentals to improve them. Don’t be afraid of a horse’s age when you are looking. If taken care of properly, they can be competitive well into their later years. Q: How does your strategy change for competing in a jackpot roping vs a rodeo? A: Jackpots allow us to rope more in our comfort zone and take more high percentage throws. We can make multiple runs and we have time to formulate a plan for each steer. There are times when we just need a smooth run, or we may want to try and put some pressure on the other teams by trying to be fast. Either way, we have some wiggle room and time to make adjustments in order to still have a chance to win. Rodeos, on the other hand, are like an old-fashioned gun fight. Everyone is going to be firing right out of the box. Since most rodeos are only one or two events, we have to take a chance. Don’t be afraid to push the barrier a little harder, throw from a little further back, or ride a little different position with your horse. We want to develop the ability within ourselves to teach our horses to be emotionally balanced, healthy movers without outside aids. ROPING TIPS: TIE DOWNS