Hope on a rope: Young riders compete for glory, embrace tradition

The buzzer sounded and a small, feisty calf romped out of the gate as two teens on horses rushed after it in hope of roping it as quickly as possible.

Some were misses, others not, but the energy filled the Rodeo Arena.

Teenagers under 19 competed against each other Tuesday evening in the Youth Team Roping competition at the 69th annual Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show.

At least 150 teams of two were expected to compete, said Glenn Bell, an official with the livestock show. Winners of the event receive a leather horse saddle with "2008 RGVLS Champion Team Roper" engraved on it.

The number of teens participating in the event was typical, Bell said.

"It's just a popular sport right now for the kids all the way through the adults," Bell said. "A lot of them have been doing it for a long time and are semi-pro and pro."

Bell said the event consists of two team members, a header and heeler, who try to rope a small calf by its head and heels as it runs through the arena.

Before the event started, teams rode their horses to prepare and warm up for the competition.

"The toughest part is getting the time down," said San Isidro High School student Panchito Cruz, an 18-year-old for whom team roping is a family tradition.

He and his roping partner, 17-year-old Albert Requenez, said they have fun carrying on the tradition in which the sport is rooted.
The event resembles the old ranching tradition of roping cattle to brand them. But now, spectator Dick Burke said, it has become a truly family-oriented activity.

"It's a great, great family event ... and it's one of those things that they can keep passing on," Burke said.

Burke, a Brownsville resident who raises and breeds horses, said the event also can ease the minds of parents.

"It keeps the kids out of trouble," Burke said. "There's something going on with the horses every weekend - whether it's a little rodeo or something else. And you can start them young."

Siblings Valerie Guerra, 15, and Mauricio Guerra, 18, of Edinburg, said they practice from at least 6 to 11 p.m. to prepare for the competition.

"Actually, this is my fourth or fifth time competing," Valerie said. "My dad really motivated us. His family rode, so I really got into it when I was a kid."

For Valerie, as with many of the youth at the event, the moment out of the gate is what makes all the hard work worthwhile.
"It's because of the thrill," Valerie said.

"Every time you catch," she said, referring to roping the calf, "you feel really good."