B-R Goes Country
by Matthew W.
April 28, 2010
They enter the arena with rope in hand and horse in the other. Looking around, they see 100s of people eager to watch the next team. They’re up next in team roping. Clinching their ropes, they take the stage. The sun takes an absence as the spotlights come on. They soon realize that all their practice and hard work is about to pay off. They jump on their horses. They’re about to put everything on the line. For Travis H. and Molly H., this feeling comes often. With the arise of a new baseball team and the other main sports Bancroft-Rosalie provides, we don’t recognize the sports that only few students participate in. One of these sports is Rodeo. Travis and Molly participate in the ISHRA or the Iowa High School Rodeo Association. They travel all over Iowa, clear to the Illinois border. Like the rest of our sports, Rodeo has a junior high rodeo group in which grades 6-8 participate in, while the other group holds grades 9-12. Rodeo is a broad word for the many categories there are in Rodeo. Out of all of the events, the two compete in team roping, which is the only event where men and women riders can compete together. A horse and rider, lassos a running steer's horns, while the other horse and rider lassos the steer's two hind legs. Once the animal is captured, the riders face each other and lightly pull the steer between them, so that it loses its balance and lies down. “It’s a great atmosphere. Molly said. It’s a lot of fun. You meet a lot of new and cool people. We get to spend time with great friends and family while doing what we love.” They are very good at what they do, out of the 128 members of the ISHRA, they currently sit at 10th overall, which is also what they ended up in last year. “It’s something I love doing and I’m good at it.” Travis said. Rodeo is no easy sport as both Travis and Molly both put in a lot of hours to get better at roping. “I’ll usually go to Molly’s and rope with her" says Travis, "if It’s raining or storming out I’ll try to find an indoor arena somewhere.” One way or another, he’s going to rope. And with hard work comes reward. Over Prom weekend, Travis placed 1st in the overall team roping in Beatrice while Molly got 3rd. So congratulations Travis and Molly on your accomplishments recently and good luck in the future.
