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| The Pendleton Round-Up added breakaway roping to its PRCA rodeo in 2017. Hubbell Rodeo Photos |
The most commonly asked questions about breakaway roping, answered.
by writer Chelsea Shaffer
August 31, 2020
What is Breakaway Roping?
Breakaway roping is an equine sport developed in the Western United States in which a person horseback ropes a calf around the neck, with the roper’s rope “breaking away” from the saddle once the calf is far enough away from the horse.
by writer Chelsea Shaffer
August 31, 2020
What is Breakaway Roping?
Breakaway roping is an equine sport developed in the Western United States in which a person horseback ropes a calf around the neck, with the roper’s rope “breaking away” from the saddle once the calf is far enough away from the horse.
How Does Breakaway Roping Work?
In breakaway roping, a calf is loaded into the roping chute and the roper enters the box on the right side (heeler’s side) of the roping chute. The breakaway roper waits in the corner of the box, with the calf in the chute, until his or her horse is standing squarely looking ahead. Then, the roper nods his or her head, and a chute operator opens the gate, allowing the calf to enter the arena.
In most competitions, a small rope is looped around the calf’s neck, connected to the rope barrier in front of the roper and his or her horse. That rope barrier breaks when the calf runs far enough from the chute, insuring he has a head start on the horse and roper. When the force of the calf leaving the chute releases the neck rope, the roper may leave the box. Leaving the box early and “breaking the barrier” generally results in a 10-second penalty.
Once leaving the box, the roper’s horse runs after the calf from behind, putting the roper in position to rope the calf around the neck in a bell-collar catch. When the calf is caught, the roper stops his or her horse abruptly, pulling the rope tight and breaking the small string that ties it to the saddle horn—marking the end of the run and stopping the clock. In most associations and competitions, ropers are required to have a flag—usually made from a bandana or white cloth—at the end of their rope to make the break easier for a judge (often called a flagger) to see. The fastest time wins.
What Are the Rules of Breakaway Roping and What Penalties Can Breakaway Ropers incur?
The most common penalty in breakaway roping is the 10 seconds added when a roper breaks the barrier, failing to give the calf the appropriate head start. Breakaway ropes may also be flagged out (disqualified) for any catch other than a bell-collar catch—that is, a clean catch around the calf's neck.
Who Can Compete in Breakaway Roping?
Breakaway roping is primarily a women’s event, but it is also a stepping-stone event for young boys to help them learn to calf rope in the National Little Britches Rodeo Association and other similar organizations. In American Quarter Horse Association competitions, both men and women can compete in the breakaway roping. But in the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association—the largest sanctioning body at the professional level of the sport—only women can compete.
What Types of Ropes do Breakaway Ropers use?
Breakaway ropes — generally shorter than any other ropes on the market, at 24 feet to 29 feet—are quickly evolving as the demand for them grows. Breakaway ropers often cut their ropes shorter to customize their feel.
Breakaway ropes are made from either a nylon/poly blend or pure poly, and are twisted and designed specifically for maximizing tip control to rope the calf around the neck.
Breakaway ropers are also designed to be more durable than team ropes, because the calf drags the rope out of the arena after each competition run.
BRJ
The above article was written by Chelsea Shaffer for The Breakaway Roping Journal.
She is described as "a long-time advocate of women's roping, Chelsea Shaffer won the 2017 WPRA Media Award for the promotion of the sport. She is a graduate of Ohio University's Honor's Tutorial College and prioritizes solid news reporting and storytelling in her writing."
I hope you enjoyed this very well-written article on a sport that's enjoyed by many across the country.
Tom Correa
This article makes me wanna write a story about a rancher who ends up using his father's rope to compete in breakaway roping in the rodeos. It's called, "The Rope". Dewey Hanson sat with his father, Walt, on the bed of a 1949 Ford pickup truck. Walt said to Dewey, "Son, I wanna show ya this rope. My dad, your grandfather, used this rope when HE was a breakaway. And one day, you'll use it yourself. And then maybe one day, you'll hand it to one of your own sons! Dewey Hanson was proud of the wisdom that his father shared with him. And he never forgot it. Then, one day, Dewey got a phone call. It was now many years later and his wife was calling him about his father, "Honey, ya gotta come quick. Walt's dying!" Dewey knew this wasn't a joke so he rushed over to the hospital to find his father, Walt, laying in that hospital bed. The last thing Walt said to Dewey was, "Son, I'm glad ya made it. Now remember what I said about that rope. It's yours now. Use it." Then it happened. Dewey Hanson was in the rodeo arena behind the chute waiting to be called. All of a sudden the announcer called his name. "Dewey Hanson!" Dewey rode out there on his American Quarter Horse, Big Red, and roped the calf. He wasn't just doing it for his father. He wasn't just doing it for his wife. He wasn't just doing it for his son. He wasn't just doing it for himself. He was doing it for everyone. And in the end, it paid off. Dewey spent 30 years as a breakaway and was proud of it. He was a damn good cowboy. One day his son, Kylie, was celebrating his 23rd birthday. Dewey Hanson looked at Kylie and said, "Kylie, son, this rope was given to my Daddy by HIS Daddy. Then he gave it to me. And now I'm giving it to YOU. Here ya go son." Kylie Hanson now has his father's rope and is the top breakaway in all of rodeo history. I plan on making a movie out of this story and I hope you will come and see it. Until then, wish me luck and I hope you enjoyed the story. Stay safe.
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