Ranch roping competition comes to St. Ignatius
Lonnie Metzger (Ronan) , Lynn Seamons (Victor), and Wendy Morris (Missoula) compete in ranch roping, working together to get a calf safely tied up and ready, as if it were to need medical treatment. (Carolyn Hidy/Lake County Leader)
How do cowboys keep their roping skills up and their arms in shape in the winter? One way is competing in Western Montana Ranch Roping, a series of six qualifying contests and finals, held in arenas throughout the region for its 21st year this winter. The last qualifying round was held Jan. 18 in St. Ignatius.
Kim Jones and her husband Randy, of Stevensville, have been organizing the contests since 1999.
“It’s just something we do for winter fun,” Kim said. “There’s prize money in it, but not much.”
Most competitors are from Western Montana, but the events often draw folks from Eastern Montana, Washington and Idaho, Kim said. Teams of three are assembled by random drawings. The St. Ignatius event brought 20 participants of varied skill levels; sometimes individuals will join more than one team.
Though the competition is timed, it is not a race. Indeed, part of goal is to keep all the animals calm and safe. The sport is not really rodeo, but “ranch roping,” which Kim explains is designed to mimic a situation that occurs on a working ranch when a yearling must be caught to be checked by a veterinarian, for instance.
Each team of three riders has four minutes to cut a designated yearling out of the herd, have a rope around its neck, then rope the heels, pull it onto its side, remove the neck rope and use it to bind the front feet.
The animal must be totally restrained so it can’t kick, as would be the case if a medical treatment needed to be administered.
“I enjoy this because I don’t like a lot of speed,” said Kim. “This is more real. These are skills you are actually doing on a ranch.”
Strict rules help keep stock and riders safe, such as “no roughing cattle or horse, no “rim firing,” (letting a rope get wrapped around behind the horse), and “no dallying on a high hock” (let loose of a rope if it has caught the leg too high).
“A lot of rules are geared toward horsemanship and stock handling,” said Kim. Judges, also on horseback in the ring, award points for such things as keeping the rest of the herd from scattering, difficulty of “shots” (rope attempts), and overall horsemanship. Judges also help out to help keep everyone safe if a feisty calf makes things difficult.
These yearling steers and heifers are owned by Lonnie Metzger of Ronan, who has been a member of this roping association since it began.
Finals will be Feb. 1 in Ronan. Call Kim at (530) 701-9497 for location, or watch the Western Montana Ranch Roping Facebook page for more information. Competitors must have been in at least one of the earlier six events to compete in the Finals. If interested to watch, contact FB or phone.
Winners at the St. Ignatius event: Morning — Randy Jones (Stevensville), Scott Landis (Victor), Lonnie Metzger (Ronan). Afternoon — Mark Johnson (Polson), Amanda Duncan (Lolo), and Josh Senecal (Ronan).