Kwade Kosoff and Pace & Wells Thompson stayed after the 2nd Annual Dummy Ropin’ here at Smith & Edwards to show us some dummy ropin’ runs and give tips on how to head & heel rope.
Head & Heel Ropin’ Tips from Kwade & Kyle Kosoff
Dummy ropin’ is a ton of fun, whether you’re a team roper or a backyard roper. Kyle provided commentary on tips & what to watch for.
Start practicing after school or work and you’ll be a pro roper in no time. Then you can come show us your stuff in our next dummy ropin’ tournament!
These champions walked away with a Classic rope bag from Equibrand. Thanks to Equibrand, Cactus Ropes, & Lonestar Ropes for providing ropes & prizes!
Pace and Braxton, Round I dummy ropin’ winners!
Cinch and Stone, Round II winners!
What you need to know to Start Ropin’
Roping Terms & What they Mean
- Spoke:
- The amount of rope in your loop from the honda to your grip on the rope.
- Slack:
- The loose part of the rope. You have to pull the slack to pull the rope tight.
- Dally:
- Securing the rope to your saddlehorn, in Team Roping when riding a horse. If you’re not on a horse, still practice pulling your slack and pulling your hands up!
- Tip:
- Part of the loop, the point of the rope, furthest away from your hand.
- Heading:
- One player catching the calf dummy around the horns or the neck. Kyle’s Tip: Aim at the left horn when you rope the head.
- Heeling:
- The second player catching the calf dummy around the rear ankles. Kyle’s Tip: Aim at the left hock (ankle).
- Honda:
- The bit of rope that loops & knots to allow for a loop in your rope. Learn how to tie a honda from Tom. See Marty show how to put on a plastic speedburner.
- Lay:
- How stiff or soft your rope is. Heelers want a stiffer rope that will hold open longer (to get under the hooves). Heading ropes are softer.
How we Dummy Rope at Smith & Edwards – & you can in your backyard!
You need 3 people: a header, a heeler, and someone to push the dummy.
The header checks in with his heeler, and nods to the person pushing the dummy when he’s ready.
The header runs after the dummy and catches the horns or neck. Then, the header pulls the dummy straight, to the left, giving the heeler a good opportunity to get the rope under and around the dummy’s back legs. Pull the rope tight (dally the slack), and you’ve got it!
How to Score
We timed each run, from the moment the dummy moves forward, with a stopwatch. We stop the timer when the dummy is both headed & heeled.
It has to be a legal head catch: both horns, half a head (1 horn), or around the neck. We added a 5 second penalty if only caught one heel.
Come Give it a Try!
Ready to rope, too? Come in to our Western department and pick up your rope & dallies. Or, click over to Shop for Roping Supplies on our website. We’ll get you what you need!
