Amber Mostoller……LLLOOONNNGGG SSSUUMMMMEERR **Videos**

Where has the time gone?  This summer was full of ups and downs and big changes in my life.  In July I ran 6 different horses, turned another year older and my grandmother passed away the day after my birthday.  I put on the IBRA Ohio State Finals at the end of July and decided that if I was gonna make an honest run at the IFR I needed to buy a horse instead of jump riding every weekend.  My mom needed to sell JB Absolute (Abby) so I took on a partner and decided to buy her and on the road we went.  I knew I could ride her as I made the IFR on her the year before, but had not run her in 11 months and my first run on her would be Salisaw, OK July 29th.  They won the rodeo with a 16.359 and last hole was a 16.495…talk about jumping right into it lol… I ran a 16.489 for a 5th place check!! 

From there we went on to Huntsville, AR for two rodeos at the same arena.  I placed 5th at the first one and was just out of the money on the 2nd one.  While the rodeos were picking up I was also in the process of moving to TN to ride horses for a guy, and started renting a place in Santa Fe, TN.  That ultimately was put on the back burner as we were on the road all the time!  The rodeos really picked up in August and we added a few more hauling partners to the rig…Through most of July it was just Jared Cook, Josh Cragar and I hauling together.  We made a run the first week in August to Winchester, KY(Aug3rd), Girard, KS (Aug 4th) Pawnee, OK (Aug 5th), Springfield, TN (Aug 6th) & Rockmart, GA (Aug 7th). 

Saddle Bronc riders Eddie Parlier & Austin Joseph jumped in the rig along with bull rider Cody Holladay.  Eddie and I won Winchester, KY…Josh & Austin won Girard, Josh placed at Pawnee, Josh and I won Springfield, TN & I placed 2nd at Rockmart.  Not a bad week for the rig 🙂 and I was inching my way closer to the top 15!  The next weekend started a 10 day run in Belvidere, IL (Aug 14th) Josh, Jared, Cody, Myself, & another bull rider Jon Mastrangelo made the trip.  Josh and I both made money in Belvidere.  We laid over there for a day and then we were off to the Hoosier Finals in Indianapolis, IN (Aug 16th)  Cody and I were spectators at this rodeo as we didnt qaulify for the finals.  Jared ended up getting hurt in the 2nd round and wasnt sure if he was going to be able to ride the rest of the trip. Jon finished 2nd overall in the bull riding for the finals and Josh won the bareback riding.  After Indianapolis we headed to North Washington, PA (Aug 17th).  This was the largest rodeo of the week and historically the first day is never the best ground for barrel racing.  This year was no different as there was still grass in the arena when we got there…YUCK…no money there for me but Josh and Jon both pulled checks from here.  We laid over at my mom’s in Valley City, OH on the 18th and Jared caught a flight home because of his injury in Indianapolis a couple days before.  We headed to New Windsor, IL on the 19th.  The ground was HORRIBLE here and the girl right before me wiped out at the 2nd barrel.  I safetied up, let Abby pick her spots, and was VERY happy with a 4th place check there.  August 20th found us on our way to Ironton, MO…I remembered when I got there why I had only been there one time before and that is because the ground is hard as a rock lol…Josh was the only one in the rig to draw a check there.  We headed back to Columbia, TN and everyone went their separate ways.  August 21st Josh and I went to Blue Ridge, GA.  It was a MUD HOLE.  Abby worked really good (pulled a shoe) and I ended up one hole out…Josh won it.  Abby and I had a very much needed day off on August 22nd and then on the 23rd we were entered in Ashland City, TN which thankfully was only about 1 hour from the house.  I hit the 2nd barrel there on Abby to be 2nd…it was the first time I had hit a barrel on her since getting her back 😦  August 24th we were off to Anna, IL.  Anna is a large, hard race track….Abby worked decent here and we ended up 2nd 🙂  August 25th found us in Four Mile, KY…this was a covered arena that was a 12 second pattern with a closed gate!!   Abby worked really well and we finished 3rd…Josh ended up winning Ashland City, Anna, & Four Mile.  We took a couple days off and then were entered in Marietta, GA on August 28th.  This was a nice covered arena and Abby and I pulled off a 3rd place check here…TO BE CONTINUED…

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OTRR sits down with Rope Afghanistan….

Tell us how the idea of Rope Afghanistan originated? The idea started when my husband was asked to go to Afghanistan for the USDA (who he has worked for almost 40 years).  He could not think about not swinging a rope for a year, so he took along two ropes. He then called me and asked that I send him one of the plastic steer heads we had. I did and he built his first dummy (called MRAP 1) from used MRAP parts and odds & ends there on the base. He started practicing and soon there were four or five soldiers who took an interest. On his first leave home, he told me that he thought it would be a great idea to have a “little dummy roping” and give away a buckle. I said “Great idea! I will work on it”.  When he got back to the base, and mentioned his plan and said that there would be a buckle to the winner, his five or six grew to nearly twenty. He then called and said he would need more buckles and ropes. I mentioned this to a family friend (Allen Crumley) and he suggested doing a Facebook page to let people know what we were doing for the troops.  When I set up the page, my thought was that we would get about 100 friends and a few donations to help out with the buckle costs. Needless to say the Facebook Page did a little better than that (4500 friends to date) who have donated cash, sponsored buckles (Arnold gave away 25 at his roping), sent ropes, dummies, pictures frames for the winners, snacks, letters or support, a custom made leather rope bag, and even commemorative coins for the soldiers.  And we have had enough donations to be able to sponsor buckles at two other bases that will be holding their ropings in early December. The support has been just awesome.

I have checked out your website and your FB page and it is really growing. How many soldiers do you have involved in Rope Afghanistan?  We have 30 on the base where Arnold is and about 40 more on other bases around the country.

 What do you want to see happen with this organization? I hope to see this organization continue to grow and continue sending items to the troops as long as there is a soldier somewhere in the world that wants to rope. And possibly even take the cowboy way of life to soldiers on the bases here stateside.

When the soldiers come home, will this be something that will bond them together and continue? I think it will. Arnold has told me that the guys on his base have caught “roping fever” and will rope every chance they get now. 

 When will the dummy roping take place in October and what are the rules?The dummy roping took place on October 1 in Baraki Barak. The rules are just like the dummy ropings you see here. Everyone starts out at the same distance and advances back a foot when they catch. Last man standing wins.

Tell us about the soldiers that are competing, have they always been involved in this type of activity, or are they from all walks of life?They come from all walks of life. Some have roped a bit before and some have never even held a rope before now. But they catch on quick and they are very competitive with themselves and each other.

How much do the soldiers get to rope the dummy? Do they practice every day?Most of them rope in their down time. And practice time depends on the current situation at the base and how many missions they are doing each week.

What type of donations is Rope Afghanistan looking for?Money for the buckles and postage always helps, new ropes, rope gloves, how to DVD’s, caps, letters and cards of support, snack items, or just anything roping related.  The soldiers are very appreciative of everything that is sent to them.

 

 What can we do to help?  Just spreading the word about who we are, what we do, and keeping our armed forces in our prayers out night, that each and everyone will come home safely is a huge help.

OTRR wants to give a HUGE thanks to Rope Afghanistan and all that they do! Please everyone take a moment to check out their website and find them on Facebook. It is very easy to make a donation by clicking here to go to their website.

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On The Rodeo Road Fans…

Have a candid shot of someone in your family roping the dummy, what about a behind the scene shot at a rodeo, how about hanging out at the trailer, or just a really cool action shot at a rodeo… well OTRR would love to showcase them on our new website in 2011!

We are very excited about it and really think you all will love the new improvements and additions we will be adding to the site.

So… send your pictures to ontherodeoroad@gmail.com to be apart of the new site!!

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The winner of the Calming Cookies is….

BEVERLY PARRISH!!

I want to share her comment so that everyone can see what she reflected on this summer:

“Coming back this year from a twice broken ankle has been quite the struggle in the confidence department but having a very calm and trustworthy mount has made this year one of the best I’ve had in a long time! The first ride I let him run was the best feeling I’ve had in a very long time and now we’re getting faster and all I can say is………woohoo!!!!!! Let’s ride!”

Thank you to EVERYONE that particpated in the contest and look for more in the near future!

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Today is your LAST CHANCE to WIN!!!!!

If you would like a chance to win a free bag of THE Calming Cookies click here and leave a comment!! We draw a name today!

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Calling all Team Ropers…Must see video..

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Spencer Turner… Everything was going well in the chute…

So after Downing, I entered Kirksville, MO put on by Heartland Rodeo Company.  I hadn’t been to the Kirksville rodeo in probably 6 or 7 years so I decided to give it a whirl again this year.  I was also anxious to try my new spurs I had made for me.  I had drawn a paint horse that I was not familiar with. I asked around and found out that it was a horse they bought awhile ago from a bronc rider who used it as a practice horse.  The bronc rider they bought it from happened to be entered at this rodeo and was out the same night I was.  I asked him about it, he said that it should take a little run then break and just jump kick down the pen. This was a fairly big rodeo with a pretty decent amount of money added and quite a few contestants, I was really wanting a rank horse so that I had a chance of winning it.  I wasn’t sure this old practice horse was going to be enough to win it on but I stayed positive and was just blessed to be out rodeoing.

They loaded the broncs and I saddled the paint.  Everything was going well in the chute.  It was my turn and I climbed on the paint horse, I put my stirrups on an was about ready to nod, when the horse reared up and tried to jump out of the front of the chute, knocking some guys off the back of the walkway. I stayed on and rode out the storm.  Things settled down and I was making sure everything was good to go when it happened again.  Most of the time I will stay on a horse that it acting up in the chute, I did exactly that both times, but the second time the paint reared he bucked and almost went completely over backwards.  This sent me over the cantle of my saddle and down the horses back towards the bottom of the chute. I caught myself on the bars before I got to the dirt. I climbed my way out, while the horse was still flipping out. This kind of stuff doesn’t bother me too much (even though it was almost a bad situation) I was kind of laughing.  I got the horse to calm down and got everything situated again, this time I had a buddy tie the horse in.  I nodded and we came out pretty high and fast. The rear out felt good and I held my feet great, my new spurs felt awesome through the rear out.  After that the ride went downhill fast. The horse took the long run like the guy said he would, but he never broke and just kept running and running and running.

The judges offered a reride and I gladly excepted.  I found out what horse the reride was but I had no clue what it was.  I asked around and found out that the horse was a horse that at one time was broke to ride. I wasn’t to sure about this but I know that some saddles go bad and make good buckers but some don’t.  Since the horse was halter broke, I put my rein on the throat latch of the halter to keep the pressure off him.  I climbed in and nodded. The gray horse came out and started throwing his head around and throwing a bit of a wild horse fit, almost falling down twice.  This was pretty hard to ride him through but I did and then he started to set up and jump and kick pretty high and ended up being pretty bucky.  I rode him really well and put my new spurs to good use, setting my feet high in his neck. I was happy with the ride and excited to put together a great ride.  I was 81 points and won the rodeo and I give the Glory to God.  The coolest thing about the ride was after they announced me being 81 and winning the rodeo, I walked out in the middle of the arena (where the pickup man had the horse dallied off) and unsaddled the bronc and carried my saddle back. Not very often can you win a rodeo and then walk up to the bronc in the arena and unsaddle it. The announcer and the crowd went wild, they didnt know it was an old saddle horse (and I wasn’t about to tell them and ruin the moment). These are just some of the good times On The Rodeo Road. Until next time, God Bless and be safe.

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Free Product Giveaway…..

Good Morning OTRR Peeps! How about a FREE GIVEAWAY???  I hear that you guys like those! We are going to giveaway some more THE Calming Cookies!!  Bob at T.H.E is so generous to dontate his products to our wonderful OTRR Fans! This is a $59.90 value, and one bag contains 30 doses. So for all your people who have some nervous, excited or unsure horses… this is for you!! 

Dose them one hour out and they begin to work in about 30 to 40 minutes and will last up to 4 hours.

There are 5 levels. Level one is for a horse that is just a bit too unfocused but not nervous. Level 2 and three will calm a normally nervous horse that is unfocused and keeps moving around but not uncontrollable.

Level 4 is for a VERY nervous horse and level 5 is for our crazy ponies.
Bob will talk to whoever our lucky winner is and make sure you receive the correct level for your horse.

So… here is how you win! Now that summer has come to an end, lets reflect and talk about our favorite moment that we had. It could be the best run you made, the fact that you covered your first bull or a hilarious story while hauling down the road…..we want to hear it!  Leave a comment on this post and we will pick a winner on Friday October 22nd!!

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Spencer Turner…Monsoon and Mud

The week after Allendale, MO and getting rained on and barely missing the big storm, I went to Downing, MO for a rodeo put on by Heartland Rodeo Company.  The day of the show I was south of Kansas City. I left in plenty of time to get to Downing, but when I got north of KC it became a little hairy driving. When I got in KC I noticed it was very dark up ahead and I had heard from Brandy that there were some pretty nasty storms in MO. I just kept on trucking, when the rain hit, boy did it hit!  It was terrible and there were tornados in the area, I saw several cars off in the ditch and a couple semi-trucks blown off the road. I couldn’t drive very fast cause of the wind and rain but I was determined to get to the rodeo. I drove in this kind of weather for a few hours (it probably was not very smart but I did it anyways). The rain started clearing of when I got about an hour from the rodeo, but I noticed that there were several trees down and telephone poles were blown over and the road was covered in branches like a tornado or straight winds had just came through there. I tried to make some phone calls to see if the rodeo was still going to happen but couldn’t reach anyone, so I just continued on to Downing. When I pulled into town it was still raining and the arena looked like a soupy nasty mud pit, water was standing everywhere.  I found the contractor and asked what the plans were. His comment was “it may be raining hard but the wind ain’t blown anymore so were going to rodeo”. This suited me fine. Mud never bothered me much (except when it comes time to clean my gear). I found the horse I was to get on, she was a little bay mare that was supposed to be good. I had heard about her even before I got there. I wasn’t sure how she would buck in the messy, underwater arena.

Unlike a lot of the cowboys, I kept my saddle and gear in my car until it was show time.  It was raining pretty hard and I decided to wait to get ready. Matter of fact I didn’t even really get ready, I didn’t see the need in changing my clothes or getting my saddle out in the rain until it was time to put it on my horse. I waited until the horses were in the chutes before I got my stuff out. I didn’t even unwrap my saddle from the week before. I carried everything over to chutes and put it straight on the horse. She was a little thing and didn’t give me much trouble in the chute. I was told she took a lot of rein, but had my own plans on a rein measurement. It was raining hard and very muddy, so I decided to not give her as much rein as they said too. Some horses don’t put their heads as low as they normally do when it is that muddy. They buck different because they are unsure of their footing.  I climbed in the chute and nodded. She came out pretty hard and started kicking over her head pretty good. My assumption on the rein was wrong, she took some rein from me and bucked with her head in the mud. I didn’t mind her taking rein from me cause I can handle it pretty well. I would almost always take a horse with shorter rein and let them take some from me, rather than giving them too much and trying to ride with it way to long (because getting it back in the middle of the ride is near impossible, at least legally anyways).  She was pretty strong for the first few then got weaker as the ride went. I rode her OK and was spurrin her pretty good, but was having a hard time setting my feet like I can. When the buzzer sounded I was satisfied with my ride, considering it was a nasty mess and it was raining pretty good.  I was 77 which was acceptable considering the conditions, it was good enough for me to lead the round but I got bumped to second by a cowboy the next night. I give thanks the Lord for the success and protection cause not a single horse, bull, calf or steer went down in the watery mud and no one was injured that I know of. Which is awesome considering the conditions.

I give some credit to the Downing rodeo committee for carrying on with the show, and they have some die hard rodeo fans. The stands weren’t packed but they were still pretty full even though they had to sit through a monsoon. Thanks for supporting the rodeo!

Until next time God Bless and be careful On The Rodeo Road!

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Tracey Goodman tell us about IPRA Rodeo at Ripley, MS

This is one of those rodeos we enter every year with very little success when it comes to paying out money. The pen really isn’t Biscuit’s kind of place. The barrels are usually set pretty far off the fence and he is a horse that needs a fence for the first barrel atleast. Well, he either needs a fence to bounce off of or for me to ride him like I should instead of pretending he is “Mr. Automatic”!! 🙂 I had my game plan going just as I wanted. I WANTED to send him in there easy, wrap the first and then hard the rest of the way. But instead, I send him in the pen from the “back forty”, thinking “this is not a good idea!! He’s not gonna sit down and turn!!!!” But he suprised me, put his butt in the red, sandy clay mix and sat down and turned. Pushed on through the rest of it, coming off the 3rd a little wide and cut the clock off that was good enough for 2nd. A 15.73 won it and we ran a 15.77. Things couldn’t get much closer than that. We were so happy to finally pull a check in this pen, especially since my grandparents got to make the trip to watch us run!! 🙂

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