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Open Tour High Point Heeler
| | By: Melinda Clements | Roper Outerwear US Open Tour—Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping
High Point Heeler
By Melinda Clements
Cory Petska had no preparations or plan in place when it came to the Roper Outerwear US Open Tour High Point Heeler race. Despite just sort of stumbling into the win Petska likes the format and hopes it will continue. The thirty-year-old heeler from Lexington, Oklahoma hauls a lot and his time on the road going to USTRC Team Ropings has rewarded him handsomely.
Petska, as the high point heeler, in the point race won $10,000 and a beautiful Gist Championship Buckle for his unplanned and uncoordinated effort.
“I really didn’t plan this,” Petska said in his interview. “It all just sort of happened. Everything just kind of took off after I placed in the Open Preliminary in Laughlin.”
Petska was pleased and excited about the Open Roping at the 2009 Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping.
“This was a really good roping here today,” Petska elaborated. “It all came together well and it was exciting.”
Petska likes the Roper Outerwear US Open Tour in that it is a type of motivation for all Open Ropers.
“This Open Tour High Point award is a really good deal,” Petska went on to explain. “It is, without a doubt, getting more guys to attend these open ropings. It is a kind of stimulus to get guys to go haul to as many of these ropings as they possibly can.”
Despite not really having a game plan as far as the Roper Outerwear US Open Tour was concerned Petska hauls to a lot of the USTRC Open Ropings. He hauls because team roping is his livelihood and is the main way he makes a living.
“This roping here at the Finals today was an awesome roping,” Petska commented. “You really like and enjoy a roping like this one where the cattle are strong and the roping competitive. Not only is that a good deal but the prize line is fantastic. When you add in a bonus like the Open Tour Points check and buckle it provides a great incentive to keep hauling.”
Buddy Hawkins from Columbia, Kansas was the Roper Outerwear US Open Tour runner up. He received a check for $5000 and a pair of Gist Gold Spurs for his yearlong effort.
Petska is a good example of a roper who takes his roping seriously. Whether through a specific plan to participate or an accidental connection the Roper Outerwear US Open Tour Points race is a reason and incentive for all USTRC Open Ropers to cushion their bank accounts with a well deserving award. Sometime it is the little things locked in big packages that make the sport of team roping a hidden jewel. Petska couldn’t agree more.
Posted: Nov.4, 2009 |
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