Strait’s 30th Team Roping Event

George Strait hosted his 30th annual Team Roping Championship in March at the San Antonio Rose Palace.  Over 500 teams competed for cash and prizes valued at over $700,000.  George told Country Countdown USA’s Lon Helton that he never expected the event to become so big: “I had no idea we could grow it like we had.  When we first started it 30 years ago, my brother & I started it in Kingsville, and you had to be a Texas resident.  Then we opened it to the world.  It kept getting bigger, and then we moved it to the Rose Palace ten years ago.  It’s been 30 short years.”

What was your role in the event?  Do you rope? “I will rope, I’ve got three partners, Bubba will be one of my partners.  He didn’t rope last year.  After he quit rodeo, he stopped roping, but I think he got the bug again, so I talked him into roping with me this year.  It’s a lot of fun.  I hadn’t been on a horse in a while, and I was practicing yesterday, and I just about fell off, but I managed to get the hang of it after a while.”

What happens at night? “It’s not over until midnight Friday.  It’s a full day, then start again on Saturday.  The big money is on Saturday.  Last year first place paid a little over $80,000 a man, plus a new pickup and trailer.  I don’t have any dreams of winning this thing myself.  We get the toughest teams here.  They’re the best.  I just have fun, make my runs, but I have no chance to win it.”

LISTEN: 12-12 George4

More photos and read the winner’s press release HERE

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Category: Audio