The Basics

The basics for roping is horsemanship and everything that goes with that. Every instructor that I have ever had puts a great deal of emphasis on this aspect of roping. As some have said "you catch the steer with your right hand but you win with your left hand". That strongly infers that good horsemanship is the basics for good roping. I believe that the "basics" for a successful life starts with a solid relationship with Christ. That is vital and should be encouraging to those reading this that are already a Christian. The Bible is full of examples of people that became a Christian and their lives were transformed and God led them to victory over things that have held them back –because he was living in them. That is because

He will help you do what you can't on your own. I am an alcoholic and freely admit that, “I can't, He can, so I will let Him". That may not apply to some of those reading this. It might not be alcohol but something else that is holding you back from having a life that is as fulfilling as you would like. But because alcohol applies to me I use it’s an example of what God can do and is willing to do for you.

I have personally had many times where it would have been easy to give up. However, something inside me would help me through. That “something” is the Holy Spirit which has lived in me for many years. In AA it is called our Higher Power. It works. As it is I am now going back to the basics of roping. I ride twice per week. Stay in shape. And am gettng my balance back.

Gotta get my “sealegs” back. I have not ridden regularly since brain surgery in late May of 2023. It is not like a bicycle. It is taking more work and taking longer than I had expected. However, as with many things I have encountered, I am sure God will help me to come back and be able to rope again.

As we approach the end of the roping season, I would encourage you to rope great, have a great time and do your best.

As always if you have any comments or suggestion contact me at

On July 27th we had the honor to host a fundraiser for Ryder Redfeairn, the 15 year old son of Mike and Candra Redfeairn, who came off his horse in the practice pen and hit his head on the rail on the way down. He suffered from a shattered C4 vertebrate and a broken tail bone as well as a few other injuries. Luckily, he did not sever his spinal cord, but did do some damage to it. Ryder was airlifted to Kern Medical Center where they observed him and decided to send him to UCLA medical center. Ryder, while spending several days on a ventilator and battling pneumonia, went from not feeling anything below his neck to having feeling all the way down to his feet in about 4 days, as well as breaking the fever he had. All very good signs as well as starting to feel pain on days 4 and 5. Ryder was recently released to a rehab facility in Downey, California for further healing. The good thing for Ryder is that he is young and determined and he has his loving supportive family by his side.

It started with an idea – we can easily

BY MARGARETTE MULLINS

host a roping here to help. We talked with a couple friends and we all had the same idea – we need to help! A couple days later we met for dinner. There were about 18 of us that came together and we left with an idea to have the roping, a dinner, and a silent auction. We hoped to sell about 12 tables and have about 15 teams. It kept growing. Friends, family, Mike’s customers and associates, and so many people who heard about Ryder’s accident wanted to help in some way. Pretty soon we needed 3 tents, then 4, when we stepped off the area by the arena we realized we had to stop selling tables because we were running out of space for tents. It was a good problem to have.

The evening started with the sponsor roping. Ropers put up $500 a man for a 4 steer draw with a different partner in each round. We ended up with 38 teams! They earned points to 10th hoping to win the Coats saddle. Thank you to Joe and Katie Gregory and Jimmy Pfeffer for donating the saddle and congratulations to Dylan Dishion for winning the saddle and Kelsey Mauro was pretty stoked to go home with the “Ryder’s Roping” buckle.

When that pot was over, dinner was done just right by Wayne Dotson of Golden Empire Towing and his family. They did an amazing job. The pork loin was outstanding and we can’t thank him enough. We had no idea how to purchase the right amount for that many people, but he said, “No problem, just tell me how many people you think” –when it was all said and done, he said he served 488 plates! Not only did he donate his time and cooking skills, but also the port-a-cools, water truck, and roll offs. He also sent one of his tow trucks to Costco to pick everything up that was ordered.

During the Sponsor roping and dinner there was a silent auction with over 60 wonderful items. Again we were pleasantly stunned by the outpouring of love from everyone. This exceeded our wildest expectations and had something to please everyone.

After dinner and the silent auction we had a live auction. Thank you Justin Mebane for auctioneering! We had some outstanding items up for grabs. A full load of hay, great Dodger seats, great NFR tickets, Joe Peters donated his acoustic melodies, 100x American Hat, dinner with Shannon Grove and Philip Peters, Madonna Inn weekend, a Smarty sled and more.

We finished the night with a handicap draw. The ‘Ryder’s Roping’ buckles were awarded to the winners Gavin Eaton and Owen Redfeairn. I think it might have been kind of special for Owen.

The village that came together to produce this event (in about 3 weeks) was amazing – it was a pleasure and I will do anything with you guys anytime. They include Dominic and Jamie Patino, Joe and Katie Gregory, Kelly Cecil, Wayne Dotson, Julie Towse, Amy Etcheverry, David Daniel, Steve Hatcher, Joe Peters, Josh Lynch, and Joey and Stacy Deniz. And very special thank you goes out to Steve Simons, Rick Owens, Shannon Grove, Kari Pascoe and the hundreds of people who turned out to support an amazing family with a super kid. Our job isn’t done. Ryder still has a very long recovery in front of him. You can support Ryder’s Give Send Go page at Ryder Ranger Redfeairn and see a lot more pictures on Facebook at Ryder Roping.