TEAM ROPING HAS SCHUETTE ALL TIED UP

Schuette and Foxy warm up for a practice session.

Many of the things we find fun as adults are things we dreamed of doing as children.

Such is the case with Millersville resident Darryl Schuette, who last weekend in Jackson, Miss., qualified for the dally roping competition of the upcoming "World Show," a major equestrian event held at the close of each horse show season and sponsored by the American Quarter Horse Association.

Schuette and his wife, Ruth, own several quarter horses and regularly ride them in national competition.

"As a boy I always wanted to rope," said Schuette, "Now I'm finally living that boyhood dream, not roping calves by myself, but in team roping."

Schuette grew up around horses, so he is not new to equestrian sports. He had long hoped to try the sport of roping, but it was not until 1987 and with the encouragement of his wife Ruth that Schuette bought his first quarter horse colt, which the two dubbed "Foxy."

"Since we got Foxy, we now have several other quarter horses and hope one day to breed, raise, help train, show and ride quarter horses on the World level," he said. The World level is a top ranking for American Quarter Horse Association competitors.

Schuette says the quarter horse is a breed apart. Quarter horses date back to the early 1600s although their development did not begin in earnest until the early 1700s in America. Quarter horses were an important part of American history. They helped settlers cross the West and carried Pony Express riders. They pulled farm wagons and plows, and with their excellent "cow sense," quarter horses became a favorite among cowboys, according to Schuette.

The breed is versatile, hearty and intelligent. Quarter horses are typically very well muscled and are able to run short distances very quickly. Thus, they are an excellent breed for roping events and working activities which require sprinting. More than three million horses are registered by the American Quarter Horse Association.

Schuette and his wife ride at different American Quarter Horse Association shows throughout the Midwest. She rides in the pleasure riding class while Schuette enjoys dally team roping.

Like the quarter horse, the sport of dally team roping grew primarily from the Old West. Working together as a team, cowboys on the range often paired up to catch cattle that were too big to handle along. Dally team roping is a rodeo event where cowboys and their horses are judged on the ability to get into position, rope and disable a streaking steer. One rider, known as the header, must rope the horns of the steer while the other rider, the heeler, must catch both hind legs. Both the riders and their horses are judged individual by a group of five officials.

Although Schuette obtained his first quarter horse in 1987, he did not begin roping competitively until 1991. A neighbor introduced him to the sport and he's enjoyed it ever since.

"I ride amateur class and on the team I'm the heeler," he said. "In roping there's so much that has to come together. Everything's important, you have to have good equipment, and good skills. There are different ways to throw a rope. It all takes practice and precision."

As the competition starts, riders and horses are situated on both sides of a chute from which the steer is released. The header must catch the steer either by the horns or around the neck and dally, or tie, a rope to the saddle horn of his saddle. With the head of the steer roped, it is the header's responsibility to turn the animal enough that the heeler can rope its hind legs. Once the heeler ropes the legs, the heading horse must turn and face the steer, keeping the rope taut.

The quarter horse is judged on its ability to stand calmly in the starting box. In addition, the horse must be able to break quickly and run to the steer at a high rate of speed. The horse must position the header for a good shot at catching the horns, and then put the steer in a good position for the heeler to rope the hind legs.

"Roping takes good reflexes and a roper needs good athletic ability," Schuette said. "Heeling is difficult because you have to get in the rhythm of the running steer and you have to wait for the header to turn the steer in a position where you can throw the rope and catch both back legs."

There are no shows that have roping events in Missouri so Schuette and his trainer, Larry Darnell of Galatia, Ill., drive with Foxy to shows in Tennessee, Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky and Oklahoma.