Ashley Bentley has successfully won first place in the World Series. This World Series doesn’t involve baseball, though. Instead, it is the World Series for team roping.
She has been team roping for years and has been very successful with it over the years.
“We do team roping. It’s roping steers, and you have to go through rounds,” explained Ashley. “Each round is elimination, so the top teams make it back to the shortlist which is the fourth round. You have to catch three progressively, and then the fourth round is your final round. Times start when the steer leaves the box. One person ropes the head, and one person ropes the feet. When you catch his feet, you have to turn and look at each other, and that’s when the time ends. The fastest times win, and we were the fastest at the roping at the World Series in February.”
She teams up with her family members to compete in each event.
“There are two people roping. In those ropings, you can enter three different times and enter with three different people,” continued Ashley. “There are different numbers too. Like we did an 11.5. I’m rated a 4.5, my husband is a 6, and my dad is a 4.5 as well. It depends on the numbers; in an 11.5, your numbers have to equal 11.5 or less. You qualify under different categories. It can go from an 8.5 to a 15.5. I rope with my dad, brother, and husband.”
Winning first place in the World Series qualified her to compete in the finals at the end of the year. Going to the finals is a big deal and provides her with a chance to win a lot of money.
“The biggest thing about the World Series is that their finals every year are in Las Vegas. We went out their last year to the finals: me, my dad, my husband, and my brother all roped out there,” informed Ashley. “You can buy qualifications, but you can also win qualifications. You just have to win first place at one of the World Series to qualify. I won qualifications at this past one, and we’ll go to Vegas in December. People can also qualify by videoing and timing yourself live on Facebook, and they’ll time you on there. If you get under a certain time, you can qualify as well. There are a bunch of different ways to make it. The hope is that if you go to the finals that you can win out there because you can win a lot of money. To win that championship could pay around $200,000. There’s just a possibility to win a lot of money out there.”
One of the greatest things about the sport is that pretty much anyone is able to do it. While there are age regulations to compete in competitions, people are able to start roping at any age and can continue doing it for years to come.
“You have to be at least 21 or more to be in the World Series, but you can start roping at any age really,” expressed Ashley. “I started roping at 15, and my son is 11 and ropes.”
Now, she and her family will continue to practice and compete throughout the year to prepare for finals in December.
