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Goat tying 101
To anyone who has never competed, goat tying looks simple. Those of us who have tried it know a winning run has a lot of parts. Here are the basics Stacey teaches at every clinic, in her own words.
The dismount
Dismounting 101
A great dismount sets up your entire run, and a correct one gives you the momentum for those super fast runs.
- Keep your shoulders and hips square, and point your toe toward the goat.
- Keep your hand up and use your outside rein to keep the horse running straight.
- If your hand drops, you’re pulling on the outside rein and may be causing your horse to fade out on you.
The flank
Flanking 101
There’s a lot of debate in the rodeo world about which method is better, stuffing or scooping. We believe stuffing, landing with the goat’s legs ready to tie, is faster, and it’s the method we teach. Everyone starts out learning to scoop, but the goal is to land the flank consistently and never have to touch the legs with your right hand.
Set up correctly
Left knee in front of the goat’s shoulder, left foot in front of the front legs. Right knee in the flank, right foot under the flank and in front of the back legs. That right leg gives you the balance and power to get the hind end off the ground. Going to the front leg, not the snap, gives a more consistent flank, especially on fresher goats.
Start with straight elbows
Bent elbows take away your roll. As you flank, keep your elbows close and pull them toward your waist, chin down, eyes on the bottom back leg.
Land it straight
Stuff or scoop, the goat should land straight down from where it was standing. Don’t turn the goat’s body in your flank.
The tie
Tying 101
Focus on the left pinky. Push your elbow out and throw your string to the other side of that pinky, so you never split the legs.
The only part of you that moves during the tie is your arm. Your legs and your head stay still for the entire tie.
With a cotton string, you can’t push the string across the legs like nylon. Hold up the pinky of your left hand, throw your string to that spot, and coil it around the legs like coiling a rope. More on cotton strings.
Boys goat tying
I should be able to eat a bowl of soup off the legs of the goat.Stacey Martin
Everything above applies to our boy goat tyers too. Boys use a goat piggin string and must string the front leg. Stacey likes boys to land with that front leg low and string low so they can scoop the back legs quicker, with the goat’s legs low and flat for the entire tie.