In watching the high school rodeo in St. George, Utah this weekend there were a few things that I noticed in the breakaway that were common mistakes for several of the girls. Breaking to the pin was one of them.

To get a good start in the Breakaway Roping and to get into proper position quicker, make sure your horse is breaking to the pin.  The "pin" is the corner of the chute where the barrier attaches.  You must line up your horse when backed into the corner so that you can see your calf off the right side of your horse.  This will help you break to the pin and not loose sight of your calf during your run.  You can't catch what you can't see!  When your horse actually breaks to the pin, it will be a straight line from the corner of the box to the corner of the chute where the barrier would be pinned.  Your left leg will be real close to the chute as you leave the box.  This will also help your horse get into position straight behind the calf quicker so you have a quicker shot to throw.  Breaking to the pin will also give you less barrier penalties and will help your calves run straighter.

Where to look on your calf

I look at my calf's right shoulder where his neck connects into the shoulder.  I want to look there when I back into the box & keep my eyes there during the whole run.  This takes effort to keep your eyes on your target, so be aware of where your eyes are looking.  If you look at the calf's shoulder and deliver to where you are looking, you will be able to catch clean around the neck even on the head ducking calves or calves with horns.

Swing to your target

When breakaway roping, make sure your swing comes FORWARD to your target (the calf) in every swing. This will help your rope travel to your calf when you deliver.  I want my swing to be in line with my right shoulder, my horse's right shoulder and my calf's right shoulder as my horse's position should be straight behind the calf.  I point at  my calf in the front of every swing to help the tip be directed down to the calf's shoulders.  Plus bringing your swing forward will help you clear your horse's head, so you're not hitting him with your rope.

 It is where you want to be roping/throwing from.

WHERE is position:

 Perfect position is your horse straight in line behind the calf. Perfect position does several things-

1.Helps you catch more consistently :)

a. because it lines up your throw.  You should throw straight from your right shoulder, which should be down your horses right shoulder & to the calf's right shoulder if you are lined up straight behind the calf.

2. Helps your horse rate & stop harder. 

a. gives your horse a 'target' to run to, rate at & with that target in front of him, he'll be able to stop quicker & harder.

WHEN in position:

I always want to be in position when I'm roping in the practice pen, from the box or just tracking around the arena.  It's important for my horse to know where to go & if I put him in the same place every time I rope in practice, he will soon know his position & it will take less effort  to put him there & keep him there.

  Roping from the box position starts in the corner.  If you don't line up while sitting in the corner to break to the pin (the right corner of the roping chute), your horse will have a harder time getting into position.  If you break wide (to the center of the box) as you leave, your horse will often run to the right hip of the calf instead of straight behind.  This is a hard spot to SEE your calves from.  Also if your horse is breaking wide, he'll push your calf to run to the left more, because that calf will see him coming with his right eye. Breaking wide takes longer to get into position, so it's important to break to the pin for faster position & a faster throw. It's important to hold position all the way down the arena and not let your horse fade off to the left. Your left hand on the reins helps hold your horse in position. Do as little as possible with your left hand but keep your horse in position.

Tracking calves around the arena:  It is also important to keep position even when coming around a corner while tracking.  Not letting my horse cut the circle will help him understand where to be when we are going straight.

The depth of your position may vary from roper to roper.   It should be a comfortable distance to throw your rope to the target, not a reach. Some horses may need to be rode more aggressively after a few runs to help keep them close enough to the calf- they will be in line but not in position. Horses that have this tendency to be short, you've got to track up & keep them in there while roping in the practice pen.  Very few quick shots, other wise you'll have a very short horse. Some horses are real free running horses to calves, those you can rope quicker on more often without the worry of getting them short.

WHOs in position:

I believe the only exception to perfect position is for younger ropers on a bigger horse.   Ideally smaller horses make better breakaway horses because they have shorter necks to see over. Although some big horses are put together with short necks as well, they aren't very common.

 With younger ropers I understand as a parent, safety becomes the 1st concern when mounting your child and sometimes that's the biggest horse on the place!  So it may be difficult for them to see the calf if they are in perfect position (straight behind it).  It's OK to let them move their horse to the left a little so that they can see the calf.  It shouldn't be so far to the left that they are in heading position but just enough to see the calf. 

For older ropers that are roping on the taller/bigger horses, shortening the stirrups is usually effective in helping you see your target (calf).  Depending on which horse I'm roping on will depend where my stirrups are adjusted but I generally like them short to begin with to where with my feet all the way in my stirrups I can stand up & have about four to five inches between me & the saddle.