If you wanna rodeo, it’s good to start young

The Reed’s Ranch Red Dirt Arena was alive Saturday morning with young cowboys and cowgirls getting their skills together.

With the annual Reed’s Red Dirt Ranch Kids Rodeo, the sooner you get into the action, the better you’ll become. Even if it means eating a little bit of that Oklahoma red dirt.

“You’ve got to start ‘em young,” said Travis Murt as he walked 2-year-old daughter Paisley atop her Shetland Pony Tinker to get into place for the tiny tots — or as they were called Saturday, “tator tots” — competition in the bend the pole race. The young riders would slalom poles set up mid-ring and race for the fastest time.

For the tiny competitors, it was more about crossing the finishing line than breaking land speed records.

But when it came to the day’s first event, the mutton bustin’, it was all about hanging on for dear life for the young competitors.

Shane West donned the greasepaint, baggy denim and colorful scarves to serve as rodeo clown for the event. His job isn’t really to clown around. He was racing with the sheep to try and catch the kids before they tumbled or, at least, pick them up and dust themselves off without getting run over by a bucking ewe.

“I really should have been exercising before this,” he said.

The competition was for kids 8-and-under, 55 pounds or less. The goal: to hold on for the longest time. Some of the competitors donned helmets and chest guards, others, their finest western shirts and straw hats.

When the gate erupted open, the sheep raced into the arena with top energy. For every young competitor who held on, three tumbled headlong to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

They all learned the cowpuncher’s mantra: when you fall off you’ve got to get back in the saddle.