Dear Ropers,

Hope you all are doing well and are being blessed. A good friend of ours (Jeff Hogner) always when asked how he is doing says “Blessed!” I like that. I have got my son saying how blessed he is, not lucky. When I hear someone say “I am so Lucky” I really want to say NO there is no such things as luck, you are blessed. So remember these next few weeks when good things come your way that you are blessed! And hey, don’t be afraid to tell everyone you see.
The last roping to report about was April 2nd and 3rd at Ardmore Ok. The weather was grand! (70’s all weekend) The weekend started off with a #12 and #14. The cattle were great all weekend! Thanks to RWC Cattle Co. Winning the #14 was Roy Deen & David Miller with a 32.67 on 4. These guys represented their home states of Okla and Texas and are much know by most ropers in those states! They were high call back with a 24.14 (one 8 and two 7’s) and roped their call back in a 8.53 giving them the victory and making them $1352 richer. In the #12, high callback also won the roping. Cody Camerer and Teddy Kreger (both Okies) were a very respectable time of 33.59. They started with a 9 sec run then got faster and faster each time. 7.79 was their time on the call back steer, which was good enough for $1410! Now you have to remember the score was stretched out there for these guys! We moved it back for our #10 ropers (with no complaints!). Randall Norman and Cooper Bruce roped strong and held it together in the short go. Coming to the money round 2nd high back, with a 29.19 on 3, they roped a leg for a total of 12.84 on their call back steer and won the roping $1400 and 2 Fear Not Saddles. 2nd place was Josh Cardin and Quincy Qualls only .35 hundredths of a second behind first! Just an interesting note: only 4 out of the top 10 caught in the money round. Last hole was 64.71! The next day was our #8. 15 came back to the short go on Sunday in the #8. High call back legged but was still fast enough on 4 to win the roping. Bobby Griggs and Cody Dees were 39.68 on 4 winning 2 Fear Not Saddles and $1500. 2nd place in the average went to the 3rd high callback, Josh Hensley and Derrick Jantzen with a 40.12 on 4. We also awarded 2 buckles one for the high lady and one for the high 14 & under roper. The high lady was K C Stone and 14 & under was Cooper Bruce. Congratulations to all our Ardmore winners! And we can not forget tomorrows champions! (the dummy roping winners) 5 and under Hot Shot Elmore, 6-9 Bailee Bruce and 10-12 Clay Deen.
Next roping is in Meredian Ms April 22nd and 23rd. We will have a #10 Sat morning and #8 that afternoon and the next day. Be sure to check out the cash bonuses for this roping to the high point ropers! Also we are giving 12 Trophy Fear Not Saddles away that weekend! Everyone would be proud to show off these saddles! Also 10 knives, 10 buckles, 10 rope bags & $13,000 guaranteed! After Meredian we will be at the Foothills Arena in Clarksville Ark May 14th & 15th. Here we will be awarding 8 Fear Not Saddles, 10 buckles, 16 saddle blankets and lots of cash. (Last year we awarded $27,000). The weekend will start with a #10 then go to a #8. Hope to see you there.
We are in the works of changing our membership magazine to the Spin to Win. Instead of recieving the Ropers News, we are negotiating an agreement so you can be getting the Spin to Win for your membership. This will include all our up and coming ropings along with our newsletter, results and pictures. I do believe you will be happy with this great magazine. You will enjoy reading great tips on the latest in team roping from all the pros! Please be patient as we are in the works of this change over and hope to get your magazine out to you in June. Until then you can visit and send all your friends to AATRCROPE.COM.

There has been some important changes regarding our finals. We will be awarding a money bonus for the high roper of our #8 ropings and high roper of our #10's. This will be awarded at our finals in Dec. Another change is in the maximim number of shootouts at the finals. This year we have deceided that each member will only be allowed a maximum of 12 runs total in each individual shootout. This keeps domination from accuring!
Well, its time to sign off but befor i do lets take a look at how to “Walk in Victory”. Walking in victory is what I have named the end of my newsletter. Life is hard and we must daily walk with Jesus to get through, and if we do that we are “Walking in Victory” not in darkness and not defeated! On March 28th I lost someone very important to me, my grandmother. In life there are certain people that stick out and make a major impact on our lives and my grandmother was mine. She did not have the money to buy me extravagant gifts but she gave me more than anyone…she showed me what true love is. In 1 Corinthians chapter 13 it talks about if you have the gift of prophecy, all the knowledge, and faith that can move mountains but do not have love then you gain nothing . 1 Corinthians 13:13 say, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” My grandmothers name was Rose, which suited her well! She stood right at 5 ft in her younger days, we didn’t tell her but she shrunk a little as she go older! (It would not have set well) Her life was a service to others, she lost her husband in her 50’s and had to work. This left her to find a job for income, so she babysitted. During this time many childrens lives were changed. We received a letter at the funeral home from one of the mothers she babysitted for. She said her son was a challenging boy that was diagnosed with ADHD as a young boy. My grandmother kept him for a while. He now is a responsible, loving father to a 2 ½ year old and she credited my grandmother for his success in life. You see the medication he got did not come from the pharmacy it was just my grandmothers pure love.
I remember all my life just sitting and talking with my grandmother for hours. She never said one bad thing about anyone or anything! And you see she probably had what most people say “the right to.” Her parents came to this country from Lebenon. Her mother had 13 kids and died when my grandmother was only 2. She never saw her mother or a picture of her mother. Her father was left with the kids and was told to be a mean man. She grew up in a house where there was no mother and just the anger of a man. But she had an older sister who taught her and loved her. She remembered it was her elementary teacher that kept her after class and told her that her teeth were so pretty so should brush them. As my grandmother got older her mind did too. So toward the end she went to an adult day center. She loved the people there. She said she “worked there.” We all laughed but in the bigger picture I believe she did. Though no check came to her on payday she was one of the most important assets to this place. There was a blind women that attend this center with her and everyday my grandmother would go to her touch her face and speak words of kindness. After lunch she took her hand everyday and took her for a walk outside and if the weather was bad they would take a walk inside. I wasn’t there but I can just hear my grandmother telling her of how beautiful the trees were or maybe there was a pretty bird flying in the air, and I know she mentioned Jesus! At the funeral this lady said, "Rose was my best friend." She made it to each person there and lifted them up with love in some way or another. Toward the end just a few weeks before she passed on we talked and she told me that sometimes she got confused, but when she did she just called on Jesus. “She said you know I just call him friend! and I just say, Friend ,please help me and he does.” Then I thought of what I had thought so many times before, she was so loving because Jesus was her friend. I remember when I was young that my grandmother did not understand all the hate and violence in the world. She would say if everyone would just love one another then the world would be a better place. Loving was so easy for her she had a hard time understanding how others wouldn’t do it.
Will Rogers once said, “We can’t all be heros, somebody has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by.” She was my clapper! She made me feel as though I was her favorite grandchild of 9.But I think if you talk to each of the others they would say the same! Today in memory of my grandmother I want to challenge you to show love to someone maybe today in the feed store or at work, maybe at home or school. Let us make the world a better place and do as Jesus commanded us in Galatians 5:13, “..serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Remember your name does not have to be in lights to make a difference, try doing the small things with a big heart!


Til next time,
Kelly Norman