Cowkids Only - September/October 2024
September/
October 2024
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Ask a Pro:
Ty Hillman
This month’s blog features professional horseman, roper and mental skills coach Ty Hillman. Ty has worked with numerous rodeo athletes from all different events, including many NFR qualifiers, to help them improve their focus in high-pressure situations. Along with his wife and NFR barrel racer, Stevi, Ty co-authored a book titled “Mind Fuel” about overcoming challenges and improving your competitive mindset. He was kind enough to share his advice for rodeo kids to improve their mental game, confidence and perseverance through the ups and downs of life and rodeo with us in this month’s blog. Enjoy!
Ask a Pro:
Professional Roper, Horseman and Mental Skills Coach
Ty Hillman
Question: There are lots of reasons to get distracted at a rodeo especially for kids. How can rodeo kids stay focused?
Ty’s Answer:
You have to stay flexible. Especially in rodeo, there are so many things that don’t go as planned. Maybe you envisioned yourself making a great run on dry ground all week and it came in and rained and now you have to compete in the mud. So, what I recommend is to only focus on things you can either control or have influence over. For example, some things you can control include:
Your attitude
Your focus
The way you talk to yourself - either outloud or within your mind
Your effort
Your energy level
Things you have influence over could include:
How well prepared you are for the rodeo through practice
Your horse and how well they are prepared
Things you can’t control could include:
The weather
How other kids compete that day
The goat/calf/steer you draw
The ground conditions
Your brain can only focus on so many things effectively, so I highly encourage you to only allow time in your mind for things you can either control or have influence over. You have to let everything out of your control go. If you waste your mental energy on things you can’t control, you are taking away from thoughts that can help you succeed. What you focus on and think about is a choice and you need to be more aware of the thoughts going through your mind.
What recommendations do you have to help rodeo kids better manage their time to help improve their competitive level?
Ty’s Answer:
The great thing about improving your mental skills, is that you can practice it consistently without a lot of preparation. For example, we can train our minds to only focus on the things we can control or influence even when we aren’t at a rodeo. You can control the attitude you choose before you go to school each morning. You can control the energy level you have each day. You can have influence over how you do on your tests based on how well you study for them. You can’t control the weather. You can’t control how other people around you act or what they say. Think of your brain as a muscle. If you train it to work in a certain way each day, that is what it is going to resort to even when you are under pressure.
Another real struggle for a lot of rodeo athletes of all ages is to be able to focus on something when you need to focus on it. For example, if you need to really focus on keeping your elbow up in your swing during your run that weekend, you can train your mind to stay present and focused on something specific during the week too. When you are sitting in class, are you listening and paying attention to what the teacher is saying, or does your mind drift off to something else? When you are watching a movie, are you also doing something else, or are you present and focused on the movie? Our world encourages us to multi-task, which can be good, but also destroys our ability to stay focused in competition. Next time you ride in the box, are you thinking about what you need to focus on, or are you listening to the conversations all around you?
Question: How can being mentally focused and strong benefit your horse and their ability to stay focused?
Ty’s Answer:
Horses need consistency. And it is hard to provide consistency, if we aren’t consistent ourselves. If you ride into the arena one day thinking about what the girl ahead of you just ran and then the next time you ride in you are thinking about the friends and family you have watching you that day and then the next time you are thinking about the muddy ground, your horse is feeling different levels of energy from you every time you go through the gate. That isn’t giving them a consistent feel from you.
I like thinking about our relationship with our horses in a business sense. We are the leader of our company and the horse is our employee. Most of the time, employees reflect the energy, purpose and focus of the leader instructing them. The leader has to rely on the employee and the employee has to rely on the leader to get the job done effectively.
I encourage rodeo kids to take time to get to know their horse and their needs. The better you know your horse and what they need from you, the better leader you will be for them and the better team you will become. We have the responsibility to control our thoughts, emotions and focus, so they can follow our lead.
In addition to being focused and present during the event itself, you need to pay attention to your horse when you aren’t in competition. When you feed them, what is their normal behavior? When you warm them up at home, what is their normal behavior? So often, we aren’t focused and present in our day-to-day activities and we don’t recognize when our horse needs something extra or different from us.
Question: How can rodeo kids overcome mistakes and setbacks?
Ty’s Answer:
Lots of times when we make a mistake, we want to beat ourself up and think we have missed a huge opportunity we might never get again. In reality, a lot of kids who compete in multiple events, might have to ride in the arena again in 20 minutes or less. You can’t let what just happened affect what we are about to do next. Train yourself to be present in the moment. When you ride in the arena for the barrels, you can’t be thinking about the pole you hit 30 minutes ago.
The first year my wife, Stevi, made the NFR in the barrel racing, she averaged winning a check at one out of three rodeos. And she made it to the NFR in the top 10 in the world. So she lost two times for every one time she placed. That really showed me how often we have to deal with disappointment. Disappointment is just part of life and rodeo. How well we deal with it and how quickly we recover from it, greatly affects how ready we are for the next opportunity. This goes back to focusing on what we can control or influence. Look back at that run and think about what you could control or influence — do you need to score better? Did you have a good swing/tie/etc? Did you ride your horse the way you should? Or, did you not win because of a reason that was out of your control? Did your partner miss? Did you draw a steer/calf/goat that made it challenging to win on? Did you have to run in the mud when some of the other kids had dry ground? Don’t make excuses for yourself, but really think about whether the mistake was something you could control or influence. If it was, figure out what you need to do to fix it next time and move on. Don’t let past mistakes ruin future opportunities.
Question: How can rodeo kids be more mentally present in the practice pen and how will that help improve their performance when they go to a rodeo?
Ty’s Answer:
How we practice is how we will compete. If we aren’t focused in the practice pen, we can’t expect ourselves to be focused when our money is up and the announcer is calling our name. Don’t practice just to check it off the to-do list. Go to the practice pen with focus and purpose. What do you want to work on? What do you hope to get out of that practice session? What is the plan for our practice —how many runs do you plan to make and what do you want to focus on during those runs? So many times, we practice for 30 minutes or so and then we tell ourselves, “OK. These next three runs are my three runs at the next rodeo.” That’s not realistic. You don’t get 10 practice runs before you nod your head at the rodeo. You need to have focus and purpose from the very first run every time you enter the practice pen.
Have a game plan every day and talk about it with whoever helps you. Choose one or two things you want to work on and then make sure you are focusing on those one or two things every run you make. Check in with the person helping you. Did you actually do what you were focusing on? If not, how can you fix it for the next run? I also encourage people to use video as often as possible. There is so much proof in video of what we are actually doing versus what we think or feel like we are doing. When your practice session is over, talk about it with your helper and start thinking about your plan for the next time you get to ride your horse.
Question: What advice do you have for rodeo kids who get nervous before they compete?
Ty’s Answer:
First of all, know that nerves are a normal response. You didn’t have to learn to be nervous. It is your body’s natural response and you are definitely not the only one experiencing it. We just have to retrain ourselves to handle those nerves.
One thing we can do is take a lesson from the horses we are riding. Have you ever pet your horse to tell them good job and then hear them blow out a big breath of air, or exhale? Well, that is because long exhales of breath have a natural calming effect on our body. I recommend what we call box breathing to a lot of my clients to help them relax when they feel their nerves rising. This means you breathe in, or inhale, for 4 seconds. Hold your breath for 4 seconds. Then breathe out, or exhale for 4 seconds. Then hold your breath for 4 seconds. And repeat. When we focus on our breathing and counting to four, it helps center our brain on the task at hand and the slow, deep breathing helps our brain tell our body to relax.
The next thing I recommend, is to think about all of the work and practice you have put into this event. If you have been having good, productive practice, then you feel prepared and feeling prepared can really help calm your nerves.
Question: How can rodeo kids rely on their faith to help level out the ups and downs of rodeo and life?
Ty’s Answer:
With my faith, I can be secure about who I am and however I perform in the arena does not define who I am. Is God still going to love me if I miss? You bet. He loves you and there is nothing you can do to ever separate yourself from Him. Whatever happens that day, it stays in the arena. Whether you win or lose does not influence God’s love for you. Having faith in who you are in God’s eyes creates a lot of stability for us.
Question: If you could get in a time machine and tell your younger self something, what would it be?
Ty’s Answer:
It is OK to make mistakes. That is the way we learn. Don’t avoid doing the wrong thing more than you try to do the right thing. My younger self was too concerned with not messing up that I limited myself from growing and progressing as well as I could have.
Question: What is your favorite thing to read?
Ty’s Answer:
The Bible. I have spent more time reading it than any other book in my life. Find a translation (version) of the Bible that makes sense to you and that you can understand and then read it. To me, the New Living Translation is one of the easiest versions to relate to and understand.
Mind Fuel
Ty and Stevi Hillman’s book, “Mind Fuel” is available on Amazon and you can reach out to Ty for mental skills coaching through his social media pages.
Cowkid Devotional
By High Call Ministries Pastor Kelly Cronkhite
Kelly is not your typical pastor. He’s a Jesus-loving cowboy, rancher and roper.
Did you know an ant can carry up to 50 times its own body weight? To put this into perspective, if you weigh 100 pounds and had the strength of an ant, you could lift and carry the weight of five Quarter Horses! While God never intended for us to do as much heavy lifting as the ant, He does tell us to work with ant-like effort. In Proverbs 6:6 the Bible says, “Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.” What God is telling us is that ants don’t work because their parents, teachers, coaches, etc. are telling them to. Ants work hard every day because it is in their nature. The Bible tells us we must also work hard not because someone is telling us to, but because our work here on Earth is done to further God’s Kingdom. In Colossians 3:23-24, the Bible says “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” So, if you are running sprints in basketball practice, run them as though you were running them for God, not your coach. If you are cleaning stalls, think of it as a chore for one of God’s animals, not just your own. Even on your homework, complete those math problems as though it was an assignment from God and not your teacher. When we view our Earthly work as tasks from God, it changes our mindset. So, I challenge you, the next time a task is put before you that you really don’t want to do, think about doing it for God. If others see you doing a less-than-fun task with a good attitude and the work-ethic of an ant, they are seeing Jesus-like traits in a human being and you are furthering the Kingdom of God.
Horse Care Tip of the Month
By Equine Veterinarian Zach Bruggen
Feed Safety
Dr. Bruggen shares his advice for safely feeding rodeo horses.
You might have heard about the recent tragedy where some bucking horses were fed feed meant for cattle and were poisoned. The event put the whole horse world on edge about whether the feed they are feeding is safe. Here’s my advice for safely feeding your rodeo horses:
Make sure that your feed comes from an ionophore-free (pronounced I-ONO-FOUR) facility. If you aren’t sure, you can call the company that makes your feed and ask.
Do not feed horses a feed that is not specifically labeled for them. If the feed is safe for horses, it will say so on the bag.
Don’t over complicate your feeding program. The number one mistake horse owners make is not feeding enough hay or grass (also known as forage.) Hay and/or grass consumption needs to make up a minimum of 1% of the horse’s body weight per day. So for a 1,000 pound horse that’s 10 pounds of hay and/or grass every day.
If you have a horse that is ridden a lot and they need additional calories, supplement them with a fat supplement and extra high-quality hay instead of more grain. Grain normally contains a high amount of sugar and starches, which isn’t always good for horses.
Senior horses should be on a complete feed like the senior horse feeds you can find at your local feed store. These feeds contain forage in them to help older horses get their required amount of forage each day.
If you feed supplements, tailor them to your horse’s individual needs. If you have concerns or questions about supplements, reach out to your veterinarian to help guide you.
Exercise of the Month:
Plank Challenge
By Logan Corbett with Champion Living Fitness
Many times our physical abilities have more to do with our mental strength than we realize. To prove this, I challenge you to a forearm plank challenge. Part of the mind’s job is to protect the body from pain and discomfort. So, when you go into a plank position and your muscles start to burn, your mind tells you to quit the exercise. If you push past those mental limits even for 10, 30 or 60 seconds, you are strengthening your mind and body.
To correctly do a forearm plank, rest your weight on your forearms and toes. Keep your elbows beneath your shoulders and your feet should be in line with your hips. Keep your core muscles tight and hold for as long as you can, while keeping good form. Don’t let your belly fall and your back dip towards the floor. By doing this exercise longer than you think you can, you can prove to yourself that your body is much stronger and more capable than your mind likes to tell it is. Increase your plank time by 5 seconds each day and see how far you can go! Remember, when it comes to exercise, a little bit every day can make a big difference!
Rodeo Word of the Month:
Gestation
Gestation
“Gestation” means how long an animal is pregnant - from breeding to birth. A horse’s gestation length is about 340 days - almost a year!
Rodeo Math Problem of the Month:
Calculating Foaling Due Dates
Due Dates
The Short Go Ranch bred all of their broodmares around February 1st. A normal pregnancy, or gestation, for a horse can range from 320 to 370 days and the average length is 340 days. What is the first date the ranch should start expecting their mares to foal if they all have healthy and normal pregnancies?
Reading Comprehension:
Reading the Label
Supplements can help complete our horse’s feeding program and keep them feeling and performing their best. Some supplements have different feeding directions based on the horse’s job. Read this label and decide how many scoops your horse would need if he were to be fed this supplement.
Pregnant and nursing mares: 2 scoops
Foals and yearlings: 1 scoop
Senior horses: 2 scoops
Performance horses in light-to-medium work: 1 scoop
Performance horses in hard work and racehorses: 2 scoops
Ponies and miniature horses: 1 scoop
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