My sister, Sheila and her boyfriend, Kevin are very much into the Rodeo scene. They are members of the All Florida Saddle Club Quadrille Team. They are a group of cowboys and cowgirls who love to ride dangerously. Their famous figure-eight will take your breath away. Kevin enjoys Team Roping. The Rodeos Sheila and Kevin are currently participating are Arcadia Rodeo, Ocala Shriners Rodeo and Davie Rodeo - all of which are in Florida.
Each member devotes 4 hours per week to the perfection of the routine. During the week, each rider is responsible for the ongoing conditioning and upkeep of their mount. In many cases, the horses are used for moving herds of cattle from one pasture to another. The group is a close knit group that typically helps each other with the herds. Often times, the events are considered social gatherings, as well.
The Saddle Club itself warrants some attention here. The Saddle Club was formed in 1946 and is the oldest organized Saddle Club in the state of Florida. Some of the original founding members are still active in the monthly shows and meetings. John Court is the Grandson of two of the original members, Mr. John Parker and Mrs. Joan Parker. The team affectionately refers to these two as Grandpa and Grandma Parker. They continue to support the team, with Grandpa periodically substituting for John Court as the voice of the team.
The team consists of eight couples, riding together on their own horses, to a variety of square dance tunes. The routine consists of twelve basic moves requiring varying degrees of equestrial skill. In the team's 50 year history, the crowds have never been disappointed by their "Dangerous Figure 8", which is performed at a breath-taking gallop. Their routine is led by a third generation caller, Mr. John Court, who calls out each move, in the age-old square dancing tradition. Team members live in the state of Florida, and travel to Arcadia, Florida every Saturday to prepare for upcoming performances. Generally, the team practices for 6 weeks prior to a show. The team has traveled throughout the state of Florida, performing at Rodeos, fund raisers, and other Equestrian events. They are a professional team and do not participate in competitive shows.
Breeds participating in their routine include primarily Quarter Horses who possess athletic and agile qualities. The routine lasts for 10 minutes and includes quick starts, stops, turns and flying lead changes. The horses used in this performance include working cow horses, backyard hobby horses, and show horses.
This is rodeo's only true team event. A "header" and a "heeler" work together to catch a steer. First out of the chute is the header. He has a choice of roping the steer around the both horns (which are reinforced) around the head and one horn, or around the neck (usually he doesn't decide so much how he will rope the steer just as long as he gets it in one of those combinations. As in other timed events the steer is given a head start, resulting in a ten-second penalty should the header break the barrier.
Once the header has made the catch and turned to the left taking the steer with him, the heeler jumps in to action. His job is to rope both hind legs of the steer. A five second penalty is added to the total time if only one leg is caught. Disqualification results in the event of a "crossfire", which occurs if the heeler tosses his loop before the header has changed the direction of the animal (in otherwords if the steer is still going forward).
Time is stopped when the slack is out of the both ropes (and the steer) and the contestants are facing one another.
Sheila & Kevin's Rodeo Lingo
Sheila & Kevin's Rodeo Links
Sheila & Kevin's Wedding Day
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