Alyssa Gary bided her time throughout the Hooey Jr. Patriot, not collecting a payday until the very end—winning the 19-and-Under Goat Tying with a time of 6.55 seconds and bringing home $10,000.
“This win means so much, because getting to come here and compete with all these girls, man, it’s been neck-and-neck all week,” Gary, of Lake Charles, Louisiana, said. “It’s awesome getting to compete with this many talented girls from all over the country in the goat tying.”
The competition was stiff all week, with times in the money often coming in less than a half a second apart. But for the McNeese Rodeo team member, it was all part of the process.
“In the Finals, I knew I needed to pull on my horn,” Gary, 19, said. “So I was thinking about that, getting to the front, and as soon as my feet his the ground, getting to the left because that goat went hard left and I didn’t want him to beat me [around]. And when I got there, just be aggressive.”
She tied using a “soft string,” which is a soft cotton rope with no body or stiffness to it. Gary says they’re more commonly used in the South, and it’s what’s she’s comfortable with.
“So, when you go to tie you really have to get your elbow up,” Gary said. “Some say it holds better; it just depends on who’s tying with it. I just really like it, it’s what I’ve been tying with my entire career.”
Gary’s equine partner is mare “Big Time,” who was her barrel and pole horse in junior high. According to Gary, Big Time excels as a goat horse, with her speed and strength playing in her favor.
“She’s so much smarter than me—it can be kind of aggravating,” Gary said. “But anything I ask her to do, she picks up immediately.”
Outside of practicing for rodeo, Gary is either working out or teaching the next generation of goat tyers. She says that teaching not only reminds her how much she loves the sport, but how much she knows, as well.
