Bleu Hall grew up around cattle and the Western lifestyle, but she hadn’t found a sport that “fit” her until she picked up a breakaway rope.
The 16-year-old from Okmulgee, Oklahoma, competed in team penning and sorting until she was 10 years-old. Now she’s leveraging the WCRA to go from high school and jackpot level-ropings to open ropings.
“Growing up, I learned how to read cattle really well,” Hall said. “It helped a lot in the team penning and sorting as well as the breakaway. I wanted to breakaway because I wanted to go fast, but I like the cattle. I tried the barrels but I’m not a barrel racer. Roping was always something I connected with.”
Hall says she started in the Little Britches rodeos before moving to junior high level. She credits mom Jennifer with unwavering support as they began traveling the three-plus hour drives to Texas jackpots seeking more opportunities and competition. Chris Neal’s Rising Stars ropings, Joe Beaver’s ropings and The Patriot in Fort Worth are all in the mix for Hall, who tries to hit several ropings a weekend.
Bleu Hall’s Horsepower
Hall’s first breakaway mare was named “Chic.”
“She brought me from the ground up,” Hall said. “I learned how to rope on her, and she was the most influential horse for me when I got started. Now, Chic’s teaching another kid to rope, and I have my geldings Jones and Seven.”
Jones is a 9-year-old Hall selects for shorter setups, while 13-year-old Seven gets the call at longer scores because of his handle in the box and ability to make up ground.
“They are a lot alike, which has helped a lot with my roping because I can go back and forth and I know I can get the job done on both,” Hall said. “They’re both very powerful and have big stops that help the rope break off faster.”
They also both happen to be bay geldings, a fact Hall says wasn’t intentional, but she welcomes.
Next Level with WCRA
Hall started nominating to the WCRA at Rising Stars ropings, competing at the Stampede At The E in January, winning a total of $2,336 and advancing to the Triple Crown of Rodeo round to rope alongside competitors like Kelsie Domer and Jordan Jo Hollabaugh.
“WCRA has helped me go from youth events to pro level,” Hall said. “Because of it, I’ve started entering with the open ropers.”
Next up for Hall is working on becoming a better horsewoman, saying that with as much as she wants to rope and be gone that giving her horses consistent signals and keeping them working well is essential.
