{"id":1743,"date":"2012-10-22T18:21:21","date_gmt":"2012-10-22T23:21:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/?p=1743"},"modified":"2012-10-23T10:14:49","modified_gmt":"2012-10-23T15:14:49","slug":"rodeo-runs-in-their-blood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/rodeo-runs-in-their-blood\/","title":{"rendered":"Rodeo runs in their blood"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Southern Arkansas University Rodeo team members – Bull rider Griffin Strode\u00a0 and barrel racer Leslie Jennings took time out of their busy week preparing for the 31st<\/sup> annual National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA) rodeo at SAU to respond to a few questions and to share why they rodeo.<\/p>\n

With a mother who was a barrel racer and a father who roped calves, Jennings has been around rodeo her entire life. As a child in Daingerfield, Texas, Jennings grew up with a strong love of animals. She wanted to be a veterinarian, but somewhere along the way, that dream changed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI realized that there would be times that I couldn\u2019t save the animal and I think I would take that too personally,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Jennings, a sophomore, is pursuing a pre-physical therapy degree at SAU, but her passion for rodeo is still a motivating force. She won the Ozark Region barrel racing event in and was Academic All-American her freshman year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I started rodeo, it was because I had grown up with it,\u201d said Jennings. \u201cBut, now, it\u2019s because I love it and couldn\u2019t imagine my life without it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jennings admitted she loves the feeling after a win. She wanted to continue getting that fix beyond high school. A couple of friends were already at SAU and she was invited to tour the campus. Upon her first visit, she knew she wanted to be a part of the SAU Rodeo team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re closer than any other rodeo team I\u2019ve ever been around,\u201d she said. \u201cEveryone knows everyone and it\u2019s never boring. You won\u2019t find a team anywhere whose school and community does more for them than this one. We have so many luxuries that other teams do not have because of the great support we receive.\u201d<\/p>\n

SAU Rodeo Coach Rusty Hayes, who was deservingly awarded Coach of the Year in 2011 by the NIRA, is the backbone of SAU\u2019s nationally competitive team. His support and encouragement is a big factor in the team\u2019s success, according to his team members.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s always there for us when we need help,\u201d Jennings said. \u201cMost of us couldn\u2019t get by without him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCoach Hayes will give you the shirt off his back if you need help,\u201d Strode said, in agreement. \u201cNot only does he give us rodeo advice, he tries to give us advice on things in life because he cares about the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Strode, Hayes was a determining factor in his decision to come to SAU, where he is pursuing a dream of becoming a college agriculture teacher.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had looked into quite a few schools. I talked to Coach a few times and then went down for a visit of the campus,\u201d said Strode. \u201cI really liked it. Coach and I talked more and my decision was that I was going to SAU.\u201d<\/p>\n

Being a part of the rodeo team is like a family away from home for Strode, a sophomore transfer student from Monticello, Ill.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur rodeo team has some of the best people I\u2019ve met. We\u2019ve only known each other for a couple of months and we are already like a big family. It was a good decision. It\u2019s a good environment and have facilities that not many teams could even dream of having.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strode never questioned or waivered from his childhood dream.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve always wanted to be a cowboy as long as I can remember at least,\u201d he said. \u201cI started out breaking stick horses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Personally inspired by his father and his grandfather, Strode drew strength from his role models.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father plays a huge role for me, but it\u2019s his father who has made me and my dad what we are today,\u201d said Strode. \u201cMy grandfather was blind since my dad was six months old. Anytime my dad or I would get down or think things were just impossible, we look at the things my Pap did and realize that all things are possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Professionally, Strode was inspired by the late-Lane Frost (world renowned bull rider killed in competition). Bull riding became his sport of choice, though he enjoys roping as a \u201chobby.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been rodeoing for about eight or so years. I\u2019ve always been raised around livestock,\u201d said Strode. \u201cOur hometown rodeo rolls around every summer and one summer I kept telling my parents I wanted to ride bulls and it kind of stuck.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Strode, the best thing about competing is the thrill of the win.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the rush you get when you know you\u2019ve won,\u201d he said. \u201cWinning is by far the best feeling in the world and knowing that your hard work paid off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each rodeo team member preps for the annual event in different ways.<\/p>\n

For Jennings, the barrel racer, her energy goes into taking the best possible care of her teammate, her horse. Strode finds balance in taking a day off from practice while continuing to exercise, since staying fit helps him brace for hard work in the arena and helps prevent unnecessary injuries while competing in the naturally dangerous sport of bull riding.<\/p>\n

The 31st<\/sup> annual Southern Arkansas University Rodeo starts Thursday, Oct. 25 and continues through Oct. 27 at the Columbia County Fairgrounds in Magnolia. Events begin at 7 p.m. Thursday and admission is $7 for adults and $5 for children age 7-12. Children six and under are admitted free.<\/p>\n

The Southern Arkansas University Rodeo team competes against Ozark Region opponents from other universities in Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Indiana, Georgia, Michigan, Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois and Louisiana.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Southern Arkansas University Rodeo team members – Bull rider Griffin Strode\u00a0 and barrel racer Leslie Jennings took time out of their busy week preparing for the 31st annual National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA) rodeo at SAU to respond to a few questions and to share why they rodeo. With a mother who was a barrel… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"content-sidebar","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[65,10608,10604,1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1743","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-agriculture","7":"category-in-science-technology","8":"category-student-profiles","9":"category-uncategorized","10":"entry"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1743\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}