story by Lily Weinacht
Cord Roberts took home state titles in his two favorite events of tie-down roping and team roping this summer. The 17-year-old heeler from Rapid City, South Dakota, won his first title ever in the SDHSRA in the tie-down roping. He then turned around and won the team roping with his partner Wyatt Tibbits at the 4-H State Finals Rodeo. “I only had 15 points (going into SDHSRA state finals) and I went in trying to do my best. It turned out that I did pretty well all three rounds, and picked up quite a few points and won it! I was roping and scoring really good, my horse was working well, and the cattle were good. It all just came together.”
A rodeo athlete since he was 4, Cord also competes in the NLBRA in tie-down, ribbon, and team roping, and enters the cutting in the SDHSRA. He ropes with header Tyler Burn at high school rodeos. “Rodeo is just fun, and it’s nice to know that I’ve gotten better at it. All the things I’ve won pushes me to want to win even more.” One of Cord’s favorite SDHSRA rodeos is the 20X Extreme Showcase at the Black Hills Stock Show. “It shows off the talent of us high school kids, and we use the same arena and the same stock that’s in the pro rodeo.” Cord also competed in the Fall Extravaganza Showcase for the second time this year, and last year he placed third in the tie-down roping.
Cord travels to all his rodeos with his parents, Jeff and Wendi Roberts, and his greatest inspiration is his dad, along with Bill Ricketts, Jay Madsen, and Dain Kissack. “Those three guys pretty much taught me how to calf rope, taught me about timing, and showed me right from wrong. My dad has really pushed me, and it’s nice to know that I have someone behind me I can talk to whenever I need help with roping.” Jeff often heads for Cord when he practices, and Cord’s two older sisters, Lacey and BreeAnna, rodeo as well.
The Roberts run beef cattle on their ranch outside of Rapid City, and Cord is in the middle of building a tie-down roping arena. “That’s what I want to focus on more. We raise our calves, so it’s easier to practice.” Cord also practices with the Hermosa Roping Club in Hermosa, South Dakota. He rides a 13-year-old mare, Spook, in the tie-down roping, and a 14-year-old gelding, Jose, in the team roping. “I trained Spook myself. We bought her as a 2 year old and I started her on heeling. My sister breakawayed on her, and when she went to college, I started roping on Spook. Sometimes I team rope on her, depending on what the cattle are like. She likes the calves that can really run, and Jose is a lot easier on slower cattle.” Cord also rides and trains younger horses for his family, and takes in the occasional outside horse.
A senior at Rapid City Central High School, he particularly enjoys government class. “It’s always interesting to learn about how our government is run, and right now I’m memorizing government terms and getting ready for tests.” After school, Cord saddles a horse and checks cattle and does other chores, followed by homework. He hunts coyotes once in a while, but is more likely honing his roping skills on the dummy in his extra time. His goal is to college rodeo, and study welding and horseshoeing. “I’d like to transfer into bit making and carving conchos—any kind of metal working. I’d like to be a national champion in the calf roping in high school and college, and hopefully the NFR after that.”
