story by Lily Weinacht
Albin, Wyoming, native Reata Beck is sitting in the top five of the WHSRA in two of her events, splitting second place with two other girls in the reined cow horse, and sitting fourth in her favorite event of goat tying. A member of the WHSRA Cinch All Star Team, the 17 year old also served on the WHSRA Student Board of Directors in 2015. She’s been on a horse since day one, rodeoing like her parents, Ron, a team roper, and Sam, a reiner and team roper. “Mom went to the (AQHA) Youth World Championship in reining, and then she got into rodeo in college,” says Reata. “Reining is very different from my other events, but the cow work is fun. I started breakaway roping again this fall, and I just switched from heading to heeling with Conner Mordahl. My favorite is goat tying – it’s the event I’ve always stuck with, and I really enjoy the ground work.” Reata is finishing physical therapy on her knee and taking a break from goat tying and basketball, though she plans to return to both by the first of the year.
During rodeo season, Reata practices twice a day, doing ground work in the morning, and riding horses in the evening, followed by another round of tying. “My mom has coached me a long time, and so have Lynn Smith and the Winchell family,” she adds. “I’m super competitive, and I’m never good enough for myself. Improving is my drive. Mom holds the goats for me, and helps with whatever I need. She’s been my support forever.” Adjusting practice with the weather, Reata often hauls to Spicer Arena in Eaton, Colorado. “It takes about an hour-and-a-half to get there. Mom will load the horses and meet me and Dad after school at a gas station by the interstate so we can all go together. I always take my goats when we go to rodeos so I can practice. One of them is getting too big now for tying, but we’ve decided to keep him. We call him Dog because he leads on a leash like a dog.”
As for horses, Reata rides HD, short for Havadoc, in the goat tying. “I can use him for anything, but I’ve goat tied on him since eighth grade. He’s getting older, but he’s really dependable, and probably the best horse I’ve had. I just bought a new breakaway horse, Fuzz, last year, and he’s kind of funny because he doesn’t ever lose his long hair, but he’s a heck of a breakaway horse. I’m training our head horse, HB, to be a heeler – he’s really fun – and I ride my mom’s head horse, Scar, in the reined cow horse.”
Reata lives about 30 miles from Burns, Wyoming, where she’s a senior at Burns High School. “I really like government and economics, and I’m very involved in politics, so watching the election was fun,” she explains. “I also helped put on a Veteran’s Day assembly, writing the closing ceremony and doing some public speaking.” She’s narrowing down her college choices, and plans to enroll in a political science program. Afterward, she’ll transfer to University of Wyoming and finish with a degree in law.
Reata and her family enjoy travelling, with stamps in their passports for The Bahamas and Canada, and within the United States, a fishing trip in Alaska. “This year, we’re deciding between going to Europe or Australia,” says Reata. She also plans to make one more trip to the NHSFR, which she’s qualified for twice. “I hope to not only compete there, but to perform to the best of my abilities. I’ve also set goals to make it to the CNFR and college rodeo in the Central Rocky Mountain Region. I think it’s one of the toughest regions for goat tyers, and that will push me harder.”
