story by Lindsay Humphrey
“I got bucked off a colt I had started, and I just watched him buck around the pen. I thought it looked kind of cool,” said Jake Herndon from rural Stanley, New Mexico. “I decided I wanted to do it [saddlebronc].” At the time, Jake was a freshman and Brandon Blakely helped the young roughie get on his very first bronc. It took almost a year to collect the equipment and get on enough broncs that Jake felt ready to start riding competitively. “I like that saddlebronc is kind of tricky. You have to figure out the right timing and lifting the rein. When people see the pros do it, they make it look easy but it’s really not.” Every time Jake gets on a bronc, he learns something new.
Staying square in the saddle eluded Jake for quite some time. “I used to be all cock eyed coming out of the chute, it took a lot of horses to figure out how to keep myself square. Other than just practicing, keeping the rein right in line with my nose helped everything click.” Lefty Holeman gave Jake that tidbit. Shane and Sage Faulkner really stepped up and took Jake under their wing when he started competing in the NMHSRA. “I give them a lot of credit. I still get on practice horses at their place. And I still sleep in their trailer at rodeos sometimes.” Their son, Monty, is one of Jake’s best friends and his current traveling partner.
“Every time I’m in the chute I pretend it’s nice and quiet like at practice and that the grandstands aren’t there. Monty tells me to get a good spur out and Shane tells me to keep square. Those are the last things I usually hear before I nod my head.” Staying cool and calm in the chutes have contributed to Jake’s success in the last three years in the event. As a junior, Jake qualified for state, but now he’s working towards possibly making his first trip to nationals in the event this year. “Last fall I had the honor of being at Veder Ranch in California with some of the greatest saddlebronc riders in the world. I learned a lot about how to manipulate my rein, but also that these big shots are just normal people. Meeting all of them made it seem more attainable to ride at their level one day.”
This May Jake will graduate from Moriarty High School. He’s hopeful his spring season will capture the attention of a college he can rodeo for. “Last summer I took off for an entire week to rodeo. That was a cool accomplishment because I’ve always wanted to do that. It gave me a taste of what it’d be like to rodeo full time.” Jake plans to get his permit and rodeo professionally at some point until it’s not working for him anymore. Once he’s done with rodeo, he foresees himself working outside in some capacity. “I could see myself working for the Bureau of Land Management, the forest service or even just a ranch in general.”
Jake appreciates that the NMHSRA roughstock community is tight knit. “We all have each other’s back even if we do argue with each other sometimes. The directors do a really great job of making sure we’re safe. And that makes my parents pretty happy.” Jake’s mom, Renae, and stepdad, Joseph Lopez, are beyond supportive of his time on the rodeo trail. “I know my mom gets scared when I climb into the chute, but she knows I’m going to be alright. My stepdad didn’t grow up with rodeo, so he doesn’t usually know what he’s in for but he’s always down for a trip.” Jake’s dad, Jeff, on the other hand, watched someone die after they got kicked in the head by a bareback horse when they were first getting into rodeo when Jake was 5. He still supports Jake, but the memory of that death haunts him. “Competing in rodeo comes with a lot of responsibility. You have to be smart with your time both inside and out of the arena. You can’t be messing around and still expect to cover your horse.” It’s this mature mentality that’s helped keep Jake from getting any serious injuries and perhaps why he’s been so successful in such a short amount of time.
