By Ruth Nicolaus
Wacey Flack is a tie-down roper (his favorite event), team roper (he heads for Tristan Hunter), and ribbon roper (as the roper for Jordan Peterson), in the Nebraska Junior High School Rodeo Association.
The 12-year-old cowboy lives with family friends during the week, near Arthur, so he can attend school at Arthur County High School, and the weekends with his family in Maywood.
For the tie-down and ribbon roping, he rides a nineteen year old sorrel named Tex. Tex, who has a white blaze on his face, is his favorite horse. “He’s my baby,” Wacey says. “I always care for him the most. I spend more time with him, I braid his tail, and after I’m done riding him, I brush him and give him little treats.”
For the heading, he rides a sixteen year old paint named Jenny. The mare is a little bigger and taller, and she takes care of Wacey. “She gets you to the spot where you need to rope.”
He is one of nine eighth grade students at Arthur County High School. He loves history class, especially studying World War I, but English class is not his thing. He plays basketball, is on the quiz bowl team, and is on the honor roll.
The school doesn’t have a hot lunch program, so all students pack their lunches. Wacey’s been packing his lunch since third grade. His favorite lunches are his mom’s lasagna and pizza.
He rides the fifteen miles to school each day with his older sister, Peyton, who is a very safe driver. They take turns listening to music on their Ipods.
When he grows up, he would like to be a veterinarian and a rancher.
For fun, he loves to ride into the Sandhills, taking in the beauty and the peace. In the summer, he loves to spend a couple days at Lake McConaughey, tubing behind the jet ski and staying in the camper overnight.
His older sister Peyton is a high school rodeo athlete.
His mom, Audra Peterson, and his dad and girlfriend Jon Flack and Cari Graybill, are very proud of the young man he has become.
