Setting the Bar

Every year in Las Vegas the toughest competitors in our sport gather to battle it out for ten days to determine the World Champion. Each year in December someone sets the bar and everyone works to raise their game for the next year. Who will be the champions this year?
If you are a rodeo fan you know there isn’t a huge turnover of contestants at the WNFR every year. The talent level is very high in all of the competitors and they have all put in a lot of work and miles to get there. They understand the commitment that it takes to make it to the WNFR and more importantly they are willing to make that commitment each year.
Luke Branquihno, set the bar for the steer wrestlers for the past decade. He is not at the WNFR this year but many of the competitors who are at the WNFR are better competitors because of the standard he has set. This year someone will set the new standard, and Luke and many others will be back in the practice pen working to compete on that level for the winter rodeos. It is a never ending cycle and it happens in every event, every year.
From the professional level it carries over to college level, and even down to the high school level. The top contestants have made a commitment to compete at the highest level. As you advance through high school, to college and then to the professional level, the level of commitment has to increase as well.
It is exciting to see the contestants at the WNFR every year. I have had the opportunity to coach many of them, and watch them come up from the high school ranks through college and now on to the professional level. Some have been dominant since they were in high school. Others have had the dedication to improve each year until they are among the elite in our sport. Each of them has continued to improve, for some it is a slow process, and for a select few it is a quick jump to the top.
Every year I am surprised at how many people think they are going to make the finals the next year. Many of them have the talent, but they are not willing to make the commitment and the sacrifices it takes to make the finals. Many people think they can just turn on a magical switch and make the finals. For most the journey to the WNFR started years before.
This is why I am a fan of the WNFR. Every one of the contestants at the WNFR has a story and most of them are not fairy tale rises to the top. Everyone there has earned their spot, and the respect of their peers and fans.