Ryan Motes heads on Kerry Kelley’s Three S REO Booncat, a futurity head horse he needs to soften up and flatten off, letting the horse cruise through a half-hour practice session. Meanwhile, Brock Hanson works on relaxing his good help horse on the heel side.

With the help of Brock Hanson, Ryan Motes works through a practice session on “Level Up”, a 4-year-old ex-Snaffle Bitter that came from Jake Telford’s program. Motes works on building consistency and confidence in a horse that’s been to only one show. Motes is working on heeling slow steers, stay...

Brock Hanson works on his roping with Ryan Motes heels on Bet Hesa Shiner—Ironman—making realistic runs to make sure the horses are sharp and solid. Hanson rides a practice horse that allows him to work on his roping, while Motes rides Bet Hesa Shiner to ensure the horse is driving through the tu...

Brock Hanson and Ryan Motes practice on one of Hanson’s new help horses and one of Motes’ solid futurity horses to slow down their run and fine-tune parts of the run. In this session, Hanson takes some walk starts, and Motes backs his horse off through the corner to keep solid position.

Brock Hanson is team roping’s master catcher, and his job is to help at the horse shows by catching every single steer. In this practice session at Ryan Motes’ place in Decatur, Hanson and Motes talk through a practice session on a green heel horse and one of Hanson’s seasoned help horses. Motes ...

Brock Hanson is preparing for a rodeo, focusing on scoring and freeing up his rodeo horse. On the heel side, Ryan Motes is getting his gelding Bear back in shape after some time off.

When getting ready for an event, strategizing on which horses you ride with which partner horses, and how you'll put those runs together, can be the difference between a win and a disappointment on game day. Bert McGill and Ryan Motes talk about how they build runs on each horse in the practice p...

There's a science to good practice cattle. Lighter steers will keep your head horses light and confidence, and strong steers will help keep those horses sharp and aware. But having the right cattle for the horses you're working on is key, and Ryan Motes breaks that down. 

Tyler Merrill and Ryan Motes make some practice runs on some young horses to prepare for an upcoming futurity.

Rope horse trainer Bert McGill and PRCA Reserve World Champion Ryan Motes practice session from Weatherford, Texas days before the American Rope Horse Futurity Association World Championship.

Tyler Merrill and NFR heeler Ryan Motes prepare for the American Rope Horse Futurity Association's World Championships and breakdown their runs on their young horses.

When approaching pre-event practice on a young horse, your best bet is to reinfornce fundamentals rather than ram-and-jam training into them. American Champ Ryan Motes outlines how he approaches practice on his ready-to-go good young horses. 

World's Greatest Horseman Finalist Tyler Merrill joins NFR heeler Ryan Motes from Weatherford, Texas, the day before the American Rope Horse Futurity Association's World Championships to ride through his young horses and talk about his strategy going into the ARHFA's premiere event.

Tyler Merrill prepares some young horses for the American Rope Horse Futurity Association's World Championships with the help of NFR heeler Ryan Motes.

Making sure you and your partner are on the same page is critical to getting the most out of your practice. As hard as communication can be for some team ropers, just knowing where each steer will turn is better for your heeler and his heel horse. 

Brock Hanson and Ryan Motes work through a training session on head and heel horses, making bridle adjustments to get better control of their horses and better stops. Plus, watch the run from Hanson's and Motes' perspectives on their RayBan cams.

Brock Hanson and Ryan Motes ask their horses to run faster cattle in practice, dealing with the challenges associated with asking for more run.