Ep. 4: Staying Straight, Fixing the Drift & Roping the Neck with Justin Maass
8m 18s
In Episode 4, Justin Maass zeroes in on one of the most frustrating problems in breakaway roping: a horse that wants to drift at the moment of delivery. Maass works through the issue in real time with both Jimmie Smith and Kayla Graham, trying to identify whether it's the left hand, the right foot, or something in the upper body that's triggering the move. His conclusion points to a backwards motion in the delivery swing, and his fix is simple: nothing goes backwards until you pull your slack. He also covers staying straight behind the calf before roping, driving to the pen with both reins, and why roping the neck sharp from the right position changes everything. The troubleshooting is honest, the runs are real, and by the end of the episode they're starting to figure it out.