One of the main things it takes to be a consistent heeler is the ability to get the right position on a regular basis. After they've made lots and lots of runs, the good heelers find that comfortable spot that they learn to read steers from and make the entry into the corner from. It's something they learn to do that they can repeat over and over again. And they learn to find their positioning under different types of situations, so they can ride in there the same way every time, no matter what type of setup or steer.
Each roper is unique. If you took the top 30 guys and sat and watched them rope, you'd see differences in how each guy rides down the arena. Whether it's wide or tight to the steer, right up alongside the steer or back a little bit, each guy has a consistent characteristic for where he wants to ride. Being in that spot helps him see the steer turn and how to set up his shot right around that corner.
Some of that is learned from the horse each guy rides. Each horse is different, and needs to be ridden a certain way. A guy will learn to ride that horse, then later in his career when he has to quit riding that horse it sometimes takes awhile to adjust to a different horse. That takes some adjustment, to either teach the next horse to do the same thing or to adjust to a different horse's style.
