3.7 Speed Williams and Rich Skelton (Wrangler NFR, Round 8, 2004)
Williams: That one wasn't as nearly as special to me as the other one was (the 3.7 in San Angelo in 2001). Everything was happening pretty fast at the Finals. I've had some runs at the Finals that I thought were faster. I just don't remember that run in detail. Anytime you're trying to be that fast, everything from the flagger to the timer has to be on the same boat. I don't think the 3.5 is safe. It's definitely in jeopardy, but it all depends on what kind of steers we have at the Finals.
Skelton: We had to win the round that night, there were some guys getting real close to us in the race for the world (Williams and Skelton went on to win their eighth title.) We needed it at that time and it worked out for us. Speedy, like always, had it on him fast, and the steer kind of slowed up and came underneath me and I just slowed my rope down and I was by him too far and opened my loop up and got him. I probably didn't have the best position, but It just worked out for us.
3.7 Clay Tryan and Michael Jones (Wrangler NFR, Round 7, 2004)
Tryan: That was a big run. We were 3.9 the night before and then came back and were 3.7 and got some confidence rolling. It turned our Finals around-winning back to back rounds with 3s. The 3.7 put us up there in the average and made Michael and I have a record-setting Finals-where we won the most money anyone has ever won there in the team roping.
Jones: We had won the sixth round with a 3.9. We were in the top five in the average and if we were to win some go rounds, we had an outside chance to win the world. The steer we were 3.7 on ran a little bit and we knew he went to the right. Clay did an outstanding job of heading. I kind of let the steer step to the right, we knew he would do that, but I had planned on trying to keep him a little straighter. He really exposed himself, headed him good and when the steer turned, he set back against the rope, which made for a faster corner. Honestly, I didn't' heel him any different than I did any of the rest of them. It wasn't a miraculous heel shot-I knew he had him fast-I just literally made sure I got two feet. It wasn't wild or out of control.
Clay and I would meet every evening and talk about the steer we had and where we were. After we were 3.7, we had a really good chance of winning the buckle so we just kept going at them. That was kind of the turning point for us.
3.7 Wade Wheatley and Kyle Lockett (Wrangler NFR, Round 9, 2005)
Wheatley: I really had to reach on that one. He was getting away from me. Those kind of runs that feel fast are the ones that are real fast. That horse I was riding, Blair Burk's Par, had a lot to do with it. He finishes so hard-he's probably the hardest-finishing horse in the PRCA. On those horses that finish average you'll have a hard time being 3. If you have a horse that finishes like the Tryans' horses, you've got to have the whole thing: your heeler pulling back and your horse facing hard.
Lockett: This was the round that a 3.9 won last (the same round Tryan and Smith tied the world record). It was the toughest round ever at the Finals. The first team out was Logan (Olson) and Cody (Hintz) and they were 3.8. Those steers last year were the best steers they've every had, they were fresh enough and small enough you could be quick but they had been roped enough and were strong enough that they could take it. When those headers stick it on them fast, it all comes down to having the timing with your swing and your rope when they hit the line and they've already got it on them. It happens real fast, but it happens smooth, so it feels good doing it.
We're not real crazy and wild, but we'll dang sure take our first chance. Those top headers have it figured out now that just as soon as they're at the line, they're firing and they've learned how to catch them and handle them for us heelers to catch them. Those headers have been behind that set up enough now that they've all got it figured out. Speedy sure changed it. He was the only one, and now there are seven or eight of them that can spin them that fast. When it works out, it dang sure happens fast, and it's getting to where it happens more and more. STW
