Not his first rodeo

Calf roping starts with a nod of the head. It’s all over a matter of seconds later — if everything goes right — when the horse and rider have successfully tied up a calf at the other end of their lasso.

But every time he gives the signal that he’s ready for the chute to open, Grant Hodges said he still feels the same flood of nerves and excitement.

“You honestly don’t know what could happen after you nod your head,” Hodges said. “I just get like a rush … It’s all the energy.”

Hodges followed up his graduation from Chelsea High School in May with another accomplishment in June: the title of high school State Champion Cowboy in calf roping. Rodeo may not draw the same local crowds as high school football, but Hodges said riders take it just as seriously as any other sport.

“Our state is very competitive with rodeo. It doesn’t seem that big to outsiders, but it’s very competitive,” he said.

Hodges didn’t come from a family with an interest in riding or the rodeo. He recalled weekends at Oak Mountain State Park’s pony rides and watching professional rodeos on TV as the first sign of his love of horses, and he entered a children’s rodeo for the first time at age 4. He began roping at age 11.

Hodges, on his horses Annie and Cowboy, competes in both individual calf roping and team steer roping. In individual roping, Hodges must chase a calf across the arena and lasso it, bringing his horse to a complete stop so he can jump off and tie the calf’s legs in the shortest amount of time. Team roping is similar, but one rider ropes the steer’s horns while the second ropes its legs.

Calf roping is “just you, your horse and the cow,” Hodges said, and a good ride depends on how well a rider knows their horse’s speed, agility and skill level. Both of his horses have some previous experience in the sport and make a good half of the team.

“It takes time to figure them out, but once you do, it’s awesome,” Hodges said.

One of his favorite experiences in rodeo so far was in 2013, when he went to the team roping national finals and placed sixth overall.

“That was huge for a little eighth-grader,” Hodges said.

He earned his calf roping state championship June 10 at the state finals in Andalusia. His performance was mixed during the multiple rounds of competition, so Hodges said he wasn’t expecting to end up on top.

“I actually thought that I lost the championship going into the awards ceremony,” Hodges said. “My heart literally dropped to the floor when they announced that I won.”

Hodges will be putting away his lasso for a few years to focus on college. He’ll be heading to Troy University this fall and is interested in studying international marketing. He won’t be gone from rodeo for life, though.

“I know that I’ll get right back into it after I settle down,” Hodges said.