Ruger Vaquero
Ruger Vaquero
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 Ruger pre-1962 Walnut Grips Blackhawk, Single 6, Vaquero  US $175.00
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 Pistol grips, Ruger 50 Anv. BH and New Vaquero US $60.00
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 Ruger Vaquero Poplar Grips US $24.95
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 #199 Ruger XR-3 Red Frame Vaquero/Blackhawk Stag Look! Nice! US $40.00
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 Ruger XR3-RED Blackhawk, Checkered Rosewood Grips US $24.00
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 Pachmayr Presentation Grip Ruger Blackhawk 03137 US $28.21
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 Ruger Vaquero Oak Grips US $24.95
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 Hand Carved Walnut Wood Grips for Ruger NEW MODEL VAQUERO XR-3 Frame US $65.00
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 Ruger New Vaquero Handmade Gun Grips- Locust Burl #2 US $90.00
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 Ruger Blackhawk,Vaqueros & Single Six Grips Black US $18.99
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 Ruger Blackhawk,Vaqueros & Single Six Grips Pearl White US $18.99
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 Ruger Vaquero / Blackhawk XR3-Red Grips .... US $35.99
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 Ruger Blackhawk Six Hogue Rubber Pistol Grips Gun Parts US $19.99
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 Ruger New Vaquero Handmade Gun Grips- Red Quilted Maple US $85.00
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 Rugerc Walnut Fits Blackhawk Vaquero S6 US $50.00
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There is more than one method to accomplish nearly any task. Roping and doctoring a steer is no different. Most people are familiar with the "normal" way of running down the animal to throw a loop on the head and turning it hard while a second person throws a loop around the back feet. Also well known is "tripping" where the roper catches a hard running animal by the horns or neck, flips the rope around the animal's hindquarters and ducks off, tripping the animal and slamming it to the ground and knocking the wind out of it so the roper can tie the animal down. Lesser known is the old vaquero style of roping.
The vaqueros of California were roping cattle two-hundred years before the Texas cattle drives. The most valuable part of the cattle handled by these vaqueros was the fat which was rendered into tallow to be used for soaps and other products. As a result their methods of roping cattle were designed to be easier on the cattle. Their ropes were made from braided or twisted rawhide and sixty to eighty feet long, enabling them to rope and handle cattle without chasing them.
Rather than only throwing the "conventional" head and heel loops known to most cowboys, these early ropers had a variety of both head and heel loops which increased their efficiency, reduced the stress (and weight loss) on the cattle. This style of roping was more versatile as it allowed the vaqueros a wide range of approaches to an animal to keep it calm before roping it, as well as allowed them to handle the cattle calmer once they had been roped.
While many consider this style of roping to be "fancy" it is actually practical as a cowboy doctoring cattle out on the range can accomplish eighty to ninety percent of his doctoring without going any faster than a trot. As a result, rather than cattle getting wilder in a health wreck, they not only remain calm, but other cattle will gather around the animal being treated, allowing the cowboy to pick out his next patient. This also means one can doctor more cattle without having to change horses and eliminates nearly all (if not all) of the injuries to cattle doctored in the pasture.
The Van Horn Arena, owned by the Culberson County 4H Club will be holding Big Loop Ranch Roping Practices on August 14,28 and Sept 11th. The Van Horn Arena will be holding a Big Loop Ranch Roping, sanctioned by the Southwest Ranch Roping Association on Saturday, September 25, beginning at 10 am.
For more information visit vanhornarena.com or swrra.com