Arena Tracks | Horses and Men

Cooper West grew up at the Philip rodeo arena.  Blindfolded, he could probably find his way anywhere around the joint.  For sure he could find the concession stand and then make his way to the bucking chutes. The son of Branden and Tayta West, Cooper comes by his love of rodeo and roughstock naturally, having honed his saddle bronc riding skills with the help of his dad, uncle and their friends on that very dirt.  Now, at the ripe old age of 26, Cooper West has stepped into the shoes of his father and his friends; keeping the cowboy culture alive through the pairing of stock and young cowboys at practice nights on the beaches of Philip, South Dakota.

When Cooper was younger, the Philip bronc riding scene was thriving between the Elshere and West boys.  Lifelong friends, traveling partners and sometime roommates, JJ and Ryan Elshere would help Branden and Zach West as they coached their kids and other local talent, taking care to match rider to horse during practice nights at the Philip arena.  They covered whatever came through the chutes from TJ Korkow’s young stock to Lance Lesmeister’s stronger broncs that were already out bucking.  Then, as the kids aged out and the help was out rodeoing, the practice nights faded into the background.  Now back home, Cooper has partnered with Joe Wishard to get the Tuesday night tradition back in action to mold a new generation of roughstock riders.

A typical practice night in Philip will bring in from 10 – 30 cowboys ranging in age from junior high through college.  Joe Wishard has some nice starter horses that give the younger set a taste of something that’ll buck, but not so hard it ruins the ride and squashes the try in the cowboy.  Other stock contractors bring their stock as well.  I spoke to Lance Lesmeister one evening as he was hauling horses down to Philip from his place south of Eagle Butte.  Sam Stoddard drives up from Corn Creek, Brent Sutton hauls in from Onida, TJ Korkow comes from Pierre, Ronnie Willson from Martin and John YellowHawk from St. Francis, all bringing stock to try the cowboys.  Wyatt Schaack and Joe Wishard have steers on hand for those that need a slower ride to perfect the spur sweep before stepping on something with more power.  Cooper and the folks helping out take matching the cowboy to the stock seriously as they know kids need a challenge, without being overwhelmed. A big part of the fun is seeing what young stock is coming up through the ranks as well. Cooper noted, “There’s a lot of young talent, and not just with the cowboys.  There’s dang sure going to be yellow bucking chutes in some of their futures, and that’s fun to see.”

Behind the chutes, the generation of bronc riders that is coming off the rodeo trail steps up to help the younger set. While the names change each week, Louis Brunson, Jeff Willert, JJ and Ryan Elshere as well as Zach and Branden West have been on hand to help.  The stock contractors are back there too, giving insight on the horse in the chute while gaining knowledge of their own stock and where it might fit in their program.  Cooper said, “Stock contractors that treat you well build good cowboys, and cowboys that treat the stock well build good bucking horses.”  When you look at it like that, it’s a win-win for all involved.  Plus, it’s just fun to watch horses buck and get an eye on what the next generation has to offer.

In front of the chutes, you’ll see veteran pick up men like Joe Wishard, TK Sampson and Louis Brunson as well as the younger set trying to break into the business of cowboy-savin’.  These folks do an outstanding job of keeping the evenings safe and allowing kids to feel successful, while building the “want to” in all of them.  Again, the younger pick up men learn from the veterans and those relationships help them to get a foothold in a rough and tumble business.  Committees won’t hire a pick up man without experience, and where better to get some than the Philip practice nights.  

There’s any number of local folks that step in to help with the horses in the chute, pulling gates and stripping saddles after the rides.  These guys don’t ask for anything in return other than the opportunity to tell stories of helping these young cowboys break out for their first rides and claim a part in building the next generation of South Dakota cowboy greats.  The music that pumps through the loudspeakers is almost worth the work.  Another One Bites The Dust was followed by Gimme Three Steps and then a medley of Kid Rock standards.  Ty Dean would be proud of the playlist for sure.

While they try to buck horses every week, they missed the week of June 10th for the Philip Bronc Match and aren’t bucking this week due to the South Dakota State High School Rodeo in Ft. Pierre.  Cooper noted in a recent Facebook post that they would try to be back at it next week, if possible.  He added, “For all you kids that have been coming every week, thank you. It is awesome to watch you all grow and improve. Keep it up guys. Don’t weaken.”

Cooper is quick to point out that he is only the point man in this operation and is well supported by others that step up in so many ways.  I think the practice night in Philip is a great example of the cowboy way of life.  One generation helping the next, who will go out and help the next.  Bronc riders don’t just spring up out of the dirt in South Dakota.  They are made by cowboys that have walked that arena as well as stock contractors willing to let them practice. It’s safe to say, this next generation is safe with Cooper West and his compadres manning the chutes in Philip, South Dakota.

I asked Cooper what he’d do if 100 kids showed up next week.

“If they start hitting me up.  I’ll just go find some more horses.”