The Score from The Team Roping Journal

Texas cowgirl Kayelen Helton joins The Score's Calli Montague to talk about balancing a full-time career as a licensed professional counselor with life in the arena, while still competing at a high level in both breakaway and team roping.

Helton talks growing up in Texas junior rodeo, competing through the amateur and college ranks at Tarleton State, and now a mainstay in the jackpotting scene.

The conversation dives deep into the mental side of competition, how Helton’s counseling career has shaped her mindset in the arena, and why routine, horsemanship and confidence still matter more than ever. She also shares her thoughts on developing rope horses, the importance of finding horses that fit your style, and what she’s learned since stepping into the breeding world with her stallion Cat Man San.

From winning on the all-girl team roping side to building a program around horses she believes in, Helton offers an honest look at what it takes to compete while balancing career, horses and life outside the arena.

About Cactus Ropes

Cactus Ropes has been trusted by the best in the world for more than 25 years. Whether you’re reaching for The Future, the C4 or a breakaway rope like the Tsunami, Cactus Ropes are built by ropers, for ropers. See the full lineup at cactusropes.com.

Winter and spring have flown by on the 2026 ProRodeo season with the summer right around the corner. On this episode of The Short Score, some of the spring's biggest winners talk about their wins.

Lightning Aguilera and Wyatt Cox claimed the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo thanks to a $24,218-a-man rodeo. From there, the biggest hit of the year came in RodeoHouston, where Korbin Rice and Cooper Freeman delivered a statement win with a 4.6 in the four-man, pocketing over $65,000 apiece. From Houston to Austin where Tanner Tomlinson and Coleby Payne secured their second winter win with an 11.6 on three head.

The Texas Swing wrapped in San Angelo, where Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nogueira added another win to their resume with an 18.7 on four head, earning $9,453 each. Out west, Jr. Dees and Landen Glenn picked up their first major win of the season in California, finishing with a 29.8 on four head to take home $10,920 apiece.

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This episode of The Score wasn’t planned—but it turned into one of the most meaningful conversations we’ve had.

Fresh off a dominant showing at the U.S. Finals, three-time World Champion Jade Corkill sat down for an extended, unfiltered conversation that goes far beyond the pay window. After taking the #16.5 with his son Colby and the Open with Tanner Tomlinson, Corkill opens up to TRJ's Calli Montague about what that moment really meant—and why, in his words, it felt like a world championship.

What follows is a candid look at the evolution of a competitor. Corkill reflects on the shift from chasing titles to finding fulfillment in watching the next generation rise—especially when that next generation is your own kid. He breaks down the mental side of team roping at an elite level, from handling pressure and staying present to the simple truth that most competitors beat themselves before the steer is ever roped.

It’s equal parts philosophy, fatherhood, and high-level strategy—told in a way only someone who’s lived it can explain. Whether you rope or not, this episode hits on something bigger: perspective, growth, and what it actually means to win.

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This episode is brought to you by The Dead Horse Ranch. The Dead Horse Ranch is an elite equine facility located outside of Santa Fe, NM. The property sprawls over +\- 6,100 acres and includes multiple houses, over 100 horse stalls, an indoor arena and multiple outdoor riding areas. This unique ranch is turnkey and offers usability as well as upscale luxury. The Dead Horse Ranch is proudly offered for sale by Michael Gregory Jr. Real Estate. To see more visit thedeadhorseranch.com

The money in team roping has never been bigger—and most ropers still don’t realize how deep it goes.

In this crossover episode with Solo Select, industry leaders break down the full earning potential across futurities, Riata, Old West, Royal Crown, and the Global Handicap System. From 4-year-olds with million-dollar upside to everyday ropers stacking checks, this episode maps out where the money is, how to access it and why the pipeline has never been stronger.

You’ll hear:

• How team roping surpassed $120 million annually in payouts
• The real earning potential of futurity horses (hint: it’s bigger than advertised)
• How intermediate and non-pro ropers are winning serious money
• Why tracking earnings and pedigrees is changing the breeding game
• The full lifecycle of a rope horse—from yearling to jackpot winner
• Why youth roping is outpacing every other sport in earnings

If you rope, own horses, or are thinking about getting into the futurity game, this is the clearest look yet at where the industry is headed—and how to get your piece of it.

After stepping away from competition for two years due to multiple surgeries, 2020 Cinch Timed Event Champ Taylor Santos returned to the CTEC for the 2026 Ironman title for $100,000.

Santos breaks down his surgeries, recovery, months of rehab and the mental battle of not knowing if he’d ever compete at the highest level again. He shares how he decided he was ready to come back, the horsepower that carried him through all five events, how his wife stayed steady and encouraging and what the emotional win meant for his family after years of setbacks.

The Score’s Chelsea Shaffer caught up with Santos in the arena at the Lazy E after his second Ironman title.

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This episode is presented by Fast Back Ropes. For close to thirty years Fast Back Ropes has been developing best selling ropes by listening to our customers. Fast Back offers a variety of ropes with a size, weight and style to fit every team roper.

1. The Short Score: Winter Rodeo Catchup 2026
2. How Team Roping Hooked Former UFC Fighter Travis Browne
3. The Short Score: 2025 NFR Average + World Champs Ward and Long
4. The Short Score: Aguilera and Profili Win Round 9 of the 2025 NFR

The Short Score is back in 2026 as the winter rodeo run is well underway.

One of the winter's biggest rodeos wrapped up in February with the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, introducing some newer names on top. Corben Culley and Trent Vaught took home the 2026 Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo win after a 5.4 in the clean-slate finals. They pocketed $24,900 a man and join this episode of The Short Score.

The end of February also wrapped up the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo, and Lightning Aguilera and Wyatt Cox came out on top. Aguilera and Cox were 3.8 in the short round and took the win with the most money won at $24,218 a man. Arizona had La Fiesta De Los Vaqueros -- The Tucson Rodeo as well. Brye Crites and Ross Ashford came out on top with a 9.9 on two head for $7,034 a man winning $12,709 apiece with the round monies.

In this episode, we sit down with Travis Browne, a former UFC heavyweight contender who has traded the octagon for the roping box and embraced life as a team roper.

Travis talks candidly about what it’s like to go from the elite level of one sport to being brand new in another, and how quickly team roping humbled him. From missing steers at his first jackpot to learning horsemanship, pressure, and patience, he shares the challenges and the rush that hooked him on the sport.

We also dive into how his background as a professional fighter shaped his mindset, coachability, and approach to learning, why team roping has become a family affair, and what he loves most about the people and culture in the industry.

It’s an honest conversation about starting over, being willing to fail, and finding joy in the process. Whether you’re new to team roping or have been in it your whole life, this episode is a reminder of why this sport pulls people in and keeps them coming back.

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Andrew Ward and Jake Long got the second NFR average titles of their careers and their first world titles in 2025.

Ward and Long went 3.9 seconds in Round 10 of the 2025 NFR to split the round win and take home the average title with a 44.0 on nine steers. It also sealed the deal on the world championship, bringing them to $373,838.26 and $372,091.71 on the year. 

Ward and Long join The Short Score to talk about their run, the wins and more.

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This episode is brought to you by Oz Ona Hot Streak,, the Nebraska-raised stallion built for both AQHA gold and NFR pressure. Oz is the 2019 AQHA Jr. Heading World Champion, a top-ten heeler, and the first stallion with that title to rope inside the Thomas & Mack. During the NFR, Solo Select is offering $500 off every Oz breeding. Lock your contract in at SoloSelectHorses.com or by calling Madison at 940-580-0156.

Lightning Aguilera and Kaden Profili topped Round 9 of the 2025 NFR for their third round win.

Aguilera and Profili pocketed another $36,667.95 apiece for their 3.4-second run. They've collected $130,846.52 a man inside the Thomas & Mack to jump from 15th and 14th in the world to sixth and fifth.

Heading into Round 10, Kolton Schmidt and Jonathan Torres continue to lead the aggregate after a 4.3 in Round 9, as well as the world standings with $294,451.12 and $286,185.02, respectively. Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nogueira have moved up in the world standings again, now sitting third and second, trailing by $19,714.53 and $11,448.43. Andrew Ward and Jake Long sit second in the aggregate, behind Schmidt and Torres by 7.1 seconds. They're also fifth and fourth in the world, sitting $47,472.13 and $40,952.58 behind the world leaders.

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This episode is presented by Oz On A Hot Streak, the stallion that wins everywhere he goes. AQHA World Champion. PRCA champion. Calgary champion. And now the first AQHA World Champion stallion ever to rope at the NFR. Oz breedings are $500 off all NFR long. Lock your contract in at SoloSelectHorses.com or by calling Madison at 940

Kolton Schmidt and Jonathan Torres not only won Round 8 of the 2025 NFR, they officially lead the pack.

Schmidt and Torres turned in a 3.8-second run for the round win to give them the lead in the average with a 28.7 on seven head and the lead in the world standings with $279,074.24 and $270,808.14, respectively. They've raked in $159,136.03 a man to skyrocket from 14th and 15th in the world to No. 1. 

They join The Short Score for the third time this week to talk through their run and their world-championship chances.

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This episode is presented by Oz On A Hot Streak, the record-breaking grey from Nebraska. AQHA World Champion. PRCA money winner. And the first stallion with an AQHA world title to rope at the NFR. Solo Select is offering $500 off all Oz breedings during the NFR. Lock your contract in at SoloSelectHorses.com or by calling Madison at 940-580-0156.