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| Smith Named To Wrangler All-Star Team |
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| Sports | |||
| Written by David Wolman | |||
| Wednesday, 04 February 2009 09:00 | |||
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A couple of years ago, Drew Smith made his first attempt at steer wrestling. He admitted that he was a little scared, but with some help from his father, Jeff, who competed professionally in steer wrestling for 11 years, observing, Drew made his first dismount off a horse. The threshold of pain wasn’t as bad as what Drew had originally thought. “When I hit the ground, I thought it would be a little worse,” he said. “It didn’t hurt, really at all.” Drew recalled the attempt. “The first time I jumped off the horse, I caught the steer,” he said. “I didn’t throw him down, I just let him go. After that, it was smooth sailing.” Dad was there to provide his son support. “After I did it, he said I would be fine,” Drew said. By his sixth attempt, Drew was starting to become consistent at steer wrestling — and the success at live events would follow. Now he has the right to be called one of the nation’s best in the high school circuit. Drew was recently named to the Wrangler High School All-Star Rodeo Team — one of approximately 1,200 cowboys from the United States and Canada who earned the award. By being named to the team, Drew won Wrangler embroidered T-Shirts, which the National High School Rodeo Association would like its All Stars to wear at future events, and free pairs of Wrangler jeans, in addition to having his name recognized. “I think it’s a great accomplishment,” Drew said. In order to be considered for the All-Star Team, Drew had to meet the following criteria: finish in the top eight at the state high school rodeo and be in good academic standing. Two students, who are not eighth-graders or high school seniors when they competed at a state high school rodeo, per event were selected. In June 2008, Drew, then a junior, finished second, in average, in steer wrestling at state in Topeka. He missed qualifying for nationals by six points, but he was okay with that, since he had as half as many rodeos under his belt compared to his competitors. He didn’t start competing in the event until mid-season. Although Drew is rather new to steer wrestling, he has competed in team roping for several years — and he’s experienced quite a bit of success. He traveled as far away as Texas and New Mexico to compete. At a past event in Lawrence, he won a horse trailer valued at approximately $7,000 by defeating 300 other teams. He’s also won numerous saddles while competing in team roping. At the time, Drew never thought about doing anything else, but lately, his passion has become steer wrestling. “I just got bigger and older, and just decided I wanted to do it,” he said. “I figured I would be good at. I’ve been around it so long and everyone I know is good at it. I have some people that go to the NFR (National Finals Rodeo) every year, and they’ve helped me out.” Drew appreciates the guidance, time and expertise his father, as well as his father’s friends — many of whom have competed in the PRCA — have provided in working with him in training in steer wrestling. Drew’s long-term goal is to compete at the NFR, held every January in Las Vegas. For now, he can’t wait to return to action in March. He is also returning from a torn ACL and meniscus, which he suffered during a practice last August. He competed in team roping for another month, as he initially thought the injury wasn’t serious. But when a specialist informed him in September that surgery would be necessary, Drew was out of commission for four months. He’ll be looking to make up for lost time.
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