Jet McCoy is all cowboy and has been from the day he was born. Raised on the family’s ranch near Tupelo, Oklahoma, he still works daily with horses and trusts them in another aspect of his job. He’s one of the pickup men for McCoy Rodeo, a livestock production company owned by his brother, Cord, and Cord’s wife, Sara. He will be working next week at the Oklahoma City Pro Rodeo presented by Tractor Supply Co.
(PHOTO BY CASEY THARPE PHOTOGRAPHY)

 

OKLAHOMA CITY – In his lifetime, Jet McCoy has held many titles, from son and brother to husband and father to champion and reality-television star.

Through each layer of each job, one description stands out: Cowboy. It’s a title he’s had for all 46 of his years, and he’ll show it off during the Oklahoma City ProRodeo presented by Tractor Supply Co. is set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23-Saturday, Jan. 24, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 25, at OG&E Coliseum inside OKC Fair Park in Oklahoma City.

“My mom always said if you didn’t have kids horseback by the time they were 4, it was too late,” said McCoy of Ada, Oklahoma, who will be one of three pickup men next week. “That experience on the ranch has played such a huge role in being a good pickup man, because you have to be able to read livestock and know where they’re going before they get there.

“You also have to know how to handle livestock. What a lot of people don’t realize is that, obviously, our first priority is the safety of the cowboy. Once that’s taken care of, the safety of the livestock is a close second.”

It’s vital, and it’s why he’s part of the mix. The rodeo’s producer is McCoy Rodeo, which is owned by Jet’s baby brother, Cord, and Cord’s wife, Sara. Jet and Cord are the two youngest children born to Janet and the late Denny McCoy, two lifelong ranchers who raised rodeo hands. Justen is the oldest of the quintet at 58, and Nikki came next. JoRay is the middle child at 52, then there are six years between him and Jet, who’s 13 months older than Cord.

Yes, it’s a family business, but Jet McCoy is a hired man.

“As a rodeo producer, it’s my job to get the best people on my team, and I’d be a fool to overlook Jet just because he’s my brother,” said Cord McCoy, who pointed out that Jet McCoy will be joined in the arena by J.J. Hatcher and Dillon Cox in serving as the rescue team. “When you’re looking for pickup men, you want cowboys, and we’ve got that with those three.”

In addition to being raised on the family’s ranch near Tupelo, Oklahoma, Jet McCoy has been involved and around rodeo all his life. He was a four-time International Professional Rodeo Association champion – he won the 1997-98 saddle bronc riding titles, then added all-around crowns the following two years – and competed at an elite level from his teens to his 30s.

He’s raised and trained horses and has spent considerable time in recent years competing in reigned cow horse competitions. Each step he has taken has been a reflection of being a cowboy, but it’s also about bettering himself in that capacity. Being a pickup man is an extension of that.

“I think any pickup man would tell you it’s the adrenaline,” he said. “There’s a little bit of an adrenaline rush that goes along with riding next to a bucking horse and being in the chaos of it all. It’s also about being a cowboy. During the course of the rodeo, the pickup man is the only guy that’s horseback the entire rodeo, and I really don’t like to get off my horse.”

His role, and that of his compadres, is to keep every person and every animal in the arena as safe as possible. Having been around livestock is important, but he has a little extra knowledge that comes from his time as a rodeo cowboy.

“All those years of riding broncs and competing, you understand what it’s like from the contestant viewpoint, and you know what they’re expecting,” Jet McCoy said. “You also have situational awareness. You can see when a guy is in a bind, and you can almost see the wreck coming before it happens. There’s no question that it makes a big difference for a pickup man.”

He will join Hatcher and Cox as the men on the job at the first PRCA-sanctioned rodeo at OG&E Coliseum; it replaces the historic Jim Norick Arena, which was home to rodeo and Western-related sports since the 1960s. That’s where Jet McCoy won all four of his IPRA titles, but his history at OKC Fair Park.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s a continuation of a long story,” Jet McCoy said. “I can remember I’ve rode broncs in that arena. I started showing horses there. I’ve shown cow horses and reiners in that arena. Last year, I picked up at the last ProRodeo in that arena, so it was part of my journey that centers around horses in one way or another.

“There’s a lot of stuff that’s happened in that arena, and it’s been a blessing just to be part of it. Now, I get to pick up at the first ProRodeo at OG&E Coliseum.”

It’s a maturation, of sorts. It’s the next phase of being a cowboy to Jet McCoy, just like it was for his father and brothers. He’ll share the stage with two other men who share the same title.

“Having three guys helps us split the work up three ways instead of two ways, so it helps to save pickup horses and makes it easier to do your job in an arena that size,” he said. “The biggest reason is because of the number of horses we’re bucking. I mean, last year we had slack in saddle bronc riding, which is pretty stinking rare.”

That’s true. Slack is a term used in rodeo that refers to competition that isn’t part of a paid performance. Each of the three shows will typically feature 10 cowboys or cowgirls per event, but there may be hundreds eager to compete in the rodeo. Most often, timed-event contestants will be run in slack, but the times and scores will be matched against those in the performances, too.

There were 49 saddle bronc riders in last year’s competition, with 20 cowboys performing in each performance. That meant nine others were in slack. That’s one of the reasons why this year’s Oklahoma City ProRodeo will have three performances.

“That’s awesome to think that many people want to come to Oklahoma City,” Jet McCoy said. “It’s a little bit of a nod to McCoy Rodeo that so many guys want to get on Cord’s horses.”

Twenty-five years ago, Cord and Jet McCoy were competing with and against one another. Jet won IPRA gold for four years straight, then Cord followed suit with five titles of his own. Fifteen years ago, they were teamed again as “The Cowboys” on the CBS-TV show, “The Amazing Race,” as they spanned the globe and gained millions of new fans.

They’re back in the saddle again, albeit in different roles and as different characters. No matter what they do or where they do it, they’re cowboys at heart. They understand livestock, and they care deeply for horses.

“I think any good pickup man is picky about what they ride,” Jet McCoy said. “The horses just don’t enough credit. I’ll be the first to admit that in that job, you’re only as good as the horse you’re on. Even with my knowledge, if I wasn’t mounted well, I still couldn’t do my job.”