Heeler Jake Long, left, and header Andrew Ward won the West of the Pecos Rodeo last June, and it served as the catalyst for the tandem’s team roping world championship in December.
(PRCA PHOTO BY CLICK THOMPSON)

 

PECOS, Texas – The race for a rodeo world championship takes 14 and a half months.

The 12-month regular season begins Oct. 1. At its conclusion the next September, the top 15 in the world standings advance to the National Finals Rodeo, which takes place each December in Las Vegas. That’s where gold buckles are handed out.

The reigning team roping titlists had less time to make their magic happen. Andrew Ward and Jake Long didn’t get a good start on their campaign until they arrived at the West of the Pecos Rodeo last June. That left just three months to earn their spot at the NFR, and they made the most of their time on the road.

What kickstarted it all was the victory in Reeves County. Ward and Long placed in both rounds to win the aggregate title. Neither cowboy was in the top 40 in his respective standings, but that $7,735 came in quite handy, and the duo went on a tear together. They arrived at the NFR fourth in the world standings and left Sin City with rodeo’s gold.

“We’ve had a slower start than we were anticipating,” Long said last summer.

A heeler from Coffeyville, Kansas, Long has earned 15 NFR qualifications. He’s made runs in Pecos many times over a career a 23-year career, but his 2025 venture to West Texas became the lightning rod. They’re hoping for something similar when they compete next week. Ward is 24th in the heading world standings, and Long is 26th in heeling.

The West of the Pecos Rodeo is set for 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 24-Saturday, June 27, at Buck Jackson Arena. It is a major event in ProRodeo, part of the 2026 Playoff Series that features $20,000 in “added money,” local dollars that are mixed with contestants’ entry fees to make up the overall purse.

“That committee really put up the money … so now it’s a rodeo you don’t want to miss,” Long said.

Ward and Long are two of 624 contestants who put their names in the hat to compete again in Pecos. Each of the four performances is jampacked with the sport’s elite, from NFR qualifiers to world champions. The history of the “World’s First Rodeo” and the payout are intense incentives for men and women who make their livings in rodeo.

Ward, a six-time finalist from Edmond, Oklahoma, finished 2025 with $373,838, with all but $150,000 coming in Las Vegas. It’s a testament to taking the good fortune when its available, just like they did in the big arena in Pecos.

“The barrier is real long,” he said of the steer’s head start inside Buck Jackson Arena. “I think it’s 24 feet with a 20-foot box, and it’s a hand-pulled barrier, so the cows are running. When you get one that lets you catch up and beat them like we did, it’s nice.”

The field is not exclusive, but it’s filled with power from top to bottom. There are 29 world champions – representing 102 gold buckles – who are scheduled to compete in Pecos.

“We understand with the type of money we put up that we’re going to draw a lot of contestants,” said Clay Ryon McKinney, chairman of the volunteer rodeo committee. “To see over 100 world championships represented at our rodeo means something. We’re going to have multiple world champions competing every day of the rodeo.”

It’s what the thousands that attend the West of the Pecos Rodeo annually have come to expect.

“We want to put on a great rodeo for the contestants,” McKinney said. “We want to put on a great show for the fans, and having that many top cowboys coming to town is going to help with that.”