ProRodeo Sports News - February 19, 2021

COWBOY GRILLE WITH TRACY RENCK

How did you get your start in rodeo? Gage: I grew up in Prospect Valley, Colo., near Keenesburg. (Keenesburg is 40 minutes from Greeley.) I came to Western Texas College just to go to school, and I had never rodeoed before. I crossed paths with Kodie Jang and he taught me how to bulldog. Kodie was working in Snyder and would practice at the school. I didn’t know anything, and then one thing led to another and I started entering rodeos. The first college rodeo I entered was the second steer I ever jumped. It didn’t go well. Does it seem crazy to you how far you’ve come in less than three years? Gage Hesse didn’t follow the normal rodeo path. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound steer wrestler initially thought he was going to play college football but decided against that and chose to attend Western Texas College in Snyder. A chance meeting with steer wrestler Kodie Jang changed Hesse’s career path. He started steer wrestling with Jang and walked on the Western Texas rodeo team. Fast-forward to 2021, and Hesse, 22, is in the top 25 in the PRCA | RAM World Standings.

GAGE HESSE

Gage: Yes. I really didn’t have any idea what steer wrestling was. I wanted to play college football at Western College University in Gunnison (Colo.). I played linebacker at Weld Central High School. I just decided to go to Western Texas College. I already have my welding certificate. I’m still at Western Texas College (as a junior). I’m majoring in petroleum technology. I’ll be done this year. Where did you get your big win this year? Gage: I did well at the (RAM) Mountain States Circuit Finals Rodeo (in Loveland, Colo., in October). I finished second in the average. What’s been the key to your rodeo success? Gage: The Jackson family (in Keenesburg) has allowed me to ride a good horse of theirs, and that’s been the key to everything I’ve done. The horse’s name is Ace and he’s really good. This year I’m going to try and rodeo pretty hard. I would love to qualify for the RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo. That’s on my to-do list. That would be awesome if I could do that, keep going up from there and qualify for the National Finals Rodeo one day. Who is your favorite non-rodeo athlete? Gage: (Kansas City Chiefs quarterback) Patrick Mahomes. Where’s your go-to place to eat? Gage: Chicken Express. I get the No. 1 (four Express Tenders) and a sweet tea. What’s your favorite movie? Gage: I would probably say Young Guns . I’ve seen that movie a lot. What’s the last concert you attended? Gage: Shania Twain. I saw her in Greeley a few years back. She put on a good show. What make of truck do you drive? Gage: A Dodge RAM 3500. What do you binge watch on TV? Gage: We watch a lot of old rodeos of guys steer wrestling. We watch a lot of stuff like that on The Cowboy Channel. I watch myself and see what I’m doing, and then I try to pick up things from other steer wrestlers and use them to try and make myself better. What rodeo is on your bucket list to compete at? Gage: Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days. That would be great to compete there.

What’s the coolest place you’ve been in your rodeo career? Gage: I would say Deadwood S.D. That’s a really cool place. What’s your favorite holiday?

Gage: Christmas. I enjoy being around family. I have a younger brother, Gunner, who is 16.

What was your favorite cartoon as a kid? Gage: Bob the Builder . What do you do when you’re not rodeoing? Gage: I love to go hunting and fishing. I usually go hunting for coyotes, deer, ducks and geese. I fish for anything. If I’m not rodeoing, I’m probably hunting and fishing.

ProRodeo Sports News 2/19/2021

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