ProRodeo Sports News - Nov. 1, 2019

back in that box I’m going to take a deep breath and block everything out and just focus on roping.

What type of game plan do you have for the Wrangler NFR?

Michael: I’m going to try and be aggressive and stick to the basics. I want to try and control the runs as the best I possibly can and stay aggressive with whatever is thrown at me. I have always kind of been a roper (who pays attention to the average). I’m not going to worry about that. I’m going to more so focus on making each run count and let the average take care of itself. I just want to be prepared and not leave any stone unturned. Shad: I’m just going to go at every go-round. If you do that, the average will work itself out. What are your thoughts about your age to qualify for your inaugural Wrangler NFRs? Michael: I kind of had written it off that I was going to make the NFR. I didn’t rodeo last year after we had a child, and I wasn’t worried about it and wasn’t planning on rodeoing this year. Then, I won San Angelo and got into Houston and won Houston (where $50,000 of his RodeoHouston earnings counted toward the PRCA | RAMWorld Standings). I pretty well knew after I won Houston that I could make the NFR. Shad: I just graduated high school in the spring, and this summer I won the National High School Finals Rodeo world championship. It feels unreal to qualify for the NFR at 18. I’m blessed to be able to do it. It’s probably the hardest thing to do to be in that Top 15. Michael: I’m going to take D2, who is 11, and I have another mare, she’s a little greener but she’s pretty nice. Her name is Stevie, and she is 8. Shad: I’m taking two horses, and I’m not sure which one I will be riding, and I might ride both. One horse is Django, 16. He’s the horse I rodeoed all year long on. The other horse is Wichita. I got him about a month ago. He’s 9. Has anyone given you any advice about competing in the Thomas & Mack Center? Michael: Some friends of mine have mentioned a few things, and they told me to not get mixed up in the hype and just go make good runs and let the rest take care of itself. Shad: I talked to Cory Solomon. He’s made it six times to the NFR, and he told me about the feeling I will have when I’m competing there. I also talked to Junior Nogueira. He’s a team roper, but he said just What horses do you plan on riding at the Wrangler NFR?

Matt Cohen photo Tie-down roper Shad Mayfield, who turns 19 in November, qualified for the 2019 Wrangler NFR as a rookie, finishing 13th in the regular season PRCA | RAM World Standings.

I’m excited to see if I can get one.

catch that first one and from there you can do whatever you want.

How do you plan on slowing down your heartbeat before competing in the Thomas & Mack Center ?

What are your thoughts about competing 10 days in a row in Las Vegas?

Michael: It’s just a focus thing. The advantage of me being an older first-timer is I have been in high-pressure situations, like Houston and San Antonio, and I have won a decent amount of the bigger rodeos and been in short rounds with legends like Trevor Brazile, Cody Ohl and FredWhitfield. The pressure of being around those types of guys should help me. Shad: A lot of guys said that first round, you’re going to be amped up. Once I

Michael: This will be my first 10-header. But it is not much different to me than going to rodeos over the Fourth of July because you go to a rodeo every day over the Fourth of July for 10 days. Shad: This is what we all work for. It will be the biggest stage I’ve ever been on, and I know it will not be easy.

ProRodeo Sports News 11/1/2019

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