Sand Rock’s Own Conner Haygood: Faith, Family, and Focus Fuel Rodeo Dreams

SAND ROCK, AL – Faith. Family. Focus. Those are the three words that came to mind this week when WEIS Radio was blessed to talk to the Haygood family in Sand Rock. Conner Haygood, 16, has been lighting up the team roping circuit recently. That was clear as we sat in the barn area and looked around, seeing saddles and a trailer he has won. Recently, Haygood became Alabama’s High School Rodeo Association Team Roping Champion. That feat earned him the honor to compete, and represent, not only the local area, but the entire state of Alabama in Rock Springs, Wyoming, in July at the National Finals! The event, running from July 13th through 19th at the Sweetwater Events Complex, will be televised on RFD TV and the Cowboy Channel. If you have met Haygood, you get the feeling this is not close to the last time he will be competing in such a spotlight.

Before he takes his dream to Wyoming, he will be making stops in Guthrie, Oklahoma, for the National Little Britches Rodeo where he will attempt to rope in a world title. He also plans to compete in Shawnee, Oklahoma, at the International Finals Youth Rodeo. Travel is nothing new to the Haygoods, or to most in rodeo for that matter. Most who are successful in the sport chase it to arenas all over the region or the country.

Like most rodeo sports, roping events started out as a necessary cowboy skill. Today, there are three popular roping events common at rodeos: calf roping, team roping, and ladies breakaway roping. Like cowboys tend to do, arguments would start around the ranch on who the best rider or roper was. There was only one way to decide such an argument. Hop on, go to work, and find out. These early informal competitions developed into one of the most American, and difficult sports in the world: Rodeo. Garth Brooks described it well, “It Ain’t no woman flesh and blood…..” well, y’all know the rest. Make no mistake about it, it is a sport, one that starts often with kids very young.

Unlike its counterparts, calf roping and breakaway, team roping is a two-man event. With two men come two horses. This adds an additional element, where things can go wrong, even if you have a perfect individual run. The event requires timing, trust, teamwork, and discipline. The two riders will back their horses into separate boxes, with a steer in the chute between them. The steer is released out of the box, and once it breaks the barrier, the first man out, known as the header, will give chase. The header, if successful in roping the steer’s horns, will secure his rope in a dally around the saddle horn, turning the steer around. The heeler is giving chase, and will then throw his heel loop to rope the heels of the animal. If you get both successfully, the horses will back up, creating tension in the rope as the cowboys face each other and hope the rope holds. The event is timed, so it can come down to the hundredths of a second, on which team can do this successfully the quickest, to determine if you get paid off, or go home empty-handed. Add to it, if you break the barrier early or the heeler only gets one heel, time will be added for a penalty.

When we heard of the success Haygood was having, we decided to ride out and meet him to see firsthand what drives him and where his love for the Rodeo began. We were greeted with a firm handshake, from a hand we would soon see firsthand is also quick. Conner is a lean, athletic-looking young man who walks and talks as you expect a cowboy would: confident, but humble and polite. He attends Lighthouse Christian Academy in Leesburg. We would quickly learn about the journey there, and how his faith is a large part of who he is and how he competes.

Faith

One of the questions we asked Haygood was who was his biggest inspiration? Did he have a hero that motivated him, someone in the industry he could look up to? Without even having to pause to consider the question at hand, he immediately perked up and replied, “Jesus Christ.” You could tell this was not just the standard athlete answer to a question. You could see that he welcomed the opportunity to speak publicly on his faith, and how important it was, and what a big part it was in what he does. It isn’t surprising that a young man with such a strong faith was drawn to rodeo. Speaking with the Haygoods, they confirmed what many believe strongly about the rodeo community. No matter where you go in the country, faith is sewn into the fabric of the sport. That and patriotism. While there is influence in rodeo, and particularly roping, from Spaniards who came to Florida as far back as the 1500s, the sport itself is as American as anything you can find.

Haygood told WEIS that his faith “plays a big part in what I do.” Part of that faith is strengthened by being at Lighthouse Christian Academy in Leesburg. Rodeo played a part in him ending up there. While the sport has been embraced by school systems in many areas, that is not the case everywhere. Conner’s family has to travel a lot, and like many sports, that involves sometimes missing days of school to compete. Not much different than other sports. While some schools have rodeo teams, complete with equipment provided, coaches, and all that comes with it, Conner did not have that option in public school. That is unfortunate, as the rodeo community tends to produce kids with strong work ethic, values, and moral standards in general. Like many other sports, it can be very beneficial to students, and in return to communities. God always has a plan though. Even with the dedication and work it takes to reach the level of success Haygood has seen, he has been able to maintain his grades and be academically successful as well. The decision to find a place that would allow him to excel at both led him to Lighthouse. A decision that Haygood seemed to believe blended the two worlds well for him. The family attends cowboy church, and their faith is at the center of what they do.

Family

It is a seamless blend from the focus on faith to family talking to Haygood. You can see from speaking with his folks where the foundation for that faith was planted. His father, Roger Haygood, works as a manager for MBI in Collinsville, a trucking company. It was Roger who Conner first told he wanted to do rodeo. The elder Haygood had been involved at one point, but according to Conner, it was not something he grew up around. Though he was familiar with horses, a passion shared by his family. They enjoyed taking theirs out on trail rides and being involved with other horse people. It was when Conner was about five years old, he decided that he wanted to be a roper and learn the sport. His dad supported the decision and began working with him. He bought him a roping dummy to begin to practice and craft his skills. He put in the time for him to take it from an interest, to rise to someone who is at the top of the sport for people his age.

That dedication came not only from his dad though, as his mom is very actively involved.

Conner’s mom, Siovahn Woodall Haygood, shows her selflessness every day as a nurse at Atrium Health Floyd Cherokee in Centre. Imagine before heading into a long shift caring for others, having the energy to load up on a side-by-side, hook to a roping dummy, and drag it around in circles for your son to practice. In her scrubs no less. That is exactly what we saw when we visited. Haygood does not have live steers on property to practice with. They do have places they trailer the horses to do so. The same dedication he had when he was five to practice his skill on a dummy is still there today. Mom pointed out the wear on the one he currently still spends hours beating with a rope. That is all well and good, and a necessary discipline to improve, but when you are under the arena lights, it is a fast-moving target you have to hit. To simulate that, in the yard near the barns, the Haygoods have a box set up, where mom can pull the dummy sled, allowing Conner to practice in a more realistic way. Witnessing it at work shows how well this dedication from his family has paid off.

While we were talking to Conner and Siovahn, he saddled up his horse. He has ridden different horses in competition, but the one he has won on and is competing the most on is “Rawhide,” a Blue Roan Quarter horse. The horse in roping is very important. Often, a header and heeler horse are built differently, as they serve a different purpose. The hours spent with the rope in the hand, won’t mean much if you do not dedicate just as much time to working with, building trust, and training the animals that can be the difference in making a short go or headed home with nothing but a memory.

Rodeo can give a lot. It can take a lot as well.

Two things it always takes away is time and money.

It is obvious Conner has invested the time. It is obvious he has a family that has invested in him, in time, and in money. Those though, not as valuable as the faith and work ethic they have instilled. His mom talked about how quickly Conner can burn through rope while working and competing. You think about the fuel for miles traveled, the hotel rooms, the food. If you have ever worked with horses, you know that alone can be a financial strain. Rodeo is also a business. We asked Conner if he worked with sponsors, and he said he did, and had some wonderful sponsors on board who have helped. It is a skill in its own, learning how to work with people, organize, and do work for your sponsors. Just another of the list of skills it takes to be successful if you want to live the rodeo life.

Time though, no one can help you with.

We are all given the same amount of minutes and hours in the day. It is how you invest it that pays off. Conner’s family has chosen to invest deeply in his success in his chosen sport. When asked how many weekends he was on the road, he told us around 80 percent of the time. His mom has the weekends she has to work. More often than not though, you will find them on the road. We asked Conner what it meant to have a family willing to support him so strongly. Again, there was no hesitation, not even a second to wonder if it was something he took for granted. No, he again immediately smiled, and said he was well aware of how blessed he was to have a family that not only supported him, but was willing to literally get in the dirt to support him. When we asked his mom about what all it took and that kind of dedication, she told us “He is a great kid. He is a God-fearing kid.” She went on to say as long as that held up, they would always provide all the support they could. She told us he makes them very proud. She said it was definitely “a family affair.”

We asked Conner if many of his local friends were involved in rodeo. He said not many close to here he knew were. He said he made friends on the circuit though. That is how he came to know his current roping partner, Micah Kearny from Holt, Florida. Kearny is the other half of the duo, and handles the heeler duties for the team. They met on the circuit; Haygood had seen Kearny having success of his own, and one day about a year ago, Kearny asked him if he wanted to partner up. It seems it was a decision that has paid off already, and hopefully will soon lead to a room and barn full of more accolades, buckles, saddles, and maybe much more.

Focus

A lot of the success absolutely comes from focus. You do not invest the kind of time that Conner Haygood does into something if you do not love it. Love alone though in this game, will not make you good. It takes a very special kind of focus. You can tell, it isn’t just a sport, but a lifestyle. We asked if they had time for leisurely trail rides any longer. Conner and his mom laughed as they said no, not really. Rodeo is life for them now. We asked Conner what his favorite thing about competing was. He talked of the energy you feel beforehand. The great feeling when you have a clean run and win. He spoke of the good feeling when you knew you had performed well. We asked what he thought was the biggest challenge and obstacle. He told us it was the mental aspect. He said the sport is one of peaks, and of valleys. You can be up really high one day, and down the next. To win an event, both cowboys and horses need to be perfect for a quick run. When that happens it can be great, but when it does not, it can bring you down. I am sure that having the faith, and the family he has, it helps him to manage that and understand the blessings he has.

It is not much of a stretch seeing Haygood in action, and looking back on his recent success, that there could be a lot more peaks in his future. One thing is for certain: Alabama is lucky to have Conner Haygood as a representative. The local area is particularly blessed to have him representing us.

Before parting ways, we asked the family to keep us up to date on his career and results as he competes through the summer. There are some big peaks to climb, and we hope he sees very few valleys. Let us all come together though and support and cheer this young man on and follow him as he ropes his dreams.