SAN ANGELO, Texas — West Texas is home to three of the best pro ropers in the world.
Ty Harris, his brother, Joel Braden Harris, and newcomer Dylan Hancock will all represent San Angelo in the 70th annual Cinch Roping Fiesta now through Oct. 29.
On Saturday, a crowd of 4,000-5,000 attendees is expected at the Outdoor Roping Arena, 200 W. 43 St.
"We have Ty Harris, our hometown cowboy, who wears San Angelo Rodeo logo on his shirt every rodeo that he goes to," San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo Executive Director Justin Jonas said. "He's sitting at number five in the world right now."
So far, the weekend of events has included one of the largest women's breakaway roping competitions in the United States.
More than 130 women competed Oct. 26 and only 10 will return to the Outdoor Arena Oct. 28 to the Outdoor Arena.
On Oct. 27, a free preliminary tie down roping event will narrow down another group of 120 to a small group of 10 who will compete Saturday with the top 35 ropers in the country.
"It's a really big deal to have three San Angelo ropers that are gonna be in our big roping," Jonas said. "That's probably the first time that's ever happened not only for a San Angelo town of three ropers but any town in the United States has never had that many ropers in our roping."
Oct. 28 is the main event, with a vendor expo at 10 a.m. at Foster Communications Coliseum and the tie down roping match at 1 p.m. in the Outdoor Arena, followed by a concert by the Eli Young Band.
San Angelo native Dylan Hancock is a first-year Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) qualifier and he is also being considered for rookie of the year, according to Jonas.
On Oct. 29, a new match horse race is also scheduled for the first time, where "Just two horses are gonna race [in a] straight line at 450 feet, and so they're gonna be in a western saddle, not a jockey, so it's gonna be very western, something that I know that the fans here are really gonna enjoy."
While some events are free, others require ticket purchases, which can either be made ahead of time or at the gate.
Visit cinchropingfiesta for the full schedule, ticketing information and more information.