As you flip through this issue of The Arena we’ll be zeroing in on two large-scale, three-day events; The Big Nevada in Fernley and The Big Horn Classic in Buffalo, Wyo. Both take place June 17-19 and kick start a spectacular NTR summer schedule. As seen in the picture above, the NTR has invested in some new innovations, not just in roping formats, but in our production as well. This new 53-foot Featherlite merchandise trailer, which will double as an entry office, will be c
oming to a town near you. If you see us on the lonesome highways, be sure and give a shout out on Facebook or Instagram. As we move forward into new states, including our highly anticipated 4th of July Bash at the Wildfire Arena in Salado, Texas, ropers have had some questions about the NTR formats. We still offer many local formats with low entry fees and big payouts. However, some of our new formats are geared to drive ropers to the annual NTR National Finals where they have a chance at even bigger payouts. The National 9, National 8, National 10 Megabucks and National 12 all have varying details that qualify ropers for the Finals—of which the third annual event will take place March 5-12, 2017 at Rancho Rio Arena in Wickenburg, Ariz. To help ease the growing pains I’ve outlined the basic NTR National Programs here.
National 9 and National 8: In these ropings there are qualifiers held throughout the year with a Finale for each division during the NTR National Finals in March. The entry fees at the qualifiers are $100 per roper. For every 20 teams entered one team advances to the Finale and wins $1,000 in day money. Once you have qualified for the Finale there is no additional entry fee and each Finale pays $100,000 to the winning team. New at the 2017 Finales there will be 50 direct entry positions available for $2,000 a roper for those who have not qualified. The National 9 and National 8 Finales are two of the highest-paying divisional ropings in the industry. In 2016 the National 8 paid out a total of $235,000 and the National 9 had a total payoff of $321,000. Read about our 2016 NTR $100,000 champions starting on page 6.
National 10 Megabucks: If you know you can’t make it to Arizona in March, but still want to rope for a sizeable local payout, this format is for you. There are qualifiers throughout the year with a National 10 Finale in March. Entry fees at the qualifiers are either $150 or $100 per roper (depending on region) with 80% on-site payback. If you win at least $500 at a qualifier and want to enter the National 10 Finale you can do so for $500. If you don’t, then don’t. If you want to enter the National 10 Finale without qualifying you can do that too. The entry fee if you go this route is $1,000 per roper. (Note: Don’t confuse the National 10 Megabucks with our local Megabucks format.)
National 12: I think this is the best roping program ever. There are only 15 qualifiers held throughout the year (two are already in the books) and then a National 12 Finale in March, which is guaranteed to pay the winning team $100,000. Entry fees at the qualifiers are $1,000 per team and $250 of that entry fee is 100% payback at each qualifier. The top 10 teams from each qualifier advance to the National 12 Finale. There is no additional entry fee at the Finale, and 80% payback of the remaining entry fee from the qualifiers. So ropers will only have to beat 150 teams (maybe a few more depending on classification and partner changes) to have a chance to win $100,000. Keep in mind entry fees are only $500 per roper.
I hope that simplified our National formats. But if you still have questions, there are more details listed on our website (nationalteamroping.com) or you can call anytime for additional clarification. I hope you enjoy this issue of The Arena and hope to see you at one of our NTR summer events.
