Jeremy Buhler had a clean sweep in the Royal Crown 6 & Under Heeling with DT Hickorys Angus leading the way.
Team Roping Journal :: BY TAYLOR VOLLIN
Jeremy Buhler and DT Hickorys Angus. | Lexi Smith Media
Jeremy Buhler cleaned house in the 2025 Royal Crown 6 & Under Heeling with DT Hickorys Angus leading the way Feb. 8.
Buhler, the 2016 PRCA world champion heeler, and the 2019 gelding by Hickory Holly Time out of Kings Sly Sugar by Kings Zantanon won the four-head average with a 619.40 for $17,567. With Brock Hanson aiding him on the head side, Buhler also had three other horses in the short round–all of which were sired by Hickory Holly Time–with SLR Swinging Hickory winning fifth, DT Spark A Trillion winning eighth and DT Hickory Flicker winning ninth. Having four out of the five horses he brought to Buckeye, Arizona, in the short round took numerous people and staying hooked on the process.
“Days like this, whenever you do good and you can tell that your process is working and it’s like a test where it worked, they’re special days,” Buhler, 37, said. “And it’s not just special for me; it’s special for everybody that’s had something to do with each of these horses along the way. And I think that there’s a lot of people along the way that had big wins today. I think that that’s the coolest part–being connected with people that you can work with where you guys all have a common goal and then these wins, it’s funner to share it with the people. I heeled on him today, but whoever started Angus as a 2-year-old and the guys at Dean’s that rode him as a 3-year-old and then Strand Pollitt, he put a lot of time on that horse, Dean’s put a lot of time on that horse. Other people that I’m sure I’m leaving out put time, and I feel like every single one of those people should feel like it was a win today. So, that’s the cool thing to me.”
Buhler and “Angus” won the first round with a 154.35 for $1,500. They remained consistent with a 154.45 in Round 2 and a 154.45 in Round 3. They sealed the deal on the average after winning the short round with a 156.15, picking up $1,674 for sire Hickory Holly Time’s owners and $717 for the breeders, both of which are DT Horses. Buhler won every round in the 6 & Under Heeling, as well as fifth on SLR Swinging Hickory, bringing his days total to $33,138.
The Hickory Holly Time effect
Buhler has been on board with Hickory Holly Time babies the last two years after trying and showing a mare owned by Stump Lake Ranch & Cattle Co. Now, he’s got a close working relationship with Dean Tuftin and five Hickory Holly Time offspring in his barn.
“I’ve always known Dean and I’ve always respected Dean,” Buhler said. “I love his program and what he’s doing, and he’s very passionate. For a guy like me, it’s fun to go spend a day with dean who’s devoted his whole life to it. He’s made the Finals and the whole deal, so it’s just a fun deal for me to be a part of it. The more we hung out, it kind of turned into a deal where I think we’ve seen that he could help me and I could help him. And between him and his team doing what they do on the young horses and then getting them to me where I can rope on them and they start roping on them too, I feel like it’s something seamless that we can run together.”
DT Hickorys Angus has been with Buhler for the last year and, as the veteran of his Hickory Holly Time herd, stood out to him most in Buckeye.
“There is a lot of consistency, I feel like, in them,” Buhler said. “I’d say probably their foot speed and just their desire to try hard is something that every one of them has.”
While making easy horses is always the goal, Buhler also wants them to fast and athletic enough to win.
“At the end of the day, I want him to be easy because when you’re high callback like that, and all you got to do is catch, everybody’s already decided they like the horse and you just want to try to hold your spot,” Buhler explained. “So to me, easy is a big part of it, but easy in a sense where they’re fast-footed and they still try hard, but they don’t run over you or themselves. And that’s sort of a fine line to toe sometimes. But that’s kind of the goal in my mind, is to have one where you can show up and you’re not tippy toeing around. You’re not hiding anything.”
After a decade of hitting the ProRodeo trail, Buhler made the decision in 2024 to take the year to regroup closer to home, focusing on life as a dad while also getting to train rope horses and rodeo as he pleased.
“I felt like 2023, I didn’t heel as good as I was capable of, so I kind of needed to rebuild, take a year to go back and work on my heeling,” Buhler said. “And that tied in perfect with the futurity stuff because I think horsemanship was a huge part of that. And I’m a lucky one because I can still go to 50 rodeos and stay in the Top 35 and qualify for the winter rodeos, basically staying in Canada, so that kind of works good for me. But the futurity deal is a huge part of that, too. It’s something I’ve always been real passionate about. Before this last year, I’ve always showed my own horses. I’ve had one or two that I always try to bring along and show. And just watching where the industry’s going now, I want to be a part of it. I don’t want to be left in the dust.”
Commenti