If you’re looking for the most fun that you and your horse can have together then you need to take a look at the fastest growing equine sport today, ranch sorting. Take a little bit of cutting a tad of reining and a throw in a whole lot of fun and you have ranch sorting, the best part of ranch sorting is that you don’t have to be a professional just have a horse, a team mate and a desire to have f
un in a fast paced competition with the cows. Let’s take a closer look at this sport, Ranch Sorting is a two person team sorting 10 cattle numbered 0 through 9 and one un-numbered cow call it the blank or the trash cow to give a total of 11 head. Using two 18 meter diameter round pens with a 4 meter gate opening between them, the object is to sort the cows in order from one pen to another starting with a randomly selected number called out by the announcer when the timing flag is dropped. If the announcer calls out a 5, cow five has to be sorted first, then six. Seven, eight, nine, zero, one, two, three, and four in progressive sequence. One person of the team is the sorter and the other member of the team is the gate man, and they can alternate roles during the run. The cows must be sorted in order if a cow passes through the gate out of order or manages to sneak back into the sorting ring, the team is disqualified. The object is to get as many cows in order through the gate into the other pen in the allotted time. Oh yeah, did we tell you, you have just 60 seconds to do all of this. Slow and methodical can be just as effective as fast and furious you and your team mates map your strategy in working against the unpredictable cows. Even if you are a complete novice, you can enjoy ranch sorting. With multiple divisions and a rating system you’re paired with horses and riders of similar skills so you’ll never feel intimidated by the competition. Ranch Sorting provides an opportunity for the weekend horse enthusiast to learn the sport quickly and begin winning money and prizes fast. Unlike many other horse and cattle events, Ranch Sorting is affordable with most class entry fees ranging from $15-35.
