story by Lindsay King
For long-time ACA calf roper Scott Broadaway, Jonesboro, Arkansas, is home, regardless of how far away he got in the past. “Every time I leave I end up coming back so I just stayed this time. It is my home.” Scott grew up on a ranch. Riding and roping were second nature to him. “I will never forget the day I was sitting with my dad and I told him I wanted to rope competitively.” The very next day they went to a cattle sale and bought 12 roping calves. With no arena at home they set them loose in the auction barn arena where Scott would pick one out of the group, rope and tie it. “It got in my blood pretty deep and became my passion. I have tried to be the best that I can possibly be and I got there.” At 16 years old he started competitively roping calves, first in the amateur associations and then professionally. From 1978 until 1995, Scott was on the rodeo road full time. “My goal was to be best calf roper from Arkansas. I remember when Denny Flynn was the highest point bull ride at a professional rodeo and I won the calf roping. His bull ride got us both on the front page of the pro rodeo news.” At age 25, Scott knew he had made it in rodeo when he shook hands with Bobby Goodspeed after making the best run of his life in the pouring rain. “A drug addiction got me out of the game of rodeo for almost 20 years. I have been clean and sober for 13 years now, but my biggest accomplishment is being saved. God has allowed me to find myself and to get back into rodeo.”
Scott Broadaway – Courtesy of the family
Scott mainly team ropes now, heading for various heelers, including: Steve Reed, Todd Bledsoe, Pat Carmitty and Stan Rider. “I want to be the guy that stays busy in the game of rodeo, whether it be judging or heading steers. I strive to be the best that I am capable of being at heading steers.” Scott still holds his original card with the number 400 on it and has seen the ACA grow from its infancy to the association it is today. “It has grown to be a great association and they have many more members than when I first joined. I like to help them however I can and that is why I started judging rodeos.” Scott and his heelers are sitting in the middle of the pack as they start looking towards making multiple circuit finals. “It was one of my goals when I started back, I wanted to hold myself accountable and shoot for the year-end awards.” Some physical limitations held Scott back when he started roping again just last year. A broken pelvis and dislocated hip put Scott on the sidelines but he got back in the pen as quickly as he could. “I almost got to where I felt confident enough to go rope competitively and then I had another colon surgery, making a total of seven.” Healthy and ready to rope, Scott is on the road with his neighbor and fellow header as much as possible. He works as a substance abuse counselor when he is home. “For a long time I wanted to rope but I was afraid of running into old habits. One day I woke up and I just could not take it anymore, I had to rope. It was a struggle to come back but it has made it that much better.” A special thanks goes out to his sponsors: Ryan Liggett from C and L Saddles and Tack, Chase Bigbee from Running P Ropes and Stormi Barger from Short Go Xtreme. Scott is proud of his accomplishments and getting back into roping but there is just one thing missing from his life. “Mimi McKay, will you marry me and make me the happiest man in the world?”
