story by Lily Weinacht
Stephen Stiteler is the 2016 MSFR Team Roping Heading Average Champion, and he roped his way to the finals with heeler Tucker Alberts of Howell, Michigan. Stephen, originally from Michigan himself, hadn’t even ridden a horse until 10 years ago, but one brush with the rodeo lifestyle was all it took. “I grew up racing go-carts and cars, and I used to let steers out for my neighbor, Joe Aiello. One day, he offered to let me get on his horse. I was hooked immediately!” says Stephen, 31. “I bought my very first rope horse from Joe and started entering rodeos, probably when I shouldn’t have been. I lost a lot, but I learned along the way.”
In 2013, Stephen sold his landscaping company in Michigan and moved to Texas to rodeo in a roper-friendly climate. “My parents have always been very supportive of my roping, and they helped me buy STR Ranch, which is like a winter getaway for people to come camp and rope,” Stephen explains. “We have plug-ins for camping, twenty-one stalls, and forty acres so people can turn their horses out.”
His own horses include three geldings, Dually, Hammer, and Ranger. Stephen admits Dually is his favorite, purchasing the horse several years ago for $10,000 without even riding him. Dually and Stephen instantly clicked, but when they were in Florida for a roping and spending time on the beach, a pit bull attacked the horse. Dually was in intensive care with 84 puncture wounds but made a full recovery, later scoring a 4.8 his first rodeo back after Stephen gave him the year off. Stephen purchased Hammer while Dually recovered, then found Ranger, a horse he’d ridden five years earlier and won a roping on. Ranger changed hands several times before eventually coming to Stephen for $3,000. “He’s really strong, and the guys who had him hated roping on him,” says Stephen. “He hadn’t been ridden in two years, but I made a run on him and he was the same as the last time I’d been on him. He’ll be my number one horse again this year. Since I was visiting my family in Michigan, I also started a horse transport company, STR Transport. Coming to live down here has worked out, and I couldn’t have done it without my family’s support, including my parents, my sisters, and my brother, who passed away in 2014.”
Support has also come from PRCA steer wrestler K.C. Jones of Decatur, Texas, who lives just a few miles south of Stephen’s home in Alvord. Stephen met K.C. when the steer wrestler came to look at a horse he had for sale. “I learned from him to look at rodeo more like a business, rather than just having fun with buddies, and I also learned how to put together a professional program and prepare right.” The 2016 season proved one of Stephen’s best so far, winning money with 9 different heelers, and in 2 years, his number moved from a 3 to a 5. “I’ve made big strides in the last few years, and that’s from meeting K.C. and spending time with him at the WNFR. I’ve learned a lot from the way he carries himself out there. He likes to see young people succeed, and I’m the same way. One of my favorite things is helping mentor people as far as their mental game and where their head should be.”
Stephen’s girlfriend, Kali Carpenter, is another supporter. A barrel racer and team roper, she rides and trains horses, and competes in the MSRA and IPRA. She also helps Stephen with riding horses and taking care of his five-year-old son, Coil. “She’s a huge help; when I’m working and getting sponsorships for us, she takes horses to the vet and chiropractor, and swimming during the off-season.” They hauled horses north last summer and based their rodeoing out of Michigan where their families live, travelling all over the Northeast and competing in the MSRA. Stephen returned recently from Las Vegas, where he worked booths and did promotions for several of his sponsors, which include Bar H Equine, RopeSmart, Draw It Out Liniment, MVP Supplements, Yoder Brothers Log Furniture, and STR Ranch. “I’d also like to thank Outlaw Equine for the vet work all year long, and Saginaw Valley Equine for taking care of us up North,” he adds.
His next set of travels will take him all over the country, and Stephen plans to compete in the Northeast again and even Canada. His son, Coil, is showing interest in roping, along with a multitude of other sports. “He’s getting to those core years, so this will probably be my last year to travel hard,” Stephen finishes. “I want to gear my time to being with Coil, raising him right, and roping locally.”
