'Git Along Little Dogies'

Kasey Forum, 16, is on his way to the National High School Finals Rodeo in Lincoln, Neb. to compete in cutting. The high school junior qualified for the event in early June during state finals in Baker, Mont.

"With cutting, you have a herd of cows in a pen and four guys in each corner" Forum told The Courier over the phone on Saturday. "You are on your horse and walk it in there and drive the cows up the pen a little ways. You pick a cow that wants to be cut and for a few seconds try cutting that cow. After 10-seconds or so you hop off the cow and wait for it to make its way back in the herd. Then, you find another one. Each round is two minutes and 30 seconds."

During state finals, Forum won the first round, placed fifth in the second round, and then finished short goal with a win. He accumulated enough points to qualify for the national event.

"I am fairly nervous," Forum said. "I have never been to nationals. Right now, I am down in Wheatland, Wyoming at another cutting to get a little more practice and to get used to Parker, because I haven't had him that long."

Parker is a 13-year-old quarter horse Forum recently began riding for cutting events.

"It was a struggle at first, because I had a different horse and she was real young," Forum said. "We just couldn't connect real well. We got this old Parker horse, and he has really treated me well. We got into that fourth place to make it to nationals" at state finals.

"He is just a good, honest horse," Forum continued. "He is not afraid to play possum with you. He likes to go out there and do his job. I don't really give him much direction, to be honest. He knows pretty darn well what he is supposed to do."

Forum has been riding ever since he was a young buck growing up in Opheim.

"I wasn't big into riding back then, but these past five years I have been getting pretty heavy into rodeos," he said. "It is the satisfaction of being on a horse and going out there to ride."

Forum will fly down to Billings Thursday to meet up with his mentor, Wylie Fraser, before driving to Lincoln for the finals.

"He has shown me a lot about the cutting world," Forum said.

Forum is humble with his approach to nationals, but said he will do his best.

"I don't go in there expecting to win it," he said. "I go in there and give it 110% and just try to do my job."

Forum is considering professional rodeo, if all the cows line up.

"I have thought about it a little bit," he said. "If I can get a good scholarship, yeah, I will most likely go onto college rodeos. If not, I might just find a good job and go to a couple of wrangler-rope things."

Forum also has qualified in cutting for the U.S.C.H.A nationals, scheduled for November in Sulfur Spring, Texas.