ABILENE, TX. — The 27th Annual Abilene Spectacular Cutting brings in competitors from all over the country.
However, this is more than a competition for the participants, it’s a lifestyle.
7-year-old, Sage Hanson from Gainsville, knows this firsthand. Hanson comes from a long line of cutting trainers.
"My grandma, my grandpa, my mom and my dad started to teach me and then I started to get it on my own and then I ended up here,” says Hanson.
Cutting comes from the old ranching style. The riders put themselves into the herd to take the cow of their choice out.
"See how your horse can control that cow with your hand down, see if you can mimic the cow, you pretty much want to mirror the cow,” says Hanson’s grandmother, Traci Burgess.
Participants have 2.5 minutes to compete. They are judged and scored based on their penalties and pluses.
"This year is the first that she rides by herself and she really enjoyed it,” says Burgess.
It’s a lifestyle that’s a long road from home, but it’s one worth living for a cutting family like theirs.