PHOENIX — 9-year-old Brayden Chee seemed destined for roping greatness almost as soon as he took his first steps as a toddler, watching and learning from his dad and grandpa on their Arizona ranch. It was an obsession from nearly day one.
“Just like a kid with their teddy bear, or their stuffed animal or favorite toy, his was a rope, he couldn’t go anywhere without it,” said his father, Brandon Chee.
“I won my first buckle when I was like 3 years old,” said Brayden proudly.
Photographs show a pint-sized rodeo competitor developing his skills throughout the years. As that happened, his ambition to compete with the best grew as well.
“The rope just got bigger and bigger and longer and longer, I think he was basically born to rope, raised to rope,” said his mother, Serena Warren.
Last November while roping a steer on horseback, a frightening accident threatened to take it all away. Brayden has performed the feat many times but on this occasion, something went wrong.
“He came out and he roped it and he went to dally, when he started turning, his rope started running with him so his hand got sucked in,” said his dad.
Brayden’s thumb was violently tangled in the rope, within seconds it was severed from his hand.
“It was just tingly, so I looked down at it and it was gone,” said Brayden.
He was rushed to the hospital in hopes of having it reattached. This all happened less than a month before he was set to compete in the Dummy Roping World Championship in Las Vegas.
“I was crying because the doctors came in and told me I couldn’t rope,” said Brayden.
Dr. Kathryn King with Phoenix Childrens successfully reattached his thumb but advised him the competition was out of reach. However, at a follow-up appointment three days before the competition, he asked for his splint to be trimmed lower down so his good fingers could move more freely. It freed up his dexterity when doing schoolwork. Little did they know, what he really wanted was to hold his rope again.
“When I went outside the next morning, he had that rope between two of his good fingers right in a different spot and he was trying to figure it out,” said his dad. “The day before the competition, he was still going at it, throwing it farther than I’ve ever seen from him honestly. He was so determined, and I couldn’t tell him no.”
Adapting his grip because of the injury, he convinced his parents to let him compete. Wouldn’t you know it, less than a month after the accident and with a perfect lasso of 27 feet, Brayden became a world champion in his age group.
“I felt so excited because I had always wanted to win that event,” said Brayden.
His effort proved anything is possible with the right passion. It also brought the old cowboy who taught him all he knows, to tears.
“I saw a cowboy that day, a rugged, tough little cowboy that day, that's what I saw,” said his dad with pride.