“Go Westyn, go!” screamed an announcer at a Houston rodeo mutton bustin’ competition on March 19, 2023. Most sheep riders get yeeted off the animal within just a few seconds, with a comical tumble or sideways slide. But not Westyn Wallace. With his arms and legs carefully positioned on the mutton like his daddy taught him, the first-grader rocketed through the arena and plowed into a group of sheep at the end of the enclosure, then took a turn and kept going. “Westyn’s going around for round two,” another announcer exclaimed. Westyn didn’t even fall off. A rodeo clown chased him and eventually grabbed him off the sheep after a full 12 seconds of bustin’.

In case you happened to just wander in to the great state of Texas at this very moment, let us briefly explain what you’ve just read here. Mutton bustin’ is a non-pro rodeo sport in which a small child rides a sheep for as long as possible, not unlike an adult would on a bull. The tradition, which has been going since the 1960s, inspires an immeasurable amount of delight and laughter from Texans, and admittedly, a little bit of shock and pearl-clutching from people out of state. (It’s fine! They wear helmets!)

Mutton bustin’ is everyone’s favorite event at the Houston rodeo, but it’s not an easy feat. A year after he became a Grand Mutton Bustin’ Champion, we caught up with Westyn, who is now 7.

“Yes ma’am, I won two buckles, and a banner, and … and that’s it,” he says, recalling the prizes he received at the 2023 rodeo.

Westyn has been riding for about three years, practicing on the sheep the Wallace family has at their home in Waller. Mutton bustin’ events are often held in the area, and one day Westyn said he wanted to try it. Just a couple years later, he would make it to the pinnacle of his field.

“It was a pretty neat experience having your kid at a big rodeo like Houston and compete and actually win the championship—a pretty big accomplishment at his age,” says Brandy Wallace, Westyn’s mom.

Westyn is a first-generation mutton buster, but rodeo runs in his veins. His father, Casey Wallace, was a competitive team roper who’s now taken on an informal role as coach to his son. “Just reach on down and hold tight,” he always tells him. “Bring your handful of wool back, because you don’t let go until you get ripped off.”

Westyn also has some tips for any aspiring mutton bustin’ champs. It’s important to hold onto the armpits, he says, then squeeze your hands and keep your legs locked around the flank. The sheep’s fluff makes it easier to hold on, of course.

“Just ride sheep and do what I do every single time, and get better and better as I go on,” Westyn, who again is 7, describes how he keeps his head in the game during practice.

But there is another secret to Westyn’s success. Brandy, who is superstitious, made him wear the same lucky shirt every time, a blue long-sleeved button-down. You heard it here first.

While all athletes’ careers are short, that of a mutton buster is especially brief: the Houston rodeo only allows 5- and 6-year-olds to compete. Serious cowboys like Westyn then graduate to calf riding, which he says he’s already practiced a few times. It’s harder—less fluff to hold onto. But the ambitious champion has another animal in sight.

“I like the bulls,” he says.