NJ campers learn from young rodeo champion

BORDENTOWN, N.J. - July 12, 2013

"I love making the crowd feel entertained. I love seeing them get up and cheer," he said.

Cooper literally jumps through hoops to please his audience

Six year old Evan Boncross may be Cooper's biggest fan.

"Jumping through that is complete awesome magic," said Evan.

At Liberty Lake, campers can choose what they want to do and since it's Rodeo Week a lot of kids have decided to try their hand at cowboy life.

That means learning to rope a steer, tie a calf or take your turn on the Bucking Barrel which simulates a bull ride.

"It just felt like really riding a bull. I don't really know how to explain it," said Cordelia Glos.

"It felt like I was gonna fall off but it was really fun," said Jason Pennypacker.

Cooper's dad is one of the instructors.

"The kids really learn fast. They're at the age when they just soak everything in," said Carmine Nastri.

Andy Pritikin, the camp director, says hands-on experiences like these expose kids to things they won't find in suburbia.

"To have rodeo cowboys, which is something that seems magical to kids, they don't understand it. How do you get that rope going around? For them to get taught how to do it, that's what camp's about to us," said Pritikin.

It's just another day for Cooper and the other cowboys and girls who travel the East Coast showing and sharing their amazing skills.

Copyright © 2024 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.