According to Cactus, “CoreTX does a couple things to an already great feeling Cactus rope. First, the roper will feel more tip weight, even in a smaller diameter rope. This is due to the added weight of the core strand. The roper will also notice an extreme increase in longevity. This is due to a decrease in stretch from run to run, plus the four strands are now twisted around a ‘foundation’ which adds much more durability and life to the outside strands.”
Also, the outer strands are not dyed, so CoreTX ropes get their color from their cores. The bright green Swagger is favored by 23-time world champion Trevor Brazile, while the orange Thrilla is the choice of top pros Riley Minor, Jake Long, Chad Masters and Logan Medlin. The Swagger has a lot of tip weight and is easy to swing with a very smooth feel. The Thrilla is smaller and quicker, but still has tip weight and is perfect for those that like the feel of less rope.
Barry Berg, General Manager of Cactus Ropes, remembers that Cactus had their breakthrough year circa 2009, when they introduced the Xplosion and signed Trevor Brazile. Since then, they have remained a major player in the industry.
“We have people that rope here at Cactus, we keep steers year-round, and we go out and test ropes. While developing the CoreTX, believe me we learned a lot about rope making, including our old style of doing it,” Berg said. “We wanted to narrow down what was changing in the ropes—was it the core, the outside, the stretch—so we decided on some constants, then brought in guys like Trevor Brazile to test for us. Trevor and Relentless chose the Swagger and its diameter and weight, and we were happy with that. It has been a good, good process,” he said.
Brazile agreed and said that process was a lengthy one with several prototypes.
“Every time we made an adjustment on the Swagger, I tested it,” he said. “The best thing was, right off the bat, this was a good rope and has just evolved to get better and better. The CoreTX rope has been a winner from the start,” he continued. “It’s all about Cactus striving to make a better rope, every day, and they really listen to what the roper wants.”
