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An insistent whipping and thumping echoes across the Buchanan Towers lawn at Western Washington University. The sound stalls for a moment before the swishing of a lasso picks up again. A thud follows as it catches on a roping dummy, tightening as it would around live cattle.

Wearing a cowboy hat and boots, the Buchanan Towers Cowboy refines his lassoing skills on the lawn until his arm grows sore. Whether a hoard of people are watching or he is all on his own, first-year Western student Ethan Kibe works on roping his handmade wooden dummy.

Since being dubbed BT Cowboy, 20-year-old Kibe has faced a variety of reactions. Encouragement and awe are often thrown his way, but so are snarky comments and disapproving shouts. None of it changes how he sees himself, though — a real cowboy who works hard and refuses to hide who he is.

“I don’t mind [being called] BT Cowboy,” Kibe said. “I do mind people hollering at me from their cars.”

Story �������� student Lili Luna Cruz and submitted to CDN by Associate Professor of Journalism John Harris.