My recommendation if it really means that much to you and you only get one shot at it, get someone who has a very high success rate to root it for you even if you have to mail the cutting. A local greenhouse or horticulturalist may do it for you and shouldn't charge too much. If possible that it is long enough, you might get two cuttings out of it. Pencil thick cuttings are supposed to be the best, but most of mine are thinner.

In any case, wait until the bloom is done, and a clone may not necessarily bloom true but odds are it will.

Then start practicing on cuttings that will be more plentiful. There are so many different ways people do it. I don't like the ziplock bag method at all. Am not set up for the misting system outside which works well. I now use a modified version of George Mander's method at the link below, can't get his rooting hormone and can't get his rooting mixture. I may try some outside again but primarly do mine under lights inside now with a little better success rate, still not the best.

Basically you punch two about 1/4 inch holes in the bottom of a clear plastic solo cup (you can see the white roots coming through the drainage holes when it's ready to transplant) cut at a 45-degree angle about a 6-inch piece of the flower portion of the shoot 1/4 inch below a joint (can't think of the proper term), cut off the spent flower, strip the bottom leaves off, leave at least two pairs of top leaves if possible, wet the bottom of the stem, shake off excess water, roll in rooting powder, shake off excess, poke a hole with your finger or pencil down into potting soil or special medium (can make your own w/equal mixture of peat and perlite dampened in boiling water, and let sit overnight), insert the cutting, firm the medium all around it, set under a 2 liter soda bottle w/cap with bottom cut out, screw that into the ground over the cutting in the plastic cup, put it in total shade outside, watch for moisture condensation on the edges of the bottle, and wait about 6 weeks, you will see the roots. If the moisture dries up, pour water over the bottle to wet the ground around it.

I now scrape off the outer green only or cut through the nodes about 1/2 inch long on the bottom of the cutting before I stick it, but it isn't essential.

It's not that hard once you've done it at least getting it started. Someone else may have a suggestion you will like better.

Here is a link that might be useful: Roses of Excellence (Cuttings)

Osromatra,

A much faster and more guaranteed propagation method is to bud-graft the rose buds onto a mature rootstock rose (say in a pot).

It would be best to contact your nearest rose specialist nurseryman, who should have no problem steering you in the right direction about who can do this for you.

if the sport has a pliable stem, bend it down and LAYER it. that's what i did with a lovely sport one of my bushes sent up. later on i investigated into cuttings, so i am pretty good at cuttings, but the SAFEST and SUREST way to propagate a sport is by layering it. if u don't know how, and reading a text book doesn't help, just ask and i will explain.