Author: Rodeo LIFE

As horse sale season kicks into high gear, buyers and breeders are keeping a close eye on the traits and bloodlines that are driving demand in today’s competitive Western performance market. Watching the sport of rodeo flourish in the past decade has had a lasting impact on the market, along with other changes within the industry. Echoing what we’ve seen in previous years, market trends are leaning heavily toward well-bred, athletic horses with proven lineage, strong minds and early performance records. The top cowboys and cowgirls across the globe are always looking for the next best addition to bring to their lineup as the market changes. Whether you’re shopping for a future rodeo athlete or a solid all-around prospect that will help you get the job done, understanding the trends in each discipline can make all the difference this sale season.

Having a firm understanding of what sales are bringing the top horses can make all the difference this sale season, as everyone continues to search for the next big thing. One sale that continues to draw attention in the Pacific Northwest is the Central Washington Livestock horse sale in Moses Lake, Washington. In addition to their regular weekly sales, they have three upcoming dates dedicated specifically to horse auctions: September 6, October 11 and November 8. Each sale is expected to feature a dominant lineup of consignments. Known for its working-horse atmosphere, this sale offers a platform for local buyers and sellers, as well as a few highly anticipated cataloged events throughout the year. It’s become a reliable source for ranch-broke geldings, younger prospects with potential, and everything in between to find the perfect fit for you. The June 14 horse sale at Central Washington Livestock showcased strong demand across the board. The high seller, Hip #46, consigned by Paul and Tyler Smith, brought an impressive $12,400. The top five horses averaged $8,750, while the top ten averaged $6,840. The loose horse market also brought competitive bidding, with the high-seller going for $3,000 and the top five loose horses averaging $1,920. Whether you’re buying or browsing, this is a sale that belongs on your radar.

A strong demand for versatile, well-rounded horses with solid minds, sound conformation and popular bloodlines is driving current market trends in horse sales. These are all obvious qualities that owners want to see in their horses, regardless of the job at hand. Buyers are weighing qualities heavily on horses that can perform under pressure, whether in the arena, on the ranch, or out on the trail. Desirable traits of a well-rounded horse include, but are not limited to, athleticism, trainability, a calm disposition, and a history of performance or exposure to real-world work. With how fast the rodeo industry continues to grow, buyers are looking for bloodlines that enhance cow sense and speed. Quarter Horses continue to dominate the market as we have seen for years, especially those with bloodlines tied to top money earners in the performance world. There is also growing interest in horses that blend multiple characteristics and are capable of thriving in roping, barrel racing or ranch work, while remaining safe and user-friendly for amateur riders or families. Buyers want a horse that can excel in any circumstance they are exposed to. This focus on reliability and multi-purpose ability reflects a shift toward horses that fit a wider range of riders and lifestyles.

Another standout horse sale, grasping the attention of serious buyers this summer, is the League of Legends Horse Sale in East Helena, Montana. This auction is keeping its reputation for bringing in elite performance prospects and proven bloodlines in the heart of Big Sky Country. The origin and purpose of this sale make it very unique from others. The goal was to create a unique, invitational sale where potential buyers could come and try horses being featured before auction day. This sale is completely invitational—a decision made by founders Chad and Paje Turner, who, through their deep involvement in the industry, recognized the need for an event that highlights quality and consistency. Their vision was to bring light to horses versatile enough to transition from the show or performance arena to a hard day’s work on the ranch while still having the qualities of one that can spend the day on the trail – all of which are proven qualities buyers are constantly seeking in their next purchase. League of Legends is a sale designed for everyone, from first-time buyers and busy professionals to beginners and seasoned horsemen, making it a standout stop on the summer sale circuit. The sale kicks off as “Casual Friday” on August 1, where registered buyers can spend the day riding as many “Legends” as they want on the trails or in the arena in hopes of finding their perfect fit. The next day, buyers gather with anticipation, ready to place their bids on the ideal horse to fit their needs.

In the past few years, the League of Legends Horse Sale has seen a noticeable rise in first-time and female buyers. Many bidders are parents and grandparents searching for safe, dependable horses for their children and family members, while others include retired couples looking to spend their next chapter on horseback. A growing trend noticed is among busy professionals who may not have time to ride regularly but are still drawn to the sale, confident that when they do get the chance, their horse will provide a safe and enjoyable experience. A rising number of first-time sale buyers have been seeking flexible performance horses that can double as reliable partners on the ranch or out on the trail. A good horse can do it all. The League of Legends Horse Sale makes it possible to ensure you are getting a quality equine athlete that fits the needs of each and every aspect of your life horseback.

As the demand for high-quality, diverse horses continues to grow, it’s very evident that the Western performance horse market is thriving. The current broad demand in the horse market centers around finding a horse with a strong heart and the drive to support you in excelling across all areas of your life. Whether you’re looking for a seasoned performance prospect, a reliable family companion, or a strong ranch tool, success in today’s market comes down to doing your research, asking the right questions, and understanding what characteristics you truly value in a horse. With thoughtful preparation and a clear understanding of your goals, sale season offers the perfect opportunity to find the horse that fits your life, no matter the discipline.

JJ Gottsch has enjoyed eight months of basking in the glory of ultimate professional success. He is not resting on his laurels. The CEO of the 2024 Professional Bull Riding Team Series Champion Austin Gamblers, Gottsch has been busy working to keep his franchise stacked for the upcoming season. Despite being a defending champion, Gottsch recently added the top available free-agent bull rider, Sage Steele Kimzey, to an already star-studded roster.

This relentless approach to not only achieve but to maintain success can be traced back to Gottsch’s youth. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Gottsch was raised about 25 miles west in the small town of Valley before moving to Elkhorn.

“My cousins, aunts and uncles lived there. The Gottsch family is big in Nebraska as far as livestock feeders. They’ve been in the top 15 for probably 40-50 years. The other uncles and their kids did a lot of farming, and then my dad and my two older brothers were involved in the commodities aspect of it, so everybody worked together. I learned by watching my family, who were all hard workers. They were all hustlers and never took anything for granted. Nobody felt like they were entitled to anything.”

Gottsch comes from an athletic family. His father, Virgil, was a member of the Nebraska Baseball Hall of Fame, while his mother, Judy, was a professional bowler. JJ Gottsch himself had a brief career in Minor League Baseball after playing at Creighton University.

“I was just like every other little kid with dreams of playing in the College World Series. I got to check that box. Then, you hope to make it to the major leagues. I was fortunate enough to sign a professional contract after college. The problem was that as everybody else continued to get better, I probably peaked in college.”

His playing career eventually led him to a position as a marketing director with the Round Rock Express, the Nolan Ryan family minor-league franchise. From there, he got a position with another minor-league team, the Corpus Christi Hooks, as general manager.

“The experience working with the Ryan family was great. There were so many things we did there that involved building a franchise from the ground up that helped me learn the fundamentals of blocking and tackling when it comes to things like politics, merchandising, creation of logos and everything like that. I was 27 at the time. I just tried to pay attention and take good notes. Then the Ryans were good enough to let me go to Corpus Christi in 2003, where we did a lot of the same things we had done with Round Rock.”

His front office work in Minor League Baseball led to a stunt that is forever enshrined in internet history.

“The world of Minor League Baseball is built on fun and unique promotions. It occurred on May 6, 2010. Long story short, Will Ferrell, when he was in college at USC, had a fraternity brother who got cancer and had to leave school to get treatment. This depleted a lot of the family’s funds. They had been running a golf tournament out in San Diego to help, but eventually, word got to Reed Ryan, CEO of the Round Rock Express, and they decided to do something down here. He contacted me about promoting a golf tournament here, and I suggested that we could do something really fun that would get eyeballs on it. So, we put together this creative team that came up with the idea of creating a fake baseball pitcher named Rojo Johnson, out of Venezuela, who had served jail time for importing reptiles into the United States. They just really ran with it. So, Will Ferrell comes out of the bullpen as reliever Rojo Johnson to pitch to me, pretending to be a member of the Nashville Sounds, in the middle of a real game. He was supposed to bean me with the pitch, but he missed me. I charged the mound and ended up chasing him around in centerfield. It was a lot of fun. Those were the early days of YouTube, and I think it got over a million hits in the first three or four days. It was just the epitome of Minor League Baseball.”

These experiences cast Gottsch perfectly for what was to come next. A new professional sports league attempted to turn a traditional individual competition into a team-based concept. The Professional Bull Riding Team Series was looking to go live and a franchise in Austin, Texas, needed leadership.

“At the time, I was on the board of the Austin Sports Commission. I remember one of the executives from the baseball team came over and mentioned this new bull riding team that’s coming to town. So, I called their headhunter and said, ‘I’m on the Sports Commission board and would love to help you with whatever assets and resources we have available to get the franchise landed here.’ So, he called me, and we went back and forth for a couple of days. He ran some things by me, and I offered some feedback on different folks locally and regionally. Then, three or four days later, he just asked, ‘Hey, what about you? Would you be interested?’ Initially, I wasn’t because I was working for Nolan Ryan and had been there for 20-plus years. We had a great relationship, and I still enjoyed my time there. But they kept coming back and continued to tell a more compelling story. The more I heard about the opportunity to build things and create things, the more it really attracted me. The opportunity to open the Moody Center, and to be a part of not only the launch of a new team and a new brand but a new league was exciting. You don’t get many opportunities in your life, especially when you’re fifty, to start something new again and utilize everything you’ve learned.”

The Gamblers had their man JJ Gottsch, and the league had an executive well-versed in marketing and promotion. The PBR Team Series has grown significantly in three years of operation. With a slick marketing campaign that has led to a weekly broadcast contract with CBS and expansion into major markets in Florida and New York City, the league is well-positioned for future growth.

“I think it’s hugely important to have people understand and recognize your brand. While we sit here today in April of 2025, I think a lot more people know who the Austin Gamblers are, and that we’re a professional bull riding team and part of the PBR teams; that was the case in April of 2022. But we’ve still got a lot of work to do. I think with what you’ve seen not only here in Austin but now in the other nine markets where we expanded from 8 to 10 teams, the team concept is a much-easier-to-consume product than the individual competition because you don’t really need to know the intricacies of bull riding or how bulls are scored or how riders are scored. It is just about my team being the green team from Austin, and there goes the orange team from Kansas City. We rode four bulls. They rode three. We won.”

Gottsch attributes the growing popularity of bull riding to a parallel national interest in Western culture.

“I think a lot of what Taylor Sheridan has done; it was the perfect time for that show to come out. You were right on the heels of COVID, and people wanted to have an opportunity to get away from the city and have their own little piece of real estate in their little piece of the country, and then Yellowstone came out and 1923 and all the different spinoffs. Then, the explosion into other parts of society in terms of fashion, in terms of music and the pop stars, which have now turned into country stars. You kind of see these trends come and go, but this one has seemed to stick, and now there’s so much investment in it. I think it’s going to be around for a long time. At the end of the day, it is just the authentic, humble nature that makes up the cowboy. Hard work, grit and determination are all the qualities that make them appealing. If you are someone who puts your hand in a bull rope and is on the back of a 1500-to-2000-pound bull, you’re going to be humble, and you’re going to understand a lot of things and have respect for a lot of things. The first thing that they typically do is to get down on their knees and pray and thank God.”

As is the case with so many who embrace Western culture, Gottsch’s faith is important to him.

“I’m more spiritual than I ever was before. Growing up, I went to the Lutheran Church in town, but then in high school, I transferred to a larger high school in Omaha for my last two years specifically to have the opportunity to play sports and get noticed by Division One universities. The school I went to was a Jesuit Catholic school. From there, I went and played baseball at Creighton University and was there for three years. So, for five years in a row, I was in a Catholic institution or institutions. Then, I transferred to TCU (Texas Christian University), where I graduated and ultimately coached for a couple of years. In that aspect, I had a lot of religion and theology. I was exposed to several different religions, and then as I’ve gotten older, it’s just kind of continued to develop. It definitely plays a part in my life, and probably more so since I’ve gotten into this bull riding business because it does play such an important role in all our riders’ lives and the whole PBR rodeo system. It is a very faith-based sport. I would say my faith and exposure to faith has increased probably tenfold over the last three years.”

The road to the NFR is filled with more than just quality runs, diligent preparation and a strong mindset for success. It’s more than smart decisions regarding traveling partners or the time put into setting achievable goals that contribute to what you want out of the sport. For rodeo cowboys and cowgirls, success often begins long before they back into the box or settle down into the chute to nod their heads. It starts with a smart entry strategy that considers travel, logistics, available purse and, above all, feasibility. With hundreds of rodeos on the calendar, competitors must weigh in on decisions regarding stock quality, arena conditions and competition level. The Fourth of July rodeo run – also known as Cowboy Christmas – is considered one of the busiest weeks or months of the year due to the sheer number of rodeos that can be entered and the money up for grabs. Cowboys and cowgirls alike view this time strategically and plan their runs according to their set goals and standards for the year.

Tucker Allen, 25, of Ventura, California, is a 2024 NFR steer wrestling qualifier and is well on the way to another qualification to Las Vegas this December. However, despite his strong start in the 2025 season, Allen is no stranger to the importance of a well-planned and executed Cowboy Christmas. To Allen,

“The Fourth of July is one of the most important weeks of the rodeo season… some of the best rodeos are then, and it is important to work the big ones.”

Allen furthered the idea that despite the importance of hitting the large rodeos, utilizing the vast number of smaller but well-run productions is equally as important to making the finals. As a steer wrestler, Allen takes into consideration his traveling partners, the logistics involved with travel, and the timing of performances and slacks. Allen will primarily be traveling with Justin Shaffer, Jace Melvin and Holden Myers during the 2025 season.

When asked about his Fourth of July entry and horsepower strategies, Allen expressed that, often, they will leave horses with family and fly out to work other rodeos where they will mount out. According to Allen, “We always try to work certain slacks [over the fourth run] to make the rest of the week easier for Livingston [Montana], Red Lodge [Montana] and Cody [Wyoming].” It is no secret that the fourth run is hectic and can be classified as brutal for contestants. When asked how busy the month of July is in terms of running steers, Allen stated, “I think that is the easiest part of the whole week. You try and block out what has gone into getting to that rodeo and just do the best you can.” Allen furthered the idea by saying, “If it doesn’t work, all you can do is be ready for the next steer that day or that next morning or night.” Given the physical strain, Allen elaborated, “It’s always a given that you will be worn out mentally after the fourth, but physically, for our event, it’s not much of a toll since we are in shape and run lots of practice cattle.” Fundamentally, the Fourth of July rodeo run is instrumental in qualifying for the NFR; Allen stated, “The fourth is important to us and can almost ensure your ticket to the NFR if you hit big. You must take each steer one at a time and not carry the bad runs with you to win on the next one.”

Tristen Hutchings, 25, of Monteview, Idaho, is a three-time NFR bull riding qualifier with notable successes through NFR round wins, PRCA rodeo titles, collegiate championships and most recently, the 2025 American Rodeo bull riding title. As a rough stock competitor, the logistics of travel and the expenses associated with rodeo differ slightly in comparison to the timed event cowboys and cowgirls. However, the amount of opportunity and the need to plan strategically does not change, no matter the event you compete in. According to Hutchings, “There is a lot of opportunity when it comes to the Fourth of July … some people call it quits if they don’t have a certain amount of money won, but I’ve seen the Fourth of July make or break [a competitor].”

In terms of entry strategies, Hutchings expressed, “We go to the largest paying rodeos and make the [logistics] work. You might not trade all year, but you trade during the fourth.”

Travel between flights and driving varies from contestant to contestant; however, Hutchings primarily “drives to everything… sometimes we pay for it in less sleep, but we have our home on wheels at the rodeos.” As for strategically planning in their entering, Hutchings, and his traveling partners “try and map it out” in a way that ensures the bigger rodeos are hit and that they are not overdoing it. The Fourth of July is busy, and according to Hutchings, “It’s nonstop. You never get a break, and it’s a great time to be on a heater!”

Lisa Lockhart of Oelrichs, South Dakota, and 18-time NFR barrel racing qualifier has a more unique and substantial approach to the Fourth of July rodeo run to maximize profits and showcase her horses’ abilities. Cowgirls competing in barrel racing take into consideration the importance of Cowboy Christmas and its ties to an NFR qualification. Lockhart stated, “Ultimately, there is a lot of money to win in July and August… so you just never say never. It a perfect time to capitalize on some large venues, and so it is something that you plan strategically to fit your situation.” For Lockhart, the cowgirl primarily tries to fit her horses to which rodeos she believes they will excel at the best.

“It’s not always about what is the biggest rodeo, but where my horses have the biggest chance.”

Horsepower is key to success within the WPRA barrel racing, and allowing the horsepower the chance to do the talking is necessary for a successful fourth and overall season. When asked about entry strategies to maximize the number of rodeos attended, Lockhart stated, “Quality not quantity. I’m very strategic in trying to plan my schedule where my horses are not worn out” due to the number of rodeos available at the end of July and into August. “I will strategize where I can hit as many good ones as I can and know they will fit my horses’ situations while still [prioritizing] rest.” For the NFR Barrel Racing Average Champion, in some years, the planning is very routine, while in other years, it can change. Lockhart continued with her grateful outlook on getting to compete in the Bad Lands circuit and the number of rodeos available in that region. The flexibility of schedules allows Lockhart to switch out horses or adjust her schedule depending on the needs of her and her four-legged athletes. A key decision factor that goes into Lockhart’s overall success as a barrel racer within the WPRA.

Rodeo is a high-stakes sport where the wrong decision or lack of preparation can be the deciding factor between a gold buckle or the loss of one. The right decision can make all the difference between being crowned a champion or being sent home to try again the next year. Behind every ride or run is a careful calculation of travel routes, added money, stock draws, arena setups and overall competitive formats. No matter your level of competition, smart entry strategies are as essential as the ropes you choose to use, the way you set your feet or the decisions that go into a successful run. In the sport of rodeo, every second counts, and the factors that contribute to winning do not always start in the arena, but rather the choices made long before you pull through the gates of the grounds.