Rodeo Life

Author: Siri Stevens

  • Team Cavender’s Anna Wilder

    Team Cavender’s Anna Wilder

    Anna Wilder started her career in rodeo in fourth grade. The 18 year old from Millington, Tenn., grew up around horses. Her mom, Bebe, barrel raced in college and her dad, Keith, started roping after he met Bebe. When she went to high school, she competed in all the timed events, barrels, poles, breakaway, goat tying, and team roping. “I started doing them all and wanted to be my best at all of them; goat tying, and breakaway roping are my favorite.” She uses the same horse for both events, Sadie, a little bay mare. Anna uses another horse, Movin, for barrels and poles.

    She just graduated from Tipton-Rosemark Academy, a small Christian private school; there were 23 in her graduating class. “That’s where both my parents went and it’s only about 20 minutes from home.” She has friends through high school rodeo as well as school. There are a few others in school that share her interest in running the barrels, but for the most part it’s just her and her brother, Daniel, who also goes to that school and competes in all the timed events. Anna has an older sister, Emma Kate, who competes in breakaway roping and ties goats. Emma Kate goes to UT Martin, which is where Anna will go in the fall. They will live together. Both girls are getting their college education thanks to scholarships.

    Rodeo has taught her a lot. “Definitely to trust God’s timing and patience. I’ll have my plans and goals and it doesn’t turn out how I envisioned,” she shares. “I have to think that it’s not my time it’s His. It happens a lot. It’s a continual thing – and it’s always just trusting in His plan.” Her plan is always to give it her all and leave it all in the arena; and give the glory to God.

    After the finals, she will go to little jackpots and she is hoping to go to the CINCH world championships at the Lazy E. She and her sister have been doing goat tying clinics around her place and they will have a few over the summer. She plans to college rodeo and see where that takes her. Her major is going to be in accounting and finance. “I’ve always been somewhat good at math, and it’s been suggested to me. I I shadowed someone that was an accountant and thought it would be interesting.”

    Anna has been part of the Cavender Team for a year. “It’s helped me in many aspects of life. I’ve learned about sponsorships and how the rodeo world works.”

  • Team Cavender’s Jada Trosper

    Team Cavender’s Jada Trosper

    Jada Trosper is cherishing every minute of her senior year and her time at home with her family. This fall, the 17-year-old from Ponder, Texas, will be a freshman at Oklahoma State University. “I am going into college six credits shy of my junior year,” said the captain of her cheerleading squad. She plans on majoring in business and minoring in media and marketing. “We have three family businesses and I have hopes to eventually take those over.” She also has her radar on working for a big-name company within the Western industry. “I want to give back to the community that I get to be a part of – the greatest people on earth.” Jada knows one thing is certain. “I do not want a desk job – I want to see the world and travel and be in this industry.”
    Jada competes in barrels and poles but retired her good pole horse last year. “Poles is my absolutely my favorite event; it takes pure focus and determination, and if you have a horse that can do it, it’s amazing.” Jada has a list of accomplishments a mile long and attributes her success to the rodeo contestants that have gone before her. “I am able to learn and grow as an athlete by watching the most successful athletes prepare their mental game, perform, and win.”

    Her mom, Melinda (MAIDEN NAME) was Miss Rodeo Oklahoma in 1994 and Jada and her 15-year-old sister, Tana, learned from her the strength – both mental and physical -it takes to compete. Jada competed in ????sports???? until her sophomore year, when she chose to focus on cheerleading and rodeo. “With cheerleading, I could still be part of all the sports,” she said. The family spent last summer living in a living quarters trailer, chasing Jada’s rodeo dreams across the country. This summer will be a bit different. “I will still rodeo, but it won’t be as far.”

    “This summer is my parents 25th anniversary, my sister will celebrate her sweet 16, and I’m going to college,” she said of the upcoming trip to Aruba. “We’ve been on maybe two vacations – we have horses. We are a unit and each other’s best friends so me being the first to leave the nest will be hard. We are going to do other special little moments this summer.”

    For now, Jada is excited to get to the Texas High School finals, Region 3, the end of the month. “My little horse got hurt, so he couldn’t run last year,” she said. “My young horse did amazing, but Texas is tough. This year my main man is back and I cannot wait to run down that alley.”

    Cavender’s Team member – Jada Trosper. “I have loved that company since I was a little girl. My dad was friends with Mr. Joe Cavender. I got a little insight into the brotherhood, but I wanted to know the story. Riley Webb has been a family friend and Miss Jennifer came up to me and said I was going to have an amazing opportunity. All she did was tell me a little of their story and then I got to go to Cavender’s Summer Camp. They take us to the headquarters and tell us the story of the brothers. They have the true family morals. They still work together – all the brothers care about giving back and they are giving back to us. We have been exposed to so many opportunities through them. They have completely excelled the sponsorship program – I am now part of their family.”

    COLLEGE INFO:
    They put a lot of effort into it – one of the few colleges that provide the resource to before we go for enrollment, they can see our skill level to determine our major classes – same one, but help a little more in the areas of weakness, but more personalization to it.
    Three hours, just far away – but if I need to swap a horse out, or shoe a horse, I will make the drive.
    Cody Hollingsworth – great guy – he seems like an amazing – and if the athletes show they want it, he will get behind them – I’m excited to work with him.
    I have been blessed to have several associations work with me and I get to go on the Cowboy channel and do a roundup interview – I love it and that’s why I want to pursue that career.

  • On The Trail with Kirsten Vold

    On The Trail with Kirsten Vold

    [ “I will always have bucking horses in my life. I can’t imagine my life without them.” ]

    “Rodeo is my passion,” said Kirsten Vold, who has continued her father’s (Harry Vold) legacy as a stock contractor. “Rodeo has fed me, given me a college education, and allowed me to be part of a lot of firsts – from a young PRCA cowboy to a young horse. To watch a bucking horse go from when you saw them buck for the first time to being an experienced veteran where every cowboy knows them – that brings me great joy.”
    The youngest of six children, Kirsten Vold was born in 1973 and started taking over the Vold Rodeo Company when she was 25 years old. She spent her young years traveling with her parents, Harry and Karen Vold, to all corners of the US and Canada producing and providing stock for rodeos. “I always worked for the company growing up. I had a tutor and didn’t attend public school until high school.” When her parents were traveling, the people working at the ranch, looked after her. The school bus came to the red gate at the end of the ranch, she drove the feed truck up to the gate, and rode the bus an hour and 15 minutes each way. In the beginning it was fun, because I got to sit in the back row with my friend.”
    Kirsten was sure she wanted to be a lawyer. “I watched LA law and that was the life I wanted.” She went to the University of Southern Colorado, graduating in 1996 with a BA in Communications. “After graduation, I knew I wanted to do something with rodeo, but at the corporate level. I didn’t enjoy being in an office and I was ready to go back to the ranch.” She has no regrets about her stint in the bright lights. “I got to do a lot of things with that – I flew all over the place – I was 23 and very social. I had a great time but I came to the realization that I missed the hands-on, grass roots aspect of rodeo.”
    Harry Vold was having a tough time finding someone to take hold and run things. He had foremen in the past, but he didn’t really have anyone to take that job over at the time and run it. “He was looking for a change and so was I; the timing was right.”
    Harry had built the company from scratch and over the past 60 years, the Vold name has become synonymous with rodeo. “It’s very important to me to uphold what he started. We’ve got a reputation of quality, professionalism and ethics.” She does a few things differently than her dad; she doesn’t travel as much as he did and she has incorporated more time in the chutes for the stock. Kirsten stopped going south for winter rodeos, preferring to be home. “I’ll never be sad to be home.” She lives a stone’s throw from her mom, Karen Vold, who is still involved in her church, trick riding clinics, and spending time in her kitchen preparing some of the recipes in her cookbooks. Kirsten travels solid from June until September, creating a string of great rodeos that have been part of the Vold name for years. She does a few spring, fall, and winter rodeos, but is careful to pencil out each trip to be profitable. “The events I have now, I’m lucky to have. I work with great people, and we have been with them multiple years and the people are amazing.”
    She keeps her stock close to home to handle and see them every day. “From the time we wean them, we keep them up close, and we feed them daily until they are yearlings.” The young stock runs through the chutes several times, learning by the time they are five years old that the chute isn’t a scary place to be. “It’s different from how my dad did things; the horses were five before they got bucked and handled for the first time.”
    Kirsten has been married twice and admits that her lack of free time doesn’t help. “The majority of my failed relationships are because I didn’t have enough time to devote to the relationship.” She admires couples in the rodeo industry that make it work.
    For the first time since the inception of the NFR 65 years ago, the Vold Rodeo Company did not have bucking stock selected to go to the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
    “It makes me focus on doing a better job in 2024.”
    In order to get stock to the NFR, contestants pick the animals from the animals that stock contractors nominate – each animal must make 8 trips in a year to be eligible. The top 15 riders select the final animals. “I don’t have any il will, it’s a drawing contest on our end too – the animal must draw the right cowboy at the right time.”
    Kirsten has had her time to shine in the past, raising a stud, Painted Valley. “Painted Valley was one that I raised myself and he was actually mine. He was the first I put my brand on and was my own. He was very dear to my heart. I raised him in my back yard and he was very gentle.” The stud was selected to six Wrangler National Finals Rodeos, and was voted best Saddle Bronc Horse of the WNFR in 2009 and in 2010 Painted Valley was named PRCA Saddle Horse of the Year.
    “If you ask me the number one reason why I do what I do, it’s because of the animals,” she said. “I love working with animals.” Life has been very good to me; not the way I planned, it but that’s not a bad thing. You look back in your 20s and think you know, but you realize in your 40s that you are what you are and you accept life as it is. I’m trying new things, but I’m more self-accepting – accepting failure and success. I’m a lot more chilled out now than I was 20 years ago.”

  • American Hat Presents: Andre Trevino

    American Hat Presents: Andre Trevino

    [ “If you never give up you cannot be beaten” – Keith Maddox ]

    I went to the home of American Hat in 2015, in Bowie, Texas, and spent several hours visiting with Andre Trevino, the factory manager, and a few days gathering information on the story behind the company. To hear company president Keith Mundee tell it, it just wouldn’t be American Hat Company without the dedication of Andre and the other  employees. The story goes that when Andre was 12, he saw a bag in the company’s parking lot. It was a bag of money that belonged to Bubba Silver. He picked up the bag, walked it into the building, and returned it. “I don’t want a reward,” Andre recalls. “I wanted a job. He said I was too young, so I asked if I could work in the evenings.” Andre obtained permission for school to get out a little early and he was hired as a cleaning boy at .90 an hour. 50 years later – Andre retired. “He was here at 5 a.m. every day,” Keith says. “He’s the most loyal, honest guy, and he loves hats. He says, ‘I would come to work here even if you didn’t pay me.’  That’s how much he loves it.”
    It’s the power of the cowboy hat itself and American Hat’s mantra of quality that inspire that kind of devotion. But it’s a dream that nearly ended in catastrophe the year after Maddox moved the company to Bowie. On November 27, 2005, a grassfire swept through town; the blaze was so close to American Hat that firefighters used the parking lot as a command post. “The factory building wasn’t flamed out; it was smoked out,” Keith said. “The loss was devastating: $13.5 million in raw hat bodies and not enough insurance to cover it.” But Mr. Maddox kept the employees working. He ordered more hat bodies. He went into his 401(k) and second-mortgaged his house. He did everything he could to keep it alive. A lesser man would have quit. But his attitude was, I can’t quit — it’s this or nothing.
    Rodeo News and American Hat unite in that integrity and grit. To Susan, Mercedes, and Treasure Maddox and Keith and Teri Mundee – thank you for believing in this dream and may both companies be blessed and remember that none of this would be possible without God – we are honored to be the stewards. As Keith Maddox told me many years ago, sitting at his home, “It’s not the destination it’s the journey – once you get close, you need to change the goal.” Well said Mr. Positive Times.

  • On The Trail with Alex Phelps

    On The Trail with Alex Phelps

    [ Life is short, be happy and be a blessing to those who surround you. ]

    Alex Phelps has been on a mission to have a positive mindset through his experiences and lessons in rodeo. His attitude was evident to others around him when he won the Ramsey Award as a high school senior in Ulysses, Kansas, which celebrated rodeo athletes who had a bright attitude. His mindset poured into his time at Southwestern Oklahoma State University when he received the Walt Garrison Scholarship Award as a college rodeo athlete in 2016. The scholarship celebrates one recipient from each of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association’s (NIRA) region who demonstrates determination, loyalty, leadership and integrity. 14 years later, Alex relfects on the meaning of the award. “I’m competitive, so I was involved in a softball tournament the next day, and it didn’t really sink in. That award had meaning and I have always tried to represent the values inside and outside the arena, my values have not changed.”
    Alex was raised by his grandparents, Donnie and Peggy Phelps, in Ulysses, Kansas. “My mom committed suicide when I was 8. I grew up at a young age and I grew up faster after having that experience,” he said. “The village of people that raised me taught me two things: stand true to your values and life is short. You don’t get a second chance and the first impression should be the same as the rest; having good character and moral values is what people see in me.” His grandpa, Donnie, started out riding bulls at a young age and transitioned to team roping, which he competed in until he passed away in 2021. Alex is forever grateful for his grandparents who gave him the foundation of his rodeo knowledge. “They raised me to the person I am today.” The Mentzer family of Toby, Janet and Peyton took him in and helped him get to the next level. “They prepared me for college rodeo and life.” Alex is appreciative of all who have encouraged him. “Without the support of my grandparents, the Mentzers’, the Munsells’, and many others, my rodeo career would not be where it is at today,” he said.
    “He’s like my little brother,” said Wacey Munsell, who is seven years his senior. “He’s got a deep background on both ends of the arena and I’m super proud of what he’s been able to do.”
    Alex competed in the Kansas High School Rodeo Association, making it to Nationals in Gillette in 2015. He served as the regional student director while attending college. He also served as the 2016-2017 NIRA National Student President. “We were instilled as directors to encourage and help the production of rodeos. As a student director, I took advantage of that, in thinking of spectators and sponsors and families, we always work to produce a show that is timely.” He took the knowledge he learned through his rodeo career to help other rodeos work better. Alex is a board member for the Ulysses Stampede, a bull fighter at the College National Finals and served as the chute boss for the 2023 Kansas Pro Rodeo Association (KPRA) Finals in Dodge City, Kansas. Alex has been a member of KPRA for several years. He appreciates the association’s heart for rodeo. “The sky’s the limit because they have a passion for rodeo,” Alex said.
    Alex is also active in the NIRA, fighting bulls at the 2023 College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper, Wyoming. He sees college rodeo as a stepping stone for contestants. College can be a doorway towards making it into pro rodeos in addition to giving athletes an education to fall back on. During his time in college, Alex competed in tie down roping, steer wrestling, team roping and bullfighting. He competed on three different occassions the CNFR; twice in the team roping in 2016 and 2018; steer wrestling in 2017. He has been fortunate to work as a bull fighter at the last three CNFR’s.
    Alex loves the adrenaline rush of bullfighting and being able to protect contestants. He started fighting bulls at 14 years old. He remembers the Munsell family- Doug, Lorrie, Wacey and Baleigh- were raising bucking bulls at that time. “I attempted to ride a bull and failed miserably,” Alex said. “Wacey, a World Champion Bull Fighter and my best friend, recommended that I end my bull riding career and try bullfighting.” Alex also attended the final school that Rex Dunn put on in Waurika, Oklahoma in 2011. Rex Dunn had a professional bullfighting career for 16 years and worked three National Finals Rodeos. After ending his bullfighting career, he began conducting bullfighting schools like the one Alex attended. Alex is grateful for the Munsell’s hand in shaping his bullfighting experience. “They have all been instrumental in getting my bullfighting where it is today,” he said. He continues to compete in team roping and steer wrestling but wasn’t able to compete this season due to breaking his wrist while bullfighting.
    Alex’s favorite aspect of rodeo is the community and the relationships he has been able to build throughout it. “You get to meet so many good people,” he said. “We all share the same passions and that’s our western heritage.” He remembers the first time he went to Las Vegas for Benny Binions Bucking Horse & Bull Sale in 2015. He was traveling alone and planned to meet other bullfighters and friends in Las Vegas. He was worried that he wouldn’t know many people there. In the airport he ended up seeing people he knew and continued to come across other friends throughout his travels. He appreciates the way that these relationships changed his outlook for that rodeo.
    Alex feels that these relationships have grown his character just as rodeo has grown his attitude and mindset. “I do remember saying to myself, there’s probably several people that would love to be doing what you’re doing so be appreciative and stay positive; be positive for being able to do it,” Alex said. Alex feels supported in his passion for rodeo by his loved ones, including his wife of six years, Tiana “I couldn’t continue my rodeo career without my wife’s support,” Alex said. “I am very blessed to have her in my life.” They met through a mutual friend. As a traveling X-ray and Cat Scan technician, she works through an agency and can pick a place to work. ”We always sit down before she goes, and we are able to schedule around my contracts. Currently, she works four tens and comes home for three days.”
    Tiana loves to travel with Alex. “Rodeo people are the best people and some of our closest friends. They are the nicest people you can meet. We go everywhere – from college rodeos to pro.” The couple got married in September of 2017 and spent their honeymoon at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. “I had never been before.”
    His first job out of college was a loan officer at Bank of Ulysses. After three years, he decided to switch it up and took a job at Pioneer Communications, a telecommunications company, headquartered in southwest Kansas as a business support specialist. “We serve 14 counties, and my job is to advise businesses on their telecommunication needs. “There’s satisfaction to that,” he said. “I get to network with our community members and assist their needs.”
    Alex is grateful for the community who has aided him in his rodeo career. “I’m thankful for my family and friends and anybody who’s had a hand in raising me or being a part of my life, and I’m grateful to be a part of theirs.”

  • American Hat Presents: Garrett Yerigan

    American Hat Presents: Garrett Yerigan

    Take care of our lifestyle. We are living the dream that most can only dream of. Our sport could go away in a moment’s notice, and we need to take care of the sport and each other – that’s what makes us cowboys.

    “For me, American Hats embodies a lot of things – the American spirit, the cowboy spirit, and a family spirit.” Garrett has worn American hats for at least 15 years. “I started as a customer and built a relationship from there.” He is proud to wear the hat – “It’s a brand and lifestyle I’m proud to ride for.”
    Garrett Yerigan was born into the rodeo lifestyle. His mom and dad, Dale and Kathy Yerigan, were involved in rodeo his entire life, as were his maternal grandparents, Bob and Barbara Ink. Dale was an 11 time IPRA world champion steer wrestler and went on to be the general manager of the IPRA for 20 years. Kathy was an IPRA barrel racer. From the age of 7, Garrett set his sights on announcing – starting with jackpots and barrel races, at the age of 10, he got his first paying gig. He learned many aspects of rodeo, including a 15,000 song playlist. Garrett was a highly sought-after tractor driver for arena work. “I was kind of a tractor nut,” he admits. “I was only about 6 or 7 when I realized being an announcer would be a cool way to be involved in rodeo without being a contestant,” he said. “I figured the announcer gets a for-sure paycheck, and he’s not tearing up his body every week. Garrett graced the cover of Rodeo News in January, 2014, the year he was selected to announce the International Finals Rodeo.
    https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/RodeoNews/issues/100160/viewer?page=14
    Fast forward ten years and the 29-year-old phenomenon from Pryor Creek, Oklahoma is the youngest ever to receive PRCA Announcer of the Year, 2021 and again in 2022 “I’m still blown away it’s happening – its surreal.” For many, it’s no surprise. Garrett has studied the sport, the contestants, and the art of announcing. “I listen and take tips from here and there – using the pipes God gave me.”
    I see little signs each day that God put me on the earth for a reason. The microphone has taken me all over the world and I never thought that I’d get that as young man. Those are signs and proof that I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing on this earth.”
    “It’s a thrill every year,” he said of Cheyenne. “When you are there, you realize the magnitude of the history of that event, and then you understand why it’s called the “Daddy of ‘em All.” Garrett spends hours of preparation before each perf. He not only knows the contestants and latest news in the rodeo world, but he also studies the rodeos themselves to better learn their rhythms.
    He is right where he wants to be – surrounded by a family of rodeo people that love God and support each other. “I never want to grow up.”

  • Community Coffee: Tristan Martin

    Community Coffee: Tristan Martin

    Editor’s note: Tristan Martin was featured as the On the Trail in the 2022 July issue of Rodeo News Please see link below to read full article:
    https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/RodeoNews/issues/207953/viewer

    [ “Growing up in Louisiana, I didn’t know there was another kind of coffee,” said Tristan Martin, 2x NFR qualifier in steer wrestling. “Every breakfast table and store served Community Coffee.” The cowboy from Sulphur, Louis., won $170,981 last year steer wrestling. We caught up with him during the run in the Northwest. “I just put a big order In for more – these guys up here love it.” Tristan’s favorite is sweet tea. “When I saw them getting involved in rodeo, I reached out to them. It’s a Louisiana brand and you don’t see many of them coming in to help us out.” ]

    Tristan hails from a long line of rodeo greats, including his uncle, Casey Martin, who made five trips to the NFR in steer wrestling. He is the oldest to 57 grandchildren in the Martin family, which gives him access to chute help, practice buddies, and a cheering section just one mile from his house. Tristan married Josee in 2020 and their son, Boudreaux was born right after the NFR in 2021. He went to his first rodeo six weeks after he was born and watched his dad win the 2022 Fort Worth Stock Show.
    This is Tristan’s fifth year on the rodeo road, and he just bought a new horse, so he plans to continue for several years. “I feel like this is a talent God’s blessed me with and it’s a great way to meet people and do what I love.” The only downside is leaving his wife and son at home for long periods. Josee has a really good job as a nurse and that provides the family with health insurance. “There’s lots of family close by so she’s got help if she needs it.”
    He has developed a network of places to stay and made friends in all corners of the country during his tenure on the rodeo road. “It takes years to figure out where to stay and make friends,” he said. “It’s really nice, we base our northwest run out of one place – we can wash clothes and have homemade meals.” He admits it’s hard to receive the notoriety along the way. “I got my name on the side of my truck, and people pull a $1 out of their pocket and have me sign it.”
    Tristan has been giving back by doing clinics to help the upcoming steer wrestlers. “We’ve done one at home for four or five years.” His Uncle Casey, and Tom Carney help. He does a second clinic in North Dakota in the spring.

  • On The Trail with Jennifer Welch Nicholson

    On The Trail with Jennifer Welch Nicholson

    Riata Ranch International

    [ “You earn your reputation in the arena, but you earn your respect in the barn”. ]

    Jennifer Welch Nicholson is the 2023 Tad Lucas Award recipient. “I’m proud that I was able to live my life in such a way that I was considered for this, award” said the 60-year-old trick roper, rider, and Executive Director of Riata Ranch. She will join recipients of this award, presented during the Rodeo Historical Society Hall of Fame Induction, November 10 – 11 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
    “I didn’t grow up in rodeo, I had to learn this lifestyle from the ground up. I never thought I was that kind of person; I was shy!” Jennifer sees this award as an opportunity to tell her story. “I was just a young girl, and this became my life.” Born on the family ranch in Redding, California, Jennifer’s family moved away when she was quite young. Her parents, Dennis, and Judy Welch, knew their daughter had a passion for horses and hoped that some time at the Riata Ranch, meeting her lifelong mentor, Tom Maier, and learning how to ride, would fill that need and she would eventually grow out of it. Her brother, Mark, was an outstanding award-winning athlete in football, basketball and track Her passion only grew and then a trick rider, Kathy Batchelor, was brought out to the ranch to teach the girls a little bit of western entertainment. “I was enthralled and enamored,” she said about meeting legends like Monty “Hawkeye” Henson. “I never knew of such a character.” When it came time to perform, Jennifer, age 13, and three other young women, comprised the first rodeo trick riding team performing at their first rodeo in Bakersfield with Rodeo Stock Contractors. “We didn’t know anything about rodeo.” The group began to expand their reach and with that they also started riding for the Flying U Rodeo. “It was Cotton Rosser and the Flying U Rodeo where we cut our rodeo teeth. I’m Flying U Rodeo raised!” They went on to perform internationally, building up Western riding in Europe in the early 1980s.
    She went to Riata to learn to ride horses and become a member of Tommy Maier’s’ junior horse show team specializing in reined cow horses – then the trick riding and roping evolved. 2002 was an eventful year for Jennifer and one that changed the trajectory of her life. The owner of Riata Ranch passed away and the property was in bankruptcy. She made the decision to save it and created the new business as a 501 c 3 Non-Profit. The biggest challenge was to rebrand, find new property and build new programs, yet keep the same values and integrity that Riata Ranch was known; Horsemanship, leadership, mentorship, education, and community service. A year later, Jennifer met and decided to marry Chad Nicholson. “I thought I’d met my life partner. And for 17 years that was true.” Between performances, they built Riata Ranch into a mentorship program for young women seeking the refuge and freedom that horses bring. From simple riding lessons to complex disciplines, Riata Ranch grew into more than just a riding program. It connects people to horses, ranching lifestyles and professional rodeo for a day, a week, a month, or lifetime.
    Jennifer learned many life lessons on the Riata Ranch growing up. “It helped me become tough, resilient, and endure crisis.” She learned to have a plan A, B, C, And D. “There is always a way to go – and you have to figure that piece out.” Jennifer lost the love of her life, Riata Ranch almost twice, and her dad got sick and passed away all within a year. “When I came out of it, I was a changed person – we all have choices – you make those based on what you want, and I wanted to keep going.”
    2019 started out like any other year, full of promise and opportunity. But, sadly, in May of that year, Chad was killed in a freak auto accident. And that event changed everything.
    “The Friday night I got word that Chad had passed away I was in Hayward at the Rowell ranch Rodeo in California. Surrounded by Randy and Michelle Corley, Cindy Rosser and a handful of other rodeo family, I was consoled and sent home with the girls.
    I got home stunned and dazed. Earlier in the year, a dear friend and Three Rivers Icon had also passed away and Chad and I had agreed to let the family host a memorial service for Earl McKee that Saturday for 400 people. As his (Earl McKee) service was happening I tried my best to disappear against the wall of my home. It was less than 24 hours, and I was still comprehending the loss of my husband, my partner, my future.
    As the service ended, I went inside feeling numb and not having any idea whether to cry or to be still. Soon, people started coming in with food and buzzing around asking me it there was anything they could for me. At first, I just wanted to scream but I realized they were asking, ‘What can we do for you right at this moment?’ Funny how you can be so unreasonable when you are in the grip of grief and despair. So, when I understand their compassion to help me right at the moment, I knew exactly what I didn’t want to do…I didn’t want to clean, I didn’t want to cook and I didn’t want to pick up dog poop!
    That was my first glimpse into a way to move forward, just not today. Bring it to a simplistic level and ask for help. Don’t bury your head in the sand and just put one foot in front of the other. I really fell apart, but not in public. I kept going and the people around me allowed me to keep going. It was the resilience – life is not fair and hard tough things happen.”
    Jennifer moved forward again. “Everyone gave me a grace period and I had wonderful people around me.” She knew the best way to continue was to build on what she and Chad started at Riata Ranch. “After Chad passed away, I had some down time, and saw things I needed to change. I realized I wasn’t communicating my expectations. I learned to be more upfront about things.” She is working on growing and building relationships and that includes giving more definite clear pictures of what she is doing.
    “I was passive – but sometimes I think it left people with a bigger gap to close.” She realizes that young girls come to her with stars in their eyes. She was the same way. “I tell them that this is a journey, and the commitments are real. We have red, white, blue, and silver levels for these girls to pass – they are benchmarks.” The biggest requirement is true passion. “We can provide any of the actual needs, but we can’t provide the want to.”
    She has developed leadership skills along the way. “It’s more than putting someone in charge, a good leader goes beyond that and realizes the value of their people and that includes having difficult conversations. If there is something I’m trying to achieve, I’ve got to figure out how to have a difference of opinion. The better equipped we are at handling the negatives, the better off we are.”
    Her time is split between traveling, performing, teaching, and administrative duties. “I love teaching, and I like connecting with people.” She is realizing that she has changed – that she meets hard challenges with thoughts on how she chooses her words and what she hopes for the results. “That’s leadership.” She is hoping to swing the pendulum a little more towards home and groom someone to take over the business end so she can teach or perform with the girls.
    “It’s a labor of love that I feel is more important than ever to educate about: teaching people from all around the world about livestock, how our food is produced and our western lifestyle.”

  • “Make a good strong impression with every first impression.”

    “Make a good strong impression with every first impression.”

    Emily Stephens has a few hats on these days, but of those hats, shaping them is by far her favorite one to wear. She is one of the few female hat shapers in the nation. “It’s a dying art and there aren’t many of us left,” she said. She learned the art from an older gentleman that creased hats at NRS. “Tommy Bishop encouraged me to learn how to shape hats,” said the 22- year-old from Paradise, Texas. “I learned from him and others and adapted what I learned into my own style.”  Here are a few of her thoughts about her passion:

    • This is a true art form as it is based solely off of feel for the hat. You must have the right amount of steam in order for the fibers to loosen and then constrict as you mold the hat with your hands and the hat cools. By doing this you are locking the crease into place.
    • I find that the coolest thing about shaping a hat is that no two hats are the exact same; they are fully customizable to the person that is wearing it.
    • You can tell a lot about a person by the hat they wear upon their head and it never ceases to amaze me. You can generally tell what part of the country they are from, what discipline they participate in, and if you have been shaping hats for a long time you can even read the hat and tell a lot about the personality and lifestyle of the person it belongs too.
    • The hat industry is booming as cowboy hats are starting to expand in to the mainstream world. I believe this is because individuals idolize the western lifestyle and believe it to be a “simpler time” even though that couldn’t be further from the truth as the western lifestyle has been built on blood, sweat, and tears. It is so amazing though to get someone fitted for their first cowboy hat and see them beam with joy.
    • Cowboy hats are so special because they are with cowboys and cowgirls from all parts of the world, from sun up to sun down, carrying so many memories and stories.

     

     

  • Community Coffee: Shane Hanchey

    Community Coffee: Shane Hanchey

    Community Coffee has been part of Shane’s life for a few years now. “What a better fit,” he said of the partnership. “Their consumers are the western world, and we are the people they sell to.” Shane, a chef himself, loves the coffee; his favorite is the Signature Blend. Shane and his wife, Taylor, run a food trailer, Bo’s Boil n Geaux, specializing in crawfish boils, shrimp, gumbo, and all things Cajun. “We go from Stephenville to Weatherford, and Giddings.” The food trailer is a side job for now.
    Shane’s fulltime job is tie down roping and he has made 13 consecutive world finals with his skills. The Sulphur, Louisiana, native started roping left handed, but switched to right handed when he was young. He played a lot of sports and didn’t get serious about roping until high school. “I realized I could make a living at this.” He went through the Louisiana High School Rodeo Association, making Nationals all four years, and winning the state twice. He went to college in 2009, making the CNFR, and earned Resistol Rookie of the Year in 2009. He made his first of 13 appearances at the Wrangler National Finals in 2010.
    Shane has had his share of misfortune, missing two world championships by one tenth of a second. He has also lost two horses, one two weeks before the 2021 WNFR. He has never let any of adversity stop him. “I still battle with it every day – I still think about it; but in order to move on and keep my head up, I’ve got to be confident and trust what God has in store for me and He has a bigger plan than what you think you have.”
    This year started off great. He won Greeley and has moved into the fourth position in the world for now. “I’ve been on the road since the beginning of June,” he said. “My wife is breakaway roping so we have different schedules. I get to see her, just not rodeo with her.” Shane plans to be home after Pendleton for a short time before heading out again. Shane met his wife, Taylor Jacob, through rodeo. As fate would have it, she broke down coming back from Calgary and he pulled up to help … and the rest is history. They share a love of horses, rodeo, roping, and business. She made the WNFR in 2013 and 2015. They started dating in 2015 and got married in April of 2021. They have relocated to Texas.
    He knows and appreciates all of his sponsor partnerships. “If I want them to stay on my shirts I’ve got to compete at the highest level.”
    The first thing that comes to his mind about future goals are more world titles. “That is obviously the first thing, but after that, we want the food trailer to be successful. We hope to have kids and I’d like to be retired from rodeo by the time I’m 40. Then I want to ride off into the sunset with no regrets.”

  • American Hat Presents: Mackenzie Geesen

    American Hat Presents: Mackenzie Geesen

    Mackenzie Geesen is proud to be chosen as an American Hat ambassador. “I will be encouraging to the younger people and set an example. This will be part of my life for a long time, so I take pride in what I’m doing every day.”

    Mackenzie Geesen has been involved in rodeo her whole life. “My parents have been involved in rodeo their whole life too,” said the 13-year-old from Kersey, Colorado. “They started hauling me and my little pony, Poncho, when they were still competing.” At first, she was led around, and then she got to the point when she went to a little local gymkhana and started doing the events by herself. She moved up in horses as her ability increased, and each horse had a special place in her life. “Pistol was a big step up and got me where I am now.” She and her family traveled to Georgia for the National Junior High School Finals and the trip continued to family memories. “We got to go to the beach for the first-time last year – getting to go in the ocean, even though it’s scary … and collect sea shells. I made a seashell necklace out of a breakaway string.”
    She plays basketball and volleyball and for the first time this year, she did track. “I did the mile and 800 – both of those are hard because you have to figure out your pace.” She learned a lot about herself during those long runs. “If you say you can’t do it, your body will give up. By the time you are running around the track for the fourth time, you want to quit. But you have to finish, and that’s in your mind. If you say you can’t do it, then you won’t.”
    Kersey is east of Greeley by about 20 miles. “Kersey is staying small,” she said of the town. “Mom (Heidi) works at the sale barn on Wednesday. My dad shoes horses. They work for Randy Miller and we work his cows in Colorado.” The family runs through the herd often, checking for salt, water and mineral as well as rotating between pastures. “My brother and I work out there too.” As much as she loves the country, Mackenzie loves the bright lights and the travel. “Winning is fun, but getting to meet all the new people. I was working my horse in the round pen (during the National Junior High Finals), and this girl came up and we started talking. Now she’s my friend – that’s what’s fun about it.” She is like her mother in that regard. “At some of the barrel races we got to, she is talking to everyone, and we can’t get out of there,” she laughs.
    Those same people are what are shaping Mackenzie and her younger brother, Cooper’s lives. “What’s helped me the most are the people that helped me – my family and Laura Lambert and the Terrells (owner of Pistol), and Erin Johnson. The tradition of rodeo is once again being passed through to the next generation. “We always give the glory to God – I wouldn’t have any of this without God.”

  • American Hat Presents: Bronc Evans

    American Hat Presents: Bronc Evans

    [ “He’s an old man trapped in a little kid’s body,”
    – Gizmo McCracken of his grandson, Bronc Evans. ]

    “In the rope horse world, you have to get your name out there so people will want you to train their horses,” said 13-year-old Bronc Evans. “I want to get to the NFR and get a world championship. Everybody wants to do that, and honestly, you can’t mimic Trevor Brazile because he’s the greatest. But I want to train horses when I’m done rodeoing.”
    Bronc grew up with a rope in his hands. “Me and my dad were moving a set of cows,” Bronc said. “I was four. There was one little baby calf. Her mom ran into the herd. Dad told me to rope it, and it’s walking along, I roped it, and we took a picture and sent it to my mom.”
    Bronc’s mom, Mandy, realized early that Bronc has special roping talents. “This is a special child with unique talents and gifts. We need to nurture these abilities, and take this where God wants this to go,” said Mandy.
    A fourth-generation ranch in southwest Missouri is home to Bronc and his sister, Jaylen. Their maternal grandparents, Dianna and Jerry Evans, still work and live on the ranch. Along with yearlings, the family raises quarter horses and has been breeding horses for more than 20 years. In fact, Bronc raised and trained both his head and heeler horses.
    “Bronc has been going with me and gathering cows for years,” said his dad, Jimmy. “He’s my right hand. He’s better than any help I can hire. He can drive almost any piece of equipment I’ve got. If it’s getting dark and I’m busy, he will bring in the horses and he’ll put them in the trailer and bring the truck and trailer to me.”
    Now a rising rodeo star, Bronc said, “I don’t really try to get pumped up before a competition. I try to stay focused and keep my nerves under control, which keeps my horses calm.”
    Bronc’s trail from Missouri ranch hand to competitive rodeo athlete is spurring him toward the top. Spanning only six years, his long list of titles and championships includes the 2021 Junior World champion breakaway roper coming in wearing #1 for ten and under, in Las Vegas, NV. In late spring 2023 alone, Bronc snagged reserve champion breakaway and reserve champion header in the Hooey Jr. Patriot Finale, winning almost $30k in Fort Worth, TX. He has won more than 100 buckles, which currently takes up an entire wall, as well as a dozen saddles.
    “My favorite event is team roping,” he said. “In Feb. 2022, I bought my first horse using my own money. His name is Pinto, like the bean. He’s a red-and-white paint.” He uses Pinto for team roping and breakaway. “I like to go fishing on our ranch, but not as much as I like rodeo.”
    Along with ranch life, Bronc and Jaylen spent many days on the rodeo road with their grandfather, the famous rodeo clown Gizmo (Dale McCracken). Giz has innumerable accolades and awards to his credit, winning 2017 Comedy Act of the year for his popular ambulance routine. Gizmo is a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), and has worked 19 PRCA circuit finals rodeos in ten of the 12 circuits.
    With his wife Janice, Gizmo still spends a lot of time kickin’ up the road dust. As they travel, churches request their gospel music performances, and they’re happy to oblige. Also going strong for over a decade, Janice’s Power of Pink foundation has raised over $360,000 for women who are battling breast cancer in their small Missouri hometown.
    Janice and Gizmo’s lives have remained a segue for their four grandchildren – Jaylen and Bronc, and Brimley and Raeley Crouch – from ranch life to the rodeo world. All the grandchildren have been performing in Gizmo’s comic routines since they were very young. As well, their daughters, Mandy and Cassie, have followed in Janice’s footsteps, and are home schooling all the children.
    “When I was growing up, my poppy (Gizmo) would take my cousins and me to the rodeos and we’d be part of his acts,” said Bronc. “He knew most of the ropers and I got to talk to them. I liked what I saw at the rodeos. My dad was in the cutting world before we were born, and he’s a good horseman and we’ve raised horses all our lives. It takes practice to feel the different types of horses, and you learn how.”
    Bronc wants to win a saddle in a USTRC roping heeling event. And his goal, to make the NFR in calf roping and team roping, is a 24/7 pursuit. To that end, the Evans home is full of roping dummies. While sitting in a saddle on a stuffed horse, watching Cowboy Channel live-streamed rodeos, Bronc ropes and ties calf dummies. And he’s got a rope in his hand at church, the grocery store, and everywhere else.
    During the school year, Bronc finishes early each morning. His favorite part of school is when it’s over, and his least favorite subject is math. And his daily four hours of rodeo practice include working on horses and roping.
    “Jaylen and I were born on the same day, six years apart,” Bronc said. “She just turned 19. Right now, she’s working at the hospital and going to start school to be a nurse. She preaches at a lot of church services. Growing up going to Cowboy Church, Jaylen has a gift for delivering the Word of God that has developed over the years of preaching at youth rodeos. She competes in breakaway roping, team roping, running poles, and tying goats.”
    Gizmo said, “The coolest thing has been seeing my grandkids do something that my wife and I have been involved with all our lives. To watch them working with and caring for their horses.”
    “I want to train rope horses for ropers when I grow up,” Bronc said. “I just want to keep the ranch we’ve got. I like ridin’ through the pastures. My favorite things on the ranch are dragging calves and when we bring the colts in to halter break. I just want to keep ropin’ all the way through life.”
    However, the strongest roots, that run deep through all generations of this family, are their love for Jesus, and spreading that message wherever they go.