At just 11 years old, Reagan Humphries will enter the 2014 Junior Southern Rodeo Association (JrSRA) season as the youngest competitor within the senior age division. Fear is not something that enters her mindset, instead, eagerness and determination has set her goals for the year. “I’m so excited to compete at the next level and want to make the finals in my first year as a senior,“ she said. “As the youngest senior, I think it would be really cool if I could make it.“
The quadruple event contender completed her final season in the junior age division with a fourth place finish in the pole bending, fifth in the all-around and a top ten finish in the barrel racing. “I like how the JrSRA is so competitive, you have to ride hard and be tough to succeed. It teaches you how to better yourself by competing among those who are better than you,” the third-year member said of why she likes the organization.
A barrel racer, pole bender, breakaway roper and goat tier, Reagan says that it is a toss-up between the barrels and poles for her favorite events to compete in. “I’ve recently got a new barrel horse [a nine-year old dapple gray – Frosty Ted, who she refers to as “Ted“], and although, I’ve only had him for a little while, we have found a chemistry together. At the same time, I use my old barrel horse to do poles on [a 15-year old bay, “Bonnie“]. She is very automatic and we just work really well together as a team,” explains Reagan. In the goat tying, Reagan uses her dad’s roping horse and has found a two-event horse in Ted, whom she will breakaway on this year. “We are new together, but I’m excited with what we can come up with,” she said.
Reagan is a third generation rodeo athlete, starting with her granddad (Leonard Atwell), who competed in the tie down and team roping within the Southern Rodeo Association (SRA). The family tradition continues through her dad (Clint), who is a current team roper and finished in the top 20 of the 2013 SRA standings. But like most athletes, Reagan has already experienced a huge setback, when she broke her femur while getting off in the goat tying during her second rodeo of the 2011 season. After three surgeries and a six-week recovery period, Reagan was back in the saddle. “It was a big rebound, but I started riding as soon as I could walk again,” she said.
A straight-A fifth grader at Lincoln Charter in Denver, N.C., where she says that science is her favorite subject. “I want to be a vet and science really interests me,“ she said. Reagan is the example of a true student-athlete, setting the bar high for herself, she plans to attend North Carolina State University and major in veterinary medicine. Outside of rodeo and school, she is a member of the Gaston County 4-H Blazing Saddles, where she won the county, district and state level with her presentation on Diving Horses. “It’s a five minute presentation with posters and props,“ explained her mom, who included that Reagan was also the high-point winner in the junior and senior divisions. Furthermore, Reagan is a former three-year competitive gymnast, but quit in order to focus on rodeo.
The accomplished youngster is the only child of Clint and Amy Humphries and the family resides in Lincolnton, N.C. While Amy does not compete, she takes on the many roles to support Reagan. “I’m the rodeo mom and tack girl,” she said. Amy is a dental assistant at Hills Orthodontics in Huntersville, N.C., Clint is a fire fighter on the Charlotte Fire Department and the owner and operator of Humphries Landscaping.