story by Lily Weinacht
Bailey Schaack is alternately rodeoing and planning her September wedding this summer. The 22-year-old from Hyannis, Nebraska, has held her card with the NSRA since she was a sophomore in high school, and won 2014 Rookie of the Year while competing in breakaway roping and barrel racing. Most recently, she’s added mixed team roping with her fiancé, Jessie Hefner, to her events. “I roped with my sister in high school, but Jessie and I haven’t roped together other than practice pens yet. He’s a saddle bronc rider, but we decided we should do the mixed team roping this year.” The couple met when Bailey came home from college two years ago. Jessie had worked for Bailey’s dad while she was in high school. “The summer will be pretty busy for us, but I have most of the big planning done,” says Bailey. “The ceremony will be by a lake, and the reception will be at my parents’ house.
“For as much stress as can be put on rodeo, it’s actually a stress reliever for me. I’ve always enjoyed it, and it’s always been a family affair for us,” she adds. “Breakaway roping is probably my favorite since my parents, Chad and K.C., helped me with it. I’m definitely motivated by my little sister, Brandy. She’s two years younger and just graduated college. She’s always pushed me to be better in the practice pen, and we’ve always had a little friendly competition going on. And I definitely look up to both sets of my grandparents, Butch and Chuck White and Sandra Schaack. No matter how far any of our rodeos were or how hot, they were always there.”
Bailey competed at the NHSFR her senior year in barrel racing, followed by rodeoing two years at Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington. “I was planning on being an Ag. teacher, but when I decided that wasn’t what I wanted to do, I moved home and drilled wells and worked at my dad’s bar,” says Bailey. “A personal banker position came up in Hyannis, and I was lucky enough to get it. I would’ve never thought I’d be in the banking world, but I really enjoy my job.”
After work, Bailey is off to practice. Her breakaway horse, Spirit, was raised by her grandmother, Sandra Schaack. After Bailey’s family bought Spirit, her grandfather ranched on him until Bailey and her dad trained the gelding for roping. “He’ll probably be the one I team rope on this year. My barrel horse is Frenchy – she’s the daughter of (Myers Performance Horses) Frenchmans Guy, and we got her my junior year of high school. We just clicked, and I love her to death. We bred her a few weeks ago, so my sister told me I could ride her horse Gem toward the end of the summer. I’m also going to haul my five-year-old, Fancy, this summer, since she hasn’t been anywhere yet, and I have an Australian Shepherd, Dally.”
Bailey hauled with fellow NSRA competitor Lacy Hebert since joining the association, but now that Lacy’s children are junior rodeoing, Bailey plans to travel with Jessie and Brandy. Bailey often wears a bracelet when she’s rodeoing with the name of a friend on it who passed away during college. They high school rodeoed together and were both on the EWC rodeo team.
“Jessie and I go fishing quite a bit with my dad and sister, and we spend quite a bit of time at my parents’ house, plus we have some friends we go hunting with,” says Bailey. “This year, I really want to make the NSRA finals in barrels and breakaway – the last couple years I’ve only made it in the barrels – and I’d like to get my young horse seasoned.”
