story by Siri Stevens
Karson Bradley, from Big Piney, Wyoming, had a packed July. She went to Tennessee to root for her brother, Kolby, 14, who was competing in ribbon roping and tie down. Then the family headed home for a few days, and off to Gillette, Wyoming, for the National High School Finals Rodeo. “We were going to go to Shawnee, but we drew out because my brother’s horse got really sick in Tennessee and we didn’t want to take a chance with Selena, my barrel racing horse.” She qualified at the National High School Finals in barrel racing (as the Wyoming High School Champion) and pole bending and uses the same horse for both. “Selena originally came from Victory Farms in Oklahoma and we bought her from Vicki Zancanella.” Karson has been competing on her for four years. “She was only five when I got her, and we’ve both grown together. She’s not the easiest horse to ride; and I like that challenge. She makes me work for it.” Karson’s mom (Tiffanie) and dad (Mack) go everywhere with her. “She teaches kindergarten so she has to take days off to make it work. My dad has cattle and owns a dirt work business. He and my brother team rope.”
Karson went into the short go in fifth place. “I ran a 17.0 and ended up second in the short go and that moved me ahead of a few other girls and I ended up Reserve National Champion.” She got a buckle, some scholarships, and several other prizes. Her first round was a 17.5, second was 17.1 and the total on three was just .1 off from taking it. “There was actually a tie between me and the third place girl. It’s so crazy.”
After Gillette, Karson headed to her county fair where she shows cattle. “My steer got third in his class, and I thought that was decent considering we are gone so much.” Since high school rodeo started in April, she’s been on the road almost every weekend. “We are used to being gone, and when we are at home, we get bored and ready to go somewhere.” She has three young horses to ride, and still heads to barrel races here and there. In the meantime, the senior is busy getting ready for her last year. “It’s coming up,” she said. “My family takes school very seriously, so I always want to do good in school.” Her favorite class is Science. “I took chemistry this year and I loved it. We did a lot of experiments and it was fun to see what happens when you mix things up.”
Karson started her rodeo career at the age of six, competing in little jackpots in her home town and the Jackson Hole Rodeo, which has a PeeWee Barrel Race, then Wyoming Junior Rodeo. “We got super busy going to jackpots, and I also did the Junior High division, which I won Nationals my sixth grade year.” Karson has dedicated her life to barrel racing. “I do poles too, but I hope to go on to college and pro rodeo in barrel racing.”
She is looking at a few colleges, and she is hoping to do something with Equine Science. “I would like to work or open a facility to rehab horses,” she said. “For now, I’m going to focus on graduating with great grades and work with my young horses and keep my good horse feeling as good as she is not.”
She likes rodeo because of all the people she meets. “I love doing this with my family; we are always together doing something. We practice in our outdoor arena, and we have a very nice indoor facility three minutes from us – Big Piney Fairgrounds; it’s really, really nice.”
