story by Lindsay King
Bump, set, spike! Kylie West from Tatum, New Mexico, loves playing volleyball because she is tall enough to spike the ball over the net. “I like being on the court with my team and that it involves a lot of strength. My mom, Kelly, is actually my coach,” said the 12-year-old seventh grader at Tatum Municipal Public Schools. Kylie likes her science classes the best. “I am interested in learning about animals because I want to be a vet when I grow up. And those classes are always a lot of fun.” A fan of the Oklahoma State University Cowboys, Kylie aspires to attend vet school there but only after competing on the rodeo team for Oklahoma Panhandle State University.
The reigning NMJHSRA champion ribbon roper, Kylie competes in barrel racing, pole bending, goat tying, and breakaway roping. “I like barrels because that is what my mom used to do and I like to go fast. But I do like ribbons also because I am good at it. I like getting to work with someone else. My partner, Trent Wood, was really helpful and fun to compete with this year.” Kylie is at least a third-generation rodeo competitor. “My grandpa, Allen McCloy, my mom’s dad, was a stock contractor and my other grandpa, Bill West, hauled livestock all his life.” Her dad, Murry, continues to ranch rodeo today. Kylie has three other siblings: Preston, 31, and 27-year-old twins, Brook and Ashley. None of her siblings have ever rodeoed like Kylie.
Each Fourth of July, Kylie competes in her favorite rodeo: the Range Riders Rodeo. It is put on by the McCloy Rodeo Company, owned by her grandparents, Allen and Janice McCloy. “I also like going to junior high rodeos. There is a lot of tough competition so I know if I do well I will make it to nationals.” New places and old friends top off the NMJHSRA for Kylie. Playing three sports at school makes it hard to compete more than once or twice a month outside of the summer season. Kylie just recently learned how to rope and would compete in team roping as a header if she had a horse for it. “I have come a long way since I was a little kid. I am proud of myself for learning how to rope and doing it well.”
With nationals in her rear and front view, Kylie is hoping to do well in all her events as an improvement over last year. “I really want to do well in roping because I love to rope. I did not do it last year so I want to prove that I am good enough to keep it up.” Armed with a smile, positive attitude and a willingness to fix her mistakes, Kylie is determined to emulate her role model: Lisa Lockhart. “I like how she rides and how she pushes her horses to do better.” Kylie knows she will make mistakes but does her best not to beat up on herself. Outside of rodeo, Kylie likes to help on the family ranch. “I like to help my dad on both of our ranches and then go brand cattle with some of our neighbors too.”
Kylie and her dad have a tradition of getting trail mix and sunflower seeds for the road. “Dad and I are usually in a rush so we have to eat things that are fast and easy.” Kylie’s parents are easily the biggest influences for Kylie’s rodeo career but her friends are a big part of it also. “My friends always help me do the best I can but I also get to meet new people. Mostly I love the competitive nature of rodeo and the horses, of course.”
