story by Lily Weinacht
Lori Ann Klinglesmith from Meeker, Colorado, is the 2017 WHSRA Breakaway Roping Champion. The 18 year old stopped at nothing as she pursued her goal of qualifying for the NHSFR, including foregoing her senior prom and graduation ceremony to compete in as many high school rodeos as possible. But when Lori Ann found out she’d won her first state title, she says it was still a big surprise. “I went into state finals tied for eleventh and twelfth in the standings. I went in there with the attitude that whether or not I made it to Nationals, my season was already a success because I’d made my own horses and I’d already made myself better. That took a lot of pressure off, and after I won the first round, I felt more confident in the next two rounds. I ended up second in the short-go, and that and the average is what gave me the edge.”
Lori Ann has grown up in a ranching family, including her parents, Lenny and Jackie Klinglesmith and her 16-year-old sister, Lila. Though she’s been roping since she was six, Lori Ann didn’t start rodeoing until her junior year of high school. She played sports like basketball and volleyball all through middle school and her first two years of high school before switching to rodeo. She admits missing practicing with a team, but says her passion is training horses. “As I got more serious in rodeo, my dad has been the person I look up to, but I’ve also had a few outside coaches, Travis Anderson and Dee Norell, who have helped me with barrier work and little mechanics like that.” Lori Ann also competed in team roping as a header with Ira Dickinson and competes in team roping jackpots, but breakaway is her favorite. “I can do it by myself and rope the dummy by myself, and it’s an I-get-out-of-it-what-I-put-into-it kind of thing,” she explains. “I like the horse training aspect of rodeo. I enjoyed starting the year before with a prospect and seeing him develop. It’s not really the winning – I love to win and I enjoy that – but more the progression and improvement that I enjoy.”
She credits her calf horse, Boots, with much of her improvement. The palomino gelding, a son of Genuine Hombre out of a Mr Baron Red mare, came from Pitzer Ranch in Ericson, Nebraska. “He was a stud for a while, and I got him a year and a half after that. I had a lot of help from my dad in coaching, and I ranched on Boots for a year. I was able to rope calves on him this last year, and he was part of my success because he’s cow horse bred and he can really stop, and he’s what made me ride better and rope better.” Lori Ann has another horse from Pitzer Ranch, Bay Buck, whom she trained with her dad and now heads off of. She also has three younger horses she’s training or seasoning, including her breakaway prospect, a Joe Jack Red son.
One of Lori Ann’s favorite parts of the summer is an annual camping trip into the White River National Forest with her dad and best friend to season her younger horses. She particularly enjoys looking at the stars, and takes time every night to stargaze and think about the day. She also helps run her family’s ranch, and is growing her own herd of registered Charolais cattle. Lori Ann was very involved in FFA during high school, doing entrepreneurship and beef production, along with community events. She is rodeoing this fall for University of Wyoming, and double majoring in animal science and Ag. business. “I would like to get more informed on the technology of the agricultural industry,” she finishes, “and I want to come back and ranch and run a high quality cow herd, both registered and commercial.”
