story by Lily Weinacht
Sheyanne Brodkorb was astride a horse before she could walk on her own two legs. Rodeo runs from Sheyanne’s parents, Michial and Michele, back to her grandma, Carrie Belkham, and her grandpa, Stan Peterson. Peterson bought Sheyanne her breakaway horse and has been one of the 18-year-old’s chief inspirations to rodeo. “After my Grandpa Stan bought me my horse, I wanted to come back and show him what I could do, and that I can do a lot of things like him,” says Sheyanne. “I also really look up to my Grandma Carrie. She still rides and barrel races, and she and my grandpa always come watch me compete and give me tips. They always tell me to have fun and to smile no matter what.”
Sheyanne’s events are pole bending, barrel racing, and breakaway roping, with the addition of ribbon roping in 4-H. Breakaway roping is undoubtedly her favorite event. “It’s exciting and fast, and I like doing something with my hands,” Sheyanne explains. She joined the SDHSRA as a freshman, rodeoing with her cousin, Cassidy Musick. Sheyanne’s favorite rodeo is in Huron. “I like their setup, and it’s close to home,” she says. Another favorite is the 20X Extreme Showcase, which Sheyanne qualified for in the breakaway roping for her second consecutive year.
The Brodkorb family lives about 15 miles north of Wessington Springs, S.D. Sheyanne’s grandpa owns a 40 acre ranch which the whole family lives on, their houses just up the road from each other. Sheyanne keeps her horse, Dawson, at her grandpa’s barn, and uses his roping arena. Dawson, now 24, is the roping horse Sheyanne was given when she was 12. “I’ve been roping on him this whole time, and while he doesn’t do a lot of hard work, he knows his job and I can always trust him to do what he needs to do. In order to stay in the top four in the breakaway, I know Dawson’s only going to take a few steps out of the box before I swing.” Sheyanne borrows a horse for barrel racing and pole bending from a family friend, but the Brodkorbs have a number of other horses, including the ones belonging to Sierra, Sheyanne’s 14-year-old sister. Sierra is just starting high school rodeo, competing in the same events as Sheyanne.
Sheyanne is a senior at Wessington Springs High School. Although she doesn’t care for the algebra side of math, she does enjoy accounting, as well as her history classes and American government. An avid athlete, Sheyanne recently earned her 1,000th point for high school career playing basketball, while also playing volleyball, softball, and golf. She will be competing at state in golf for the fourth year, and is on the all-conference team for both basketball and volleyball. If boredom strikes – though that is rare – Sheyanne also enjoys beading accessories like bracelets or hatbands. Baking cakes and brownies further helps pass the time between rodeos or her other sports.
Excited to be graduating, Sheyanne is considering attending Mitchell Technical Institute or South Dakota State University this fall. If she can find a younger breakaway horse, she’d also like to college rodeo, and is hoping to join the SDRA after her final season with the SDHSRA. “My goals are to make the short round of the state high school finals, and qualify for the NHSFR,” Sheyanne says. “Thank you to my parents, and to my Grandpa Stan and Grandma Carrie for all of their help!”
