story by Riata Cummings
Chester, Utah, a small agricultural community in Sanpete County is the home of Lyndzee Huffaker, 14-year-old cowgirl and rodeo athlete. Lyndzee is the daughter of Chad and Natalie Huff, and they enjoy hunting and rodeoing together. Lyndzee has a brother, Dustin, and step-sisters Terra, Baylee, Jana and Tanya, all of them older and out of the house. Lyndzee is an eighth grader at Ephraim Middle School where her favorite classes include math and science. Lyndzee enjoys volleyball and plays competitively as a middle blocker or outside hitter. Her best friend, Kate Flitton, lives next door and the two of them enjoy riding together.
Natalie, Lyndzee’s mother, rodeos frequently and it was while watching her mom that Lyndzee learned to love the sport. When she was only 4-years-old, Lyndzee’s mother led her through the barrel pattern at a rodeo in Woodruff, Utah. Now the two of them travel the rodeo road together, even sharing horses. Competing in barrel racing and pole bending, Lyndzee works with three horses; Bam Bam, Chester and Bridger. Chester, the one she uses for barrel racing, is her favorite. The two have quite the bond, being able to communicate through emotion and touch. They even enjoy eating sunflower seeds together. Because Lyndzee can ride in her backyard arena, she practices frequently with drills and exercises, often coached by her mother, and conditioning her horses riding on the mountain. This has been Lyndzee’s first year competing in the UJHSRA, and she has already qualified to run barrels at the state finals next spring. She enjoys the atmosphere of the Jr. High rodeos, especially the tough competition and being surrounded by friends.
Rodeo has taught Lyndzee to exemplify sportsmanship and horsemanship, in and out of the arena. She has learned to trust her own abilities and her horses, even when facing difficult tasks. She lives by the saying, “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary,” meaning that one must earn their way to the top of the leaderboard. Rodeo has shown Lyndzee that her greatest strength is persistence. She won’t leave the practice pen, won’t hang up her spurs, until she has accomplished what she set out to do. The sport has seen her through some of the hardest things she has had to do, including saying goodbye to the horse that taught her everything, Taz. Giving up Taz meant that Lyndzee had to solidify her independence as a rider and strengthen her skills as a horsewoman. Thanks to the experience Lyndzee knows she can work hard to accomplish anything and is a good enough rider to be successful even without a horse like Taz. Eventually, Lyndzee would like to get her “pro-card” and travel the PRCA circuit with her friend Kate, who is a trick rider. Lyndzee would also like to open her own business, working as a horse chiropractor. She hopes to make rodeo her legacy and would like to be remembered by her helpful and friendly nature.
Lyndzee’s hero is her mother, who stands by her no matter the circumstance, devotes time and effort to seeing Lyndzee succeed, and loves her unconditionally. Lyndzee is grateful to her mother, as well as her step sister Terra and Autumn Keller, all of whom having helped Lyndzee embrace her competitive nature. The lessons they teach will help Lyndzee be successful and she continues down the rodeo road.
