story by Riata Cummings
Sunny St. George, Utah is home to Riggun Barrow, a 14-year-old rodeo cowboy and the son of Darley and Nathan Barrow. Riggun is the oldest of four children, and his siblings are Reighley, Kippyn and Hazlyn. Riggun is a 6th generation cattle rancher, and his family spends a lot of their time together moving cows, fixing fences and taking care of the cattle on the Arizona Strip. He is very close to his grandparents, Stacey and Kacey Hughes, and considers his time working with his grandpa on the ranch to be time well spent.
Riggun attends Dixie Middle School as an eighth grader and enjoys his math and shop classes. “I like working with numbers, and I like working with my hinds. Figuring things out and discovering the way things or numbers work is part of who I am.” One day, Riggun would like to work as a mechanic or engineer. “I can tinker with things and know how they work, and I can still rope.”
Riggun grew up in a rodeo family and has been competing since he was just 3-years-old. He competes in the tiedown roping, chute dogging, goat tying, ribbon roping, and team roping through the Utah Junior High School Rodeo Association. His ribbon roping runner is Hayden White, and his header in the team roping is Tarrin Bowler. Riggun also competes in the National Little Britches Rodeo Association and in other junior rodeo organizations.
Last year, Riggun qualified for the short go at the UJHSRA state finals rodeo, for the National Little Britches Finals Rodeo and for the Mike and Sherrylynn Johnson Tuffest Jr World Championship. He has set a goal to return to Little Britches finals and the Tuffest World Championships, and to become a state champion in all of his Jr. High events. Striving for those goals, Riggun practices every morning before school and most days after school.
One of the most challenging experiences Riggun has been through is being sent out alone after cattle on their ranch. “Sometimes you have no idea where you are. You are hot and thirsty and lost, but you have to find your way back to camp.” He says the only things that help him through those days are “prayer and the Lord.” Those challenges have made him better by teaching him to “rely on the Lord and Savior to guide me home. He’ll never let me down and he will help me learn the lessons I need to learn.”
One of Riggun’s heroes is Mike Johnson. “He teaches everyone willing and he has helped me a lot. He has been instrumental in my rodeo career, and he is just a good person in and out of the arena.” One day, Riggun would like to emulate Mike’s horsemanship and roping ability, as well as his kind and fun nature.
Riggun would advise rodeo rookies to “keep your mental game up. Be confident and take those little steps towards your goals. Do your best every time and ride with a purpose.”
Riggun would like to thank his parents and grandparents for providing him with the opportunity to rodeo and for taking care of him and his horses. He would like to thank his Uncle Koby for helping him stay mounted on good rope horses. Finally, he would like to thank Mike and Sherrylynn Johnson for teaching him and encouraging him to be his best. Riggun is grateful for the opportunity to chase his gold buckle dreams and for the people who are making those dreams come true.
