story by Ruth Nicolaus
Ask Shacie Marr about the John Wayne movie “The Cowboys,” and she’ll be able to quote nearly any line. The New Mexico Junior High School Rodeo Association member, who loves John Wayne, estimates she’s seen it about one hundred times.
Shacie, who is fourteen years old and a resident of Tularosa, N.M., competes in the barrel racing, breakaway roping, pole bending, goat tying, ribbon roping, and light rifle shooting. Of all her events, poles and breakaway are her favorite, because “I like to rope (in the breakaway), and I really like all the obstacles and factors (in poles) that go into a run, and all the different stuff you have to do to get ready for the poles.”
Shacie has three horses she rides. Moon, a seven year old sorrel, is her barrel horse. Tomcat, a fifteen year old sorrel horse, is her rope and goat horse. Daisy, who is seven, is her pole horse. Of all her horses, Moon is her favorite because she’s energetic and “she’s fun to ride.”
She is an eighth grade student at Tularosa Middle School, where her favorite part of the day is lunch and socializing with her friends. She enjoys history class and doesn’t mind writing reports at all. She likes to study American history, especially about Revolutionary and Civil War times.
She plays basketball, softball, volleyball, and runs track, and is on the student council, knowledge bowl and a member of the National Junior Honor Society, FFA, and 4H. She likes to hunt and got her first deer this year, a five point mule.
Shacie went to state finals in sixth and seventh grades, and qualified for the National Junior High School Finals twice as well. Both years, she went in the light rifle event, and last year, also went in the poles, breakaway and ribbon roping. She finished the 2014-2015 rodeo season in seventh place in the light rifle at Nationals.
When she grows up, she’d like to be a large animal veterinarian.
Shacie has a sister, Shaeden, in sixth grade. She is the daughter of Joel and Teresa Marr.
