Meet the Member
Amy Deichert
story by Lindsay Whelchel
Amy Deichert – Photo by Hubbell
Whether it’s inside the arena, or out, when it comes to being an athlete, everything is connected. And that’s been especially true for Amy Deichert, 21, a barrel racer and breakaway roper from Spearfish, S.D., who loves just about every sport imaginable.
“I’m very active. I play volleyball, basketball, I like to run, I like to hike, anything as far as ping-pong even,” Amy says. She played high school sports in Spearfish and now plays intramural volleyball and basketball in college. But it’s the sport of rodeo that dominates Amy’s schedule. She competes in the NRCA and college rodeo, among others.
“Most of my life revolves around rodeo, whether it’s ranching or working other horses,” she says and adds that being active leads to positive outcomes in all sports she’s involved in. “Just the fact that you’re always in shape, and when you excel in one sport it automatically leads to another one. Lifting weights, just being in shape, you’re more apt to be successful,” she says, but it is rodeo that has been the biggest influencer on Amy’s athlete mentality.
“How to win, the will to win, pressure, having confidence, believing in yourself, every sport leads into the other, [but] actually rodeo has taught me the most for other sports,” Amy explains.
If rodeo has been an influence on Amy’s active lifestyle, then it is her mother Susan and grandparents Vonnie and Jim, who have been the influence on rodeoing for Amy.
With their guidance, she started riding horses at a really young age and competed in 4-H and Little Britches before going on the compete on the rodeo team with a rodeo scholarship at Chadron State College in Nebraska. In addition to her familial rodeo catalysts of mother and grandparents, she has three siblings, Mary, Rachel and Michael, and her dad Daniel.
Amy made the College National Finals in 2012, finishing 10th and then in 2014, finishing 5th. She’s a senior now and graduating with a degree in both elementary and special education.
“My passion really lies in special education. I really have a heart for those kids,” she says.
Even though this year is her last year to college rodeo, Amy doesn’t plan to give up the sport. She made it to the NRCA finals the last three years and loves the atmosphere.
“It’s a great family environment, and your rodeo friends become your family. I also love the competition that you seek out in amateur rodeos, such as NRCA and SDRA. It’s top of the line competition, and it’s just fun,” Amy says.
She would also like to try her hand at professional rodeo next with her hope to make the circuit finals.
“That’d be awesome. My horse is working pretty well right now, and I think he’s capable of it, so that’s one of my goals.”
Amy’s horse is named Frenchie, whom she calls the most athletic she’s ever ridden.
“The way he performs the best is if I ranch on him. The more miles I put on him, the better he works, so he’s one of those horses. He has a really big heart.”
Sounds like the two athletes have a lot in common.
