By Jean Schurman
State champion is usually the highest honor a high school student athlete can achieve, and that alone is quite a feat. However, in the rodeo world, the high school contestant can actually win a national championship. The top four placers in each rodeo event in 42 states, five Canadian provinces, and Australia are eligible to compete at the finals. The National High School Finals Rodeo will have approximately 1,500 contestants competing for the title in traditional rodeo events such as saddle bronc, bareback bronc, tie down roping, steer wrestling, break away roping, barrel racing, team roping, and bull riding. In addition, there are a few events that are unique to the high school rodeo scene. Those are pole bending, goat tying, working cowhorse and cow cutting. There is also a queen contest. Making it to the NHSFR puts these cowboys and cowgirls on the map for college rodeo scholarships, and the chance to bring home a coveted national championship saddle or buckle. Cowboys and cowgirls have to provide semester grades to prove they are eligible to rodeo and are passing their classes.
This year, the Bitterroot will be represented by three cowgirls and a cowboy. These four individuals began their road to the NHSFR last August when the first high school rodeos of the season were held. From August through the first weekend in October, and then from March through the end of school in May, these contestants are on the road every weekend from Darby to Valier to Roy, compiling points in their events. The ideal situation is to accrue 70 points prior to the state finals. At the finals, the points earned for winning or placing in a go-round or the average, double. The maximum number of points that can be carried into the state finals is 70, and almost all of the top finishers had that amount.
This year, the state finals were in Baker, Montana, from June 6th to the 12th. There is always a lot going on but this year, Mother Nature added her two cents in two. On Saturday night, in the middle of the second go-round, several funnel clouds formed over the small Eastern Montana town, and specifically over the rodeo arena itself. The rodeo was halted and everyone, including the horses, took cover either under the grandstands or in the horse barns.
“There were a lot of horses in the outdoor pens,” said Danae McNamara of Stevensville. “Everyone helped get them under cover. It was crazy.”
Tornadoes did set down and quite a bit of damage was done in Baker but not around the rodeo grounds. However, the go-round had to be resumed on Sunday and finished before the top contestants could move into the championship round.
Kayla Schmiedeke of Stevensville went into the finals with 67 points in the breakaway roping. Last year, as a freshman, she finished fifth at state. She was determined to do better. So every night, she spent at least a half an hour roping a dummy calf. She and her horse, Howard, spent hours roping calf after calf. She was ready for state, even though she was three points behind two others and two points behind four other cowgirls.
“I knew I had to be solid every round,” said Schmiedeke.
She roped her first calf in 2.9 seconds which put her in fourth place and earned her 14 points. Her second calf was a little bit longer, 3.08 seconds. That was enough to earn her more points and move her into the short go. There, she threw a 2.78 to finish tied for second place. More importantly, Schmiedeke won the average. She roped three calves in 8.760 seconds, and earned 20 more points. She won the championship by three points.
Schmiedeke knows that the national event will be tough. She went to the junior high national finals twice, once in pole bending and once in goat tying. She knows the contestants from down south will be hard to keep up with but is not going to let that get in her head. She plans on working Howard every day to keep him in shape and ready to go. She will probably spend a bit more time roping the dummy as well. She credits her mom and dad, Rainey and Scott, with helping her get where she is now, along with Randy Sacks who has helped her tremendously with her roping. When she’s not roping and riding, she is playing basketball for the Yellowjackets.
Schmiedeke has ridden “every since I can remember.” She competed in gymkhana and junior rodeo.
The second champion from the valley is Meagan Harris of Florence. Harris won the pole bending event on her sister’s horse. Harris went into the finals with the maximum 70 points; and then she built upon that lead every go-round. Harris won the first round with a plastering time of 20.670. She was fourth in the second go, and finished first in the short go with a time of 20.05.
“We were half a second faster than second (place) in the short go; and we won the average,” said Harris. “My horse and I finally clicked. We were able to get a nice first turn down. I knew she could weave the poles faster than anyone.”
In addition to pole bending, Harris also qualified in barrel racing. She finished fourth overall in that event. She made a run of 16.25 in the first go, 15.59 in the second and 16.18 in the short go. She wound up in fourth place in the average.
Harris is following the lead of two older sisters, Perri and Jill, in high school rodeo. She said she has been riding since she was about five and began competing in gymkhana and junior rodeos when she little. A recent graduate of Florence, Harris plans on attending the University of Montana and eventually go into pediatric medicine. She will also attend an equine chiropractic school in Texas and become a certified equine chiropractor. She is looking forward to the next stage of life, except for the fact that her sister wants her horse back.
McNamara qualified in the goat tying event. She finished fourth in that event. She won the first go with a time of 7.76 which was the fastest time in the state this year. Her second run was not as smooth and she finished out of the points but her goat did stay tied so she had a chance in the short go.
“I knew I had to have a good run if I was going to make it,” she said.
McNamara said she relied on “a lot of hustle, and muscle memory” to get the job done. She got serious about goat tying about five years ago. Ryanne Tracy from Victor was the one to beat at that time and that became McNamara’s goal. She not only tried to beat Tracey but also learned from her. “I think I may have beaten her twice,” she said.
McNamara has been riding since she was small and like the others, has come up through the ranks of the gymkhana and junior rodeos. She has been in the top 10 in the state the last two years in barrel racing, break away roping and goat tying. She may hang up the goat tying after the finals, if she doesn’t go on to college rodeo. She’s keeping her options open, as there may be a spot for her on a rodeo team somewhere. In the meantime, she’s continuing to attend the Bitterroot College where she’s working on a business degree. She is a recent home school graduate.
Rowen Tracey is the final contestant to qualify for the NHSFR. This is his second year as a qualifier in boys’ cutting. He finished fourth on his horse Curley. Tracy will be a senior at Victor this fall. He said that cutting is something he can see himself doing for many, many years. He spends a lot of time working with Chris Basham, a cutting horse trainer out of Florence.
Tracy has grown up chasing cattle on his grandparents’ place, the Rennaker Ranch. He feels that this helps him because “50 percent of the cutting is reading the cow, knowing where the cow is going to take the next step.” He said chasing cattle all over the ranch has developed these skills. Going into the national finals, Tracy knows the competition will be very tough, especially those contestants from Texas and Oklahoma where cutting is a very big sport. “It’s a money race,” those with the most expensive horses usually do better. But he’s going to give it his best shot.
Tracy was just re-elected president of the FFA for Victor. He is working to get the school and the community more connected. He also has a lawn mowing business and works at the Stock Farm as a landscaper and is in charge of the flowers around the clubhouse.
The NHSRF will be held in Gillette, Wyoming, July 17th through the 23rd. These four contestants will be doing some fundraising events around the valley but no further details were available at press time.