‘Best feeling’: Mowry looks to repeat in barrel racing — NFR DAY 7 PHOTOS
Barrel racer Kassie Mowry is primarily a horse trainer, having trained hundreds of horses that have appeared at the National Finals Rodeo.
Her jockey skills have shined at the past two NFRs, which is why she is the defending barrel racing world champion and leads the standings after seven rounds of this year’s NFR.
But nothing would have prepared Mowry for an unexpected ride on her horse Cornbread — her first run at NFR on her backup horse.
“It was a great plan until I went in the alley way and he took off sooner than I wanted and I got stuck over the saddle horn with my belt and was just at his mercy,” Mowry said Tuesday. “So, literally, he just took me for a ride, but in all the right places.”
Cornbread helped deliver Mowry a go-round win Tuesday with a fast time of 13.42 seconds on the sixth day of NFR at the Thomas & Mack Center.
“It was a wild ride. … He’s new to me,” Mowry said of Cornbread. “I met him literally the week right before we came out here. I needed a good backup horse and, obviously, he was a great choice.”
The win has helped Mowry, a Dublin, Texas, native, hold the lead in the barrel racing standings with $338,233 in earnings by more than $30,000 over Hailey Kinsel after seven rounds. On Wednesday, Mowry finished third in her go-round (13.62 seconds) and added $21,882 in earnings.
“He knows where he’s going, and that’s what I need to be more conservative on him and just let him work instead of being aggressive like I was (Monday),” Mowry said. “It definitely worked out for the best. … That was fun.”
‘A tough decision’
Mowry, 43, brought two horses to Las Vegas — Will and Cornbread. She decided to leave her main horse, Jarvis, at home, which helped Mowry win the 2024 barrel racing world title. She said that decision alleviated the pressure of trying to defend her title.
“When I decided to leave Jarvis at home, it was a tough decision, but it was the one that made me feel the most comfortable with everything kind of in the air,” Mowry said. “I kind of let go of that, and I just decided that it’s not ideal but just make the best of it and have fun. That’s what I’m doing, just having fun and enjoying the people.”
Will delivered on the first day of NFR on Dec. 4. Mowry won her go-round with a time of 13.66 seconds. Then after Will’s run on Monday, Mowry said she knew it was time to give Cornbread a shot.
“I came out here with two horses. I knew Will wouldn’t make it the full 10 rounds,” Mowry said. “He just wasn’t as in shape as what I would have liked him, and he was flat (on Monday). I could tell he was tired. So I decided to get on Cornbread. I ran him (in a practice run on Monday), and it went good.”
The run on the course at the Thomas & Mack Center looked flawless, even though Cornbread went a little early running out of the tunnel. Mowry credited Cornbread’s trainer, Mindy Holloway, for preparing him despite the last-minute call.
“It’s kind of wild for me to jump on something else that’s new,” Mowry said. “Mindy Holloway, his trainer, trained this horse and did a phenomenal job. For me to just step on and ride this horse like I did, this is not my forte, so that goes to her for an amazing job on her.”
‘Why I do it’
Mowry won her world title last year in her fourth NFR appearance. With her primary job being a horse trainer, she said she gets greater joy from seeing her horses perform for other contestants.
“It’s the best feeling ever. It’s why I do it,” Mowry said. “I get way more nervous for them than I do for me. I just want them to do so good. You know those horses, and you’re a part of their career early on, and you have a bond with them, and it just makes it all full circle when you get to see them go out there and do well for other people. It’s what I came for.”
Mowry entered Las Vegas leading by less than $10,000 in a tight barrel racing field. With two go-round winning horses, Mowry could have a great chance to defend her title. Mowry also leads in the aggregate, an average of all the competitors’ runs over the 10 days, and could add $94,035 to her total earnings.
“I have not made a plan since I got out here,” Mowry said. “I was just going to start out on Will and see how long Will wanted to go. He was really tired on that last run I made on him, so I made the switch to Cornbread (on Monday), and Cornbread seems to be the option. We’ll see how long he wants to go.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
Statler Wright goes back-to-back in saddle bronc
The Wright family is used to taking victory laps at the National Finals Rodeo inside the Thomas & Mack Center.
Statler Wright did that on Tuesday. He did it again Wednesday.
Wright won his saddle bronc riding go-round with a score of 89.75 seconds on the seventh day of NFR on Wednesday night riding a horse named "Talk Derby 2 Me."
"You got to speak confidence into yourself and when you do that, the sky's the limit," Wright said. "It just seems to be working out for me."
The confidence was exuding from Wright before his run.
"The (Cowboy Channel) guy that does the (TV) interviews as soon as we get off, I told him and I walked by him, I grabbed his arm and said 'I'll see you here in a minute, I got to go do something," Wright said. "As soon as I got off I said 'I told you I was going to come back and talk to you.'"
Wright, 22 from Beaver, Utah, entered Las Vegas ninth in the world standings. After his two wins, Wright has jumped to fourth ($311,338) and is second in the aggregate, an average of all the competitor's runs at NFR.
"I could feel my mark out and she ripped my feet right out of there," Wright said of his winning run. "I just knew I had to keep gassing it right toward the end. I give credit to myself, I was trying to weld my feet and it made her really buck."
Wright is at NFR with his older brothers Ryder and Stetson, who are competing in saddle bronc riding. Ryder Wright is leading the standings ($392,016) and Stetson Wright is fifth ($308,997).
It's common for the Wright brothers to be cheering one another on during their rides and having debriefs behind the bucking chutes.
"Those moments back there are pretty special," Statler Wright said. "They do amazing out there. Just to be able to have that moment is pretty special."
Stetson Wright 'probable' for Thursday
Stetson Wright is listed as probable for Thursday's action at the NFR after he suffered a left hip and right leg contusion, according to an injury update from the PRCA.
Wright appeared to have suffered his injury on a reride during his bull-riding go-round on Wednesday. Wright fell off his second bull and had his hand stuck and was shaken off the bull.
Wright was down for several seconds before slowly getting up. His status for his saddle bronc riding and bull riding go-rounds on Thursday will be known closer to the start of Thursday's events.
Other go-round winners:
Jess Pope, Waverly, Kansas, in bareback riding (88 points).
Rowdy Parrott, Mamou, Louisiana, in steer wrestling (4.0 seconds).
Dawson Graham and Dillon Graham, both from Wainwright, Alberta, Canada, in team roping (3.5 seconds).
Joel Harris, San Angelo, Texas, in tie-down roping (7.5 seconds).
Hayle Gibson-Stillwell, Redcrest, California, in barrel racing (13.45 seconds).
T.J. Gray, Dairy, Oregon, in bull riding (90.5 points).
— Alex Wright Review-Journal
