It’s a long drive from Centreville, Maryland, to Oklahoma, and the Higgs family makes the trip several times each year, bringing daughter Kelsey west to chase her barrel racing dreams.
In July, Higgs will make her third consecutive appearance at the Cinch World Championship Junior Rodeo (WCJR) at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma. A collaborative effort between the Lazy E and the World Champions Rodeo Alliance’s (WCRA) Division Youth (DY), the WCJR is one of the world’s most lucrative youth rodeos, paying out more than $400,000.
Higgs secured her qualification through the DY Leaderboard, nominating events and earning points via the Virtual Rodeo Qualifier (VRQ). The leaderboard is one of three paths to the WCJR, along with Qualifying Series events and pre-event qualifying rounds. The top 12 on the DY Leaderboard earn complimentary entry fees and are seeded directly into the semifinal round.
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Currently seventh in Junior Barrel Racing, Higgs is looking forward to returning to the WCJR, which runs July 22–26.
“I’ve been there the last two years, and we won some money last year,” Higgs said. “It’s a really well-organized event, and the money is good.”
Higgs cites time spent with fellow barrel racing friends as another pro of attending the WCJR, but her path to barrel racing differs from many of her peers.
“I’ve been riding since I was 2 years old, and when I was about 11, I decided to try Western riding,” Higgs explained. “I thought the fast horses and barrel racing were pretty neat. And the more I did it, the more in love with it I fell.”
Unlike many of her youth rodeo competitors, Higgs doesn’t come from a traditional rodeo background. Her mom, Tracy, is a “city girl,” and her dad, Craig, grew up showing dairy cows. Neither parent rode horses, and growing up in Maryland meant Higgs didn’t have the same learning opportunities in the sport as youth in other parts of the country.
Enter Shelby Stansbury—barrel racer, trainer, and now a mentor to Higgs—and cue the long-distance commute to Oklahoma.
“I spend about half the year in Oklahoma now, riding with my trainer and running barrels,” Higgs said. She’s been with Stansbury for three years. Her parents take turns traveling back and forth to Maryland to manage business interests at home—because, as Craig notes, “horses are not cheap!”
Luckily, the family enjoys the travel and is all-in on providing the experience for Higgs.
“I’m an only child, so it’s just Mom, Dad, and me,” Higgs said. “We love to travel.”
Along with Stansbury, Higgs credits her horses for her development in the sport.
“I had a special mare that taught me a lot,” she said of Smart Peptos Whiskey—also known as Chop—the horse that carried her to the National Junior High School Finals Rodeo after she won state titles in both barrel racing and pole bending.
As she progressed as a rider, Higgs added Guys Girls Have Fun—a daughter of Frenchmans Guy—better known as Holly.
“We got her through a friend of a friend of my trainer’s, and it was just a lucky deal,” Higgs said of the 14-year-old mare, who’s been in her barn nearly two years. “She was a big step-up horse for me.”
Higgs and Holly were reserve champions in the Maryland High School Rodeo in 2024, but the road to that success included plenty of bumps along the way.
“She’s shown me how to move up, how to struggle, and how to persevere,” Higgs said. “She showed me what it’s like to put in the hard work, get through it, and find success.”
That success includes placing fifth in qualifying at the WCJR last year, showing well at the Sherry Cervi Youth Championships in Ohio, and, most recently, winning the Maryland High School Rodeo year-end championship.
That win sends Higgs to the National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR) in Rock Springs, Wyoming, just a couple of weeks before the WCJR.
“We’ve got a busy few months ahead!” she said.
It’s a dream come true for the cowgirl who lives to ride and run barrels. An incoming junior with Florida Virtual School, Higgs hopes to earn a college rodeo scholarship and plans to study equine nutrition.
“I want to do consultations—help people understand what their horses need to perform better,” she said. “I’m always reading up for my own horses, trying to dial in on what they need.”
Eventually, Higgs hopes to have her own facility to train horses, noting that she enjoys the challenges that come with it.
“It would make me really happy to see a horse I trained go on and do great with someone else,” she said.
“Riding young horses is something we do daily,” she continued. “It’s interesting and it’s tough. Each horse is an individual, so you have to be able to adjust. But it’s been really fun seeing what it takes to train a young one.”
For now, Higgs is focused on the big opportunities ahead at the NHSFR and WCJR.
“Practice, practice, practice,” she said of her preparation. “Perfect my pattern and make it the best I can. And a lot of conditioning—for me and my horses. Make sure we’re in shape and at the top of our game.”
After using high school rodeos and major youth jackpots to earn her spot, Higgs is ready for the WCJR.
“The amount of opportunities that the WCRA offers is just awesome.”
For more information on the WCJR, visit World Championship Junior Rodeo, WCRA Division Youth, and WCRA/Virtual Rodeo Qualifier.