Kassie Mowry’s rise to the top of barrel racing did not come quickly, and it did not come by accident.
Long before world titles and gold buckles, Mowry built her career as a trainer, learning how to develop horses correctly and earning trust inside established programs before launching one of her own.
That path has now produced back-to-back WPRA World Championships in 2024 and 2025, more than $8 million in EquiStat earnings, and a reputation as one of the most complete horse trainers in the sport.
“I didn’t grow up just running fast,” Mowry has said. “Timing was something I had to learn. I had to understand the turn before I ever worried about how quick I was.”
Early Foundation
Mowry worked to learn from the best along the way and built up her reputation. Coming from a background of riding in English barns and taking dressage lessons, Mowry had to learn from an outsider’s perspective in barrel racing, but she was eager to figure it out.
“I remembered going to barrel races early on and just sitting and asking people for help,” Mowry said. “Troy Crumrine was somebody who would always answer my questions, and I just tried to soak up what I could from guys like him who were willing to talk to me.”
She gained experience quickly when she began riding for renowned breeder Jud Little, giving her early exposure to high-level competition. She took those horses through the ranks, proving they could succeed from futurities to ProRodeo. Mowry joined the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association in 2003 and qualified for her first National Finals Rodeo in 2005.
Looking back, Mowry has been open about what that experience showed her.
“I wasn’t ready then,” she has said. “I had a lot to learn, and so did my horses.”
Rather than pushing harder on the rodeo trail, she redirected her focus toward training, fine-tuning her horsemanship, a decision that would define the rest of her career.
Becoming a Top Trainer
After 2005, Mowry continued on her path to fully to developing young horses.
Over time, that approach earned her a national reputation as a trainer capable of producing horses that could win on any stage. Her feel, eye for great horses and ability to adapt to different styles made her a highly sought after trainer in barrel racing’s inner circles long before the public learned the naturally introverted trainer’s name.
The Epic Chapter
A pivotal chapter in Mowry’s development came when she went to work for breeder Karma Loftin. Mowry trained and rode horses within Loftin’s program, earning responsibility through consistency and results.
“Kassie worked for me, and she earned my trust,” Loftin said. “She had feel, timing, and an eye for a horse early on.”
Mowry was involved not only in riding, but in training decisions and evaluating young horses, learning how breeding, development, and competition intersect.
“She knew when to push and when to wait,” Loftin said. “That’s not something you teach.”
Mowry’s long-standing professional relationship with Loftin later culminated in the creation of Epic Leader, by Confederate Leader out of Firewater Fiesta.
“That was Kassie’s idea,” Loftin said. “She saw it before anyone else did.”
The experience reinforced the principles Mowry was already developing and gave her the foundation to build her own operation.
Building Her Own Program
After establishing herself as a trusted trainer, Mowry went on to build her own training and competition program alongside her late fiancé, Michael Boone. Together, they developed a large-scale operation that encompassed starting colts, training futurity and derby horses, and selectively campaigning rodeo horses.
“I don’t believe in drilling,” Mowry said during a 2023 NFR training discussion. “I want my horses confident. If they know their job, you don’t need to make it harder than it is.”
Their program was known for its depth. Rather than centering success around one standout horse, Mowry consistently managed a barn of horses at varying stages of development, allowing each one to progress on an individual timeline.
Returning to the NFR
Mowry returned to the National Finals Rodeo in 2017, qualifying on Firewatermakesmehappy (“Junior”), a horse that marked her re-emergence at the highest level of ProRodeo competition.
As her program matured, so did her presence at the Finals. She qualified again in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025, reflecting both longevity and depth.
The 2023 NFR highlighted her influence beyond her own saddle, as multiple horses she trained competed at the Thomas & Mack Center, reinforcing her reputation as a trainer whose work extended across the industry.
In 2024, Mowry qualified riding Force The Goodbye (“Jarvis”), a horse she believed in early and developed patiently after headliner Famous Ladies Man went out on injury.
“He’s always been talented,” she said. “But he needed time, and I needed to trust that.”
That trust paid off with her first WPRA World Championship.
- 5 of 2023’s NFR Horses Came Through Kassie Mowry’s Hands.
- Perfect Plan: Kassie Mowry and Force The Goodbye Win Round 4 NFR Barrel Racing
- Beast Mode: Kassie Mowry and Force The Goodbye Get Back-to-Back NFR Round Wins
- No Words: Force The Goodbye Leaves Kassie Mowry Speechless After Third Consecutive Round Win
- From Rock Bottom to Top Gun: Kassie Mowry Wins First World Championship, Top Earner of NFR 2024
She returned in 2025 to make headlines on multiple horses including CP He Will Be Epic (“Will”) and Heavens Got Credit (“Cornbread”), adapting between styles and securing her second consecutive world title.
“They’re all different,” Mowry said. “They don’t need the same things. My job is to listen and adjust.”