The momentum that picked up at the Pendleton Round-Up continued through the Columbia River Circuit Finals, with registered nurse Bailey Patterson taking both the average and year-end championships at the finals on Oct. 19–21, 2023.

She caught three head in 9.2 seconds for a $2,135 average payday, bringing her circuit finals total to $5,159 and year-end total to $30,767.

“My goal was to win the average, because I thought I had the year-end won going into it,” Patterson explained. “It was pretty cool to accomplish both my goals. I’ve won the year-end twice before, in 2018 and 2021. It means a lot, no matter how many times it’s been.”

Patterson didn’t get to attend the NFR Open in 2019 (then the RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo) because breakaway roping hadn’t been added yet, and again in 2022 because she was very pregnant with son Bray. Now, she’ll be making the 16-hour drive from Pendleton, Oregon, to Colorado Springs to the event for the first time.

Patterson’s Columbia River Circuit Finals

Patterson roped in 2.6, 2.7 and 3.9 seconds in each of the rounds, good for the win in Round 1 and $1,423 and for a first-place tie in Round 2 with Jordan Minor for $1,245.

“While winning the average was a goal I had, I took things one calf at a time,” Patterson said. “See what I had drawn and be on the start for that calf. In breakaway, you never want to back off, especially indoors. You never want to be at the back end trying to catch one.”

She said splitting the win with Minor was special, since the pair were close friends even before Minor married Patterson’s cousin, Riley Minor.

“We did a victory lap together and raced for part of it,” Patterson said. “It was fun doing our interview together, too.”

Patterson said the cattle at the finals were a little unpredictable—with breakaway ropers only having seen the group once before at an outdoor jackpot. With the indoor setup, Patterson said they were a little “lost.”

“I feel like I drew pretty well, overall,” Patterson said. “On my third calf I didn’t want to be a 3.9, but the neck rope hit my left foot and put me off balance on a faster calf.”

She credits her mare, Stella (Trapper Bar Drop x Tuff Tinky Lena x Tuff Lena), for being able to track the wandering calves on autopilot. It’s a trait that comes in handy, Patterson says, adding that she’s so focused on getting them roped sometimes that she doesn’t notice where she and Stella are in the arena until she looks up afterward.

“She makes it easy,” Patterson said. “She’s a one-in-a-million.”

Better as the year went

The Columbia River Circuit rodeos pick up as the season goes, with the largest of them all—Oregon’s Pendleton Round-Up—taking place on the last weekend of their season.

“By the end–of–summer, you get a better feel for the cattle,” Patterson said. “You keep notes on the herds. Being in a groove helps, too. I go to a lot of amateur rodeos up here and, when you’re going, it starts to be second nature.”

Patterson’s top wins of the season included $10,009 Pendleton, $1,622 at Palouse Empire Rodeo in Colfax, Washington, and $933 at North Idaho State Fair in Coeur D’Alene.

Joining Patterson at the NFR Open in July 2024 will be No. 2 in year-end standings Minor. Minor rounded up a total of $19,606 on the year, including $3,202 at the Circuit Finals.

Columbia River Circuit Year-End results

Columbia River Circuit finals results

First round: 1. Bailey Patterson, 2.6 seconds, $1,423; 2. Kiley Streeter, 3.2, $1,067; 3. Annie Minor, 3.3, $712; 4. (tie) Shayla Currin and Millie Greenwood, 3.5, $178 each.

Second round: 1. (tie) Jordan Minor and Bailey Patterson, 2.7 seconds, $1,245 each; 3. (tie) Britni Carlson and Shayla Currin, 2.9, $534 each.

Third round: 1. Jordan Minor, 2.2 seconds, $1,423; 2. Mattie Turner, 2.4, $1,067; 3. Britni Carlson, 2.7, $712; 4. Bailey Patterson, 3.9, $356.

Average: 1. Bailey Patterson, 9.2 seconds on three head, $2,135; 2. Shayla Currin, 10.9, $1,601; 3. Annie Minor, 19.1, $1,067; 4. Jordan Minor, 4.9 on two head, $534.