At the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas, the Women’s Rodeo World Championship (WRWC) got underway Monday evening, with the battle for world champion titles heating up.
In the first qualifying round of competition for the breakaway challengers, Carlee Potter finished with the fastest time of 2.18 seconds, earning $2,500 and qualifying for the semi-final round.
“We went to a roping and they needed one more entry to make it a qualifier, so I paid one entry and the girls paid the other one and it just so happened I did good enough. I was on my way to Joe Beaver’s roping, and they called and they said, ‘You’re No.9 in the world, you better come,’ and we didn’t even know,” Potter recalled on qualifying.
The 18-year-old called upon her good roan horse, Tippy, for the WRWC, which was his first rodeo after back after being injured.
“On Valentine’s Day he got hurt, and I haven’t rode him since. And I pulled him out of the pasture this week and roped a few calves on him.”
“I’ve been on a backup, and I brought my backup horse here. Me and my mom got in an argument over what horse I was going to ride,” she joked.
“I told her this was the confident one and I guess it finally worked out.”
The Kansas cowgirl plans to attend Vernon College to rodeo next year. Her game plan this week is to “get another one caught.”
WRWC Breakaway Challenger Qualifying Round 1 Results:
1. Carlee Potter, 2.18 seconds, $2,500
2. Rylie Edens, 2.22 seconds, $1,000
3. Liz Hirdes, 2.64 seconds, $500
4. Rylee George, 2.71 seconds
5. Lindsei Harvey, 2.72 seconds
6. Jenna Dallyn, 2.85 seconds
7. Hannah Hundsdorfer, 3.05 seconds
8. Brooke McLemore, 3.16 seconds
9/10. Kaityln Doughty, 3.32 seconds
Josey James
