The Royal Crown breakaway roping is looking like a Canadian takeover in 2023 thanks to 15-year-old Macie Rae Warken, the youngest of a dominant rope horse family from Coronach, Saskatchewan, and she added another win to the pile in Rock Springs, Wyoming.
At the third stop on the 2023 Royal Crown tour on August 15, Warken earned 330.61 points across three rounds in the 4-and-Under class, earning her the $5,846 win on the mare owned by her family. She also earned $1,036 for breeders Peter and Courtney Morgan, and $1,036 for the owners of stallion GunnaTrashYa. Warken also earned $1,500 for a second-place finish behind Beau Peterson and Rollin On The River in the first round with a score of 108.21 and $2,000 for her first-place 111.03 in the first round, adding a total of $11,418 to Gunna Mambo’s lifetime earnings.
Warken Family Puts Horsemanship FIRST with Big-Time Results—Including 2023 Royal Crown Title
Good cop, bad cop
Warken’s roots run deep in the horse training industry, and the high school student is already involved in the family business. Although dad, Vaughn, is the master head horse trainer of the family, young Macie Rae has been taking the reins in the breakaway department.
“Sometimes (Dad and I) play good cop, bad cop with them,” Macie Rae said. “I started my mare, and I’ve been starting most of the breakaway horses, while dad trains the heading horses. We do a lot of walk-starting, get them on slower cattle and just bring them along slowly.”
Although she’s proud of her training efforts and the horses she’s aboard, Warken was quick to give credit to Gunna Mambo, the 4-year-old gelding by GunnaTrashYa and out of Mambos Sparkle by Shining Spark.
“We got her as a two-year-old,” Warken said. “She was broke enough that we went right to tracking some on her and starting to breakaway on her. She’s been super easy. I run two or three on her every day and she’ll back in there, score—just easy.”
Due to the scored component of the futurities, Warken can’t just rope fast, or sacrifice form for any risky shots. She’s acutely aware of the job at hand.
“At these futurities, it’s about staying in the middle and showing your horse,” Warken said. “It’s not about time, it’s just showing the horse. So a lot of times when I back in the corner I try to keep it nice and calm and just take ahold of them. Usually (my horses) are good enough here that they go and do their job, so the mental side just takes over.”
Beau Peterson Sweeps 1-2-3 in 2023’s Royal Crown 6&Under Breakaway Futurity
For the young talent, it’s not the top ropers in the world she has to worry about in competition—it’s the space between her own ears.
“I was nervous for sure (today),” Macie Rae said. “I tried hard to keep my mental game together. It was definitely a challenge. I’ve still got a lot of learning to do.” BRJ
Royal Crown 4-and-Under breakaway roping results
Aggregate
- Macie Rae Warken on Gunna Mambo, 330.61 on three, $5,846 owner, $1,036 stallion, breeder
- Beau Peterson on Rollin On The River, 323.81 on three, $3,950 owner, $700 stallion, breeder
- Kieley Walz, Golden Firefighter, 322.31 on three, $2,686 owner, $476 stallion, breeder
- Brock Taylor, Golden Kat Olena, 320.21 on three, $1,896 owner, $336 stallion, breeder
- Myles Kenzy, Peppers Got Mojo, 319.99 on three, $1,422 owner, $252 stallion, breeder
