The newest episode of The Breakaway Breakdown is a two-for-one listen—NFBR average champion Rylee George, followed by 2025 WPRA Breakaway World Champion Taylor Munsell, both fresh off signature wins that defined the season.
Rylee George and World Champion Taylor Munsell on The Breakdown Podcast
Host Lillian Kent opens with George’s NFBR average run: 29.0 seconds on 10 head, a new aggregate record, and more than $25,000 earned during the Finals. George breaks down how the week unfolded—and how the horsepower (and strategy) changed depending on what she drew.
With her primary horse “Royce” feeling sore after Arizona, George called on Jill Tanner and borrowed “Bob,” a horse she’d only made a couple practice runs on before the NFBR. The gamble paid off. George describes Bob as “honest,” the kind that “never wants to take a throw away,” and explains how she chose between Bob and her own horse “Deputy” based on the cattle and the pace of each pen. Her most memorable moment came in Round 10, when she knew she simply had to get the calf caught—and felt the relief instantly when her rope went on.
The conversation also gives a clear picture of George’s mindset shift. Known for go-round speed, she admits she came in wanting the average buckle, with the world title out of reach—“the second best thing,” as she puts it. She also spotlights the people behind the buckle, from family to friends who manage horses at home, and the in-the-trenches help that shows up when it matters most—like Beau Peterson being there every run.
Then the episode pivots to Munsell’s season-long story: a 2025 world title campaign that ended with a season earnings record of $209,021. Munsell walks through what’s next—San Diego in mid-January, Fort Worth, and the rescheduled Prairie Circuit Finals at the end of January—while detailing how she manages a deep string of horses (including Colonel, Monster, Ray, Goon and Vegas) and keeps them fresh.
But the core of Munsell’s interview is the “why” behind the championship: the lessons from a brutal 2024 NFBR where she caught just two of 10 calves, and the deliberate slow work that followed—more purpose in practice, more feel on Colonel, and a refusal to let superstition (or the so-called “Houston curse”) steer her decisions. She also recounts the moment she found out she’d won the world: not during the math, not in the arena—only when someone came to get her after it was over and told her outright.
Presented by Roping.com, this episode is equal parts championship recap and behind-the-scenes debrief—two winners, two very different paths, and the kind of detail that makes the buckle stories stick.
Episode supported by Roping.com
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