Madison Outhier, of Utopia, Texas, showed how she excels in high pressure situations as she was crowned the Rodeo Corpus Christi (Texas) Champion.
Outhier, 18, made the quickest run of the week in the WCRA Rodeo’s Triple Crown Round in 1.84 seconds to win the round and the championship title, worth $12,500 and a trophy surfboard, on Sunday, May 9, 2021.
Madison Outhier always remembers to thank her horse “Rooster” for her runs.
WCRA Rodeo/Bull Stock Media
“A lot of people say that I thrive on pressure,” Outhier said. “I’m just able to zone in and stay focused a little more whenever the pressure is on. I kind of knew that I had to go for it. I was lucky it worked out in my favor.”
Outhier’s week started out in the qualifying rounds on May 5, where she received a no-time in the first round. She bounced back in the second round and roped her calf in 2.85 seconds, which was fast enough to advance inside the top 24 to move on to the progressive rounds.
“I actually didn’t do too well over there. I got lucky,” Outhier said. “When I got into the performances, I just knew what I had to do to move on—just be fast.”
Outhier roped in the first of three sets in the progressive rounds and won the round with a 1.91-second run, which moved her on to the top 9 Showdown Round.
Madison Outhier Wins WCRA Rodeo Progressive Round in Corpus Christi
She placed second behind Canadian breakaway roper Shelby Boisjoli’s 2.3-second run in the Showdown Round with a 2.44-second run. Jackie Crawford advanced in the No. 3 spot with a 2.6-second run.
“I think it’s just because I have so much confidence in my horse and my muscle memory,” Outhier said. “I know that I’ve taken that shot so many times. We watched the start and made sure we had that down.”
Outhier’s equine companion is a 13-year-old sorrel gelding named Allo Gallo Colonel, known as “Rooster.”
“I definitely give huge props to him,” Outhier said. “A lot of people come up and tell me that he breaks the rope faster than they’ve seen any horse. He just leaves across the line so flat and that gets me a shot just about every time. I’ve been riding him since he was 4 years old, and I think that plays a lot in why I’m so confident in him.”
Madison Outhier’s horse “Rooster”‘s pedigree.
Outhier was fortunate enough to have her dad, Mike Outhier, a two-time Linderman Award winner and four-time NFR saddle bronc qualifier, standing in the box with her and Rooster through every round.
“He was pretty fired up,” Outhier said. “We’re in the practice pen every day together, so he knows me and my horse. We have two rules: You don’t break the barrier and you don’t miss. He tells me not to break the rules. I try my best not to break them.”
Outheir also had 10-time NFR qualifier Charly Crawford—husband to 2020 National Finals of Breakaway Roping Champion and Rodeo Corpus Christi’s reserve champion, Jackie Crawford—helping her get a start by pushing her calf in the championship round.
“We’re pretty close friends with the Crawfords, so it means a lot that Charly was in there and just as excited for me as Jackie,” Outhier said. “We’d do that for anybody else. It’s just the industry that we’re in. I’ve gone and stayed with Jackie and roped with her a bunch. We’re able to be close friends and still compete in these situations that are so high pressure with lots of money on the line and we still root for each other.”
Outhier, who shines in WCRA Rodeo and Women’s Rodeo World Championship arenas, is grateful for the opportunities that these associations have provided for breakaway ropers.
“I’m pretty sure that the WCRA is the first place that’s given us a chance at equal money along with all the other events,” Outhier said. “I want to nominate as much as I can. These majors and these rodeos that they put on are so well put together and the production is all put towards us athletes. They really do make us feel like we’re at the NFR, or something like that, just because the production is so amazing. They are so accommodating towards us athletes.”
Outhier is now looking forward to rope at the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo, which will be the third WCRA major on July 20–24, 2021, in Salt Lake City, Utah.
“I won this one, and now I have a chance at the Triple Crown,” Outhier said. “One thing to think about is that breakaway ropers have never gotten the chance at $1 million anywhere. We have a shot at that, and we’re able to rope for that kind of money. They give us that opportunity.”
Madison Outhier put a sizzle on her breakaway roping run in Corpus Christi
WCRA Rodeo/Bull Stock Media
Full Results
Progressive Round 1:
- Madison Outhier, 1.91-second run
- Josey Murphy, 2.20-second run
Progressive Round 2:
- Jackie Crawford, 2.12-second run
- Jaycie Davison, 2.16-second run
Progressive Round 3:
- Loni Lester, 1.97-second run
- Shelby Boisjoli, 2.10-second run
Showdown Round:
- Shelby Boisjoli, 2.31-second run, qualified for the Triple Crown Round
- Madison Outhier, 2.44-second run, qualified for the Triple Crown Round
- Jackie Crawford, 2.60-second run, qualified for the Triple Crown Round
- Amanda Coleman, 2.65-second run, worth $1,000
- Loni Lester, 3.07-second run, worth $1,000
- Josie Conner, 7.06-second run, worth $1,000
- Jaycie Davison, No-time, worth $1,000
- Josey Murphy, No-time, worth $1,000
- Alex Loiselle, No-time, worth $1,000
Triple Crown Round:
- Madison Outhier, 1.84-second run, worth $12,500
- Jackie Crawford, 2.60-second run, worth $6,750
- Shelby Boisjoli, 6.67-second run, worth $2,750
