The 2025 Ellensburg Rodeo breakaway roping saw two very different ProRodeo cowgirls—Beau Peterson and Martha Angelone—and their seasons collide with a Co-Championship that is shifting the trajectory of their summers in more ways than one.
Both roping three head in 8.3 seconds, Peterson is riding a career-best wave of momentum, while Angelone, the 2022 World Champion, has been fighting her way out of a slump. Peterson came away with $8,264 for the win thanks to placings in go-rounds while Angelone earned $6,448 for her finals and average win.
Beau Peterson: Confidence, Consistency, and a Career Year
For Peterson, 2024 has been the season where everything has clicked. The Kansas cowgirl has steadily chipped away at the ProRodeo trail before, but this summer her results have vaulted her into the top tier of the standings.
With her Ellensburg victory, Peterson cracked the top 10, sitting around No. 7 in the WPRA World Standings with more than $95,774 earned—well on pace to qualify for her second National Finals Breakaway Roping.
The key difference, she says, has been her horse. Peterson is quick to credit “Festus,” a 12-year-old gelding whose scoring and relentless consistency have taken her roping to another level.”
He’s rock solid in the corner, he gives me 110% every single time, and he hasn’t made a mistake all summer,” Peterson said. “If I miss, it’s on me. He makes my job so much easier.”
That reliability has been the catalyst for Peterson’s biggest wins—second at Salinas, victories at Dodge City, Caldwell, and Lubbock, plus making the a four-man round at RodeoHouston.
At Ellensburg, her times of 2.8, 2.6, and 2.9 seconds reflected both precision and trust in her mount. Even when the calves weren’t ideal, Festus helped her maximize every opportunity.
But Peterson’s journey hasn’t been without its learning curves. Her first Finals qualification came aboard a mare she trained herself, while last season she tried to rodeo on a greener horse. The night-and-day difference with Festus has given her not only a chance to win on any draw, but also the confidence to roll with the highs and lows of rodeo’s summer grind.
Traveling with fellow roper Madison Outhier has also kept spirits high.
“Who you surround yourself with is huge,” Peterson said. “Maddie is my biggest hype woman, and we’ve been able to support each other all summer.”
With Puyallup and Sioux Falls looming, Peterson knows the next stretch is crucial. Her plan is simple: keep doing what’s been working.
“I love the three-header format, because you can get by a not-so-ideal calf. At Ellensburg I just tried to make the most of each run, and it paid off,” Peterson said. “Now it’s about keeping it between the lines and letting things fall into place.”
Martha Angelone: Spark, Slump, and the Fight for Vegas
If Peterson’s year has been about momentum, Martha Angelone’s has been about stubborn grit. The reigning 2022 World Champion entered Ellensburg sitting No. 25 in the standings with $57K won, far below the bar she’s set in recent years. By her own admission, the slump hasn’t been about bad luck or tough draws—it’s been about not throwing her rope.
“I’ve just been trying to catch instead of throwing my rope,” Angelone said. “That’s not me. Normally I’m out here reaching and letting it all out. This year I changed tactics, and it hasn’t paid off.”
Her honesty is striking in a sport where excuses are easy. While many in the top 10 say they’re just “doing their jobs” to find success on the ProRodeo trail, Angelone sees what they’re really accomplishing—and downplaying.
“The girls in the top 10 are throwing for first every time,” Angelone said. “They’re using their rope better than I have this year. That’s the difference.”
In the richest summer of ProRodeo breakaway roping yet, Angelone has found herself on the outside looking in on more than one occasion. One hole out of making the short round or tying further down in the results for meager checks. Even at Ellensburg, she only won round money in the short round.
But when it mattered most, Angelone stepped up—roping 3.0, 2.8, and 2.5 seconds to share the title and remind the field that her wolf mentality is still intact.
The win gave her more than a check. It was a jolt of belief. Ellensburg boosted her tour points, pulling her within striking distance of a Sioux Falls qualification.
“It didn’t just jump me up in the [World] standings, but it gave me hope,” Angelone said. “I’m still $18,000 out, but that’s a week or two out here. If I rope like I know I can, I’ll be fine.”
Her mount, “Chick,” a mare Angelone bought off Facebook for $1,750 and trained herself, has become her go-to in recent weeks.
“She makes my job so easy,” Angelone said. “When I score her, she’s right there with me from the corner to the calf.”
Behind the scenes, Angelone has dealt with more than just competition struggles. Trailer issues, horses shifting in and out of the rig, and the grind of the summer run have tested her patience. Still, she laughs about stomping a hat in frustration or posting TikTok videos that show the unfiltered chaos of rodeo life.
“People think I’ve been down in the dumps, but I haven’t,” Angelone said. “I’ve been having hell, sure—but I’ve never stopped believing in myself.”
And that belief is what fuels her push toward another NFBR appearance. Angelone has qualified for every Finals since its inception, an accomplishment only mirrored by peer Shelby Boisjoli-Meged, and she refuses to count herself out now.
“I keep telling myself—they’re not going to have it without me,” Angelone said. “I know the ability I have with a rope, and I know I’m one of the top 15 every year, even if I’m not in it right now. I’m going to be in Vegas.”
At Ellensburg, Martha Angelone got her spark back. For the rest of the field, that’s a warning: the former World Champion is ready to throw her rope.
