Cowgirl Looking to Win Top Prize at Texas Rodeo -- and She's Only 13!
Being over a barrel is not a bad thing for this girl.
— -- A young Minnesota girl will compete this weekend for some Texas-sized cash as she prepares to ride in one of the nation’s richest rodeos.
Adeline Nevala, 13, who hails from the small central Minnesota town of Sebeka, will saddle up Sunday and compete in The American Rodeo held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The competition offers a total purse of $2 million to winners and another $500,000 in prizes.
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If she wins, Nevala could take home as much as $1.1 million.
Nevala’s mom, Christine, told ABC News that her daughter has grown up around horses and has been riding competitively since she was four years old.
This weekend, she will be one of 10 competitors taking part in the barrel racing competition, in which the rider maneuvers the horse around three barrels trying to finish in the fastest time.
The young cowgirl has been in Texas for several days qualifying for this weekend’s premiere event.
“I’m really excited,” Nevala said by phone in Texas while working on her homework.
Nevala is being home-schooled this year so she has more flexibility to participate in rodeos, both locally and on the national level.
The family travels for rodeos throughout much of the year, but this is one of the largest rodeos she has competed in, her mother said.
On Sunday, Nevala will be riding her mare, Willow, one of the many horses on the family’s farm, which is located about 90 miles east of Fargo, North Dakota. Willow has been raised and trained by Nevala and has been her barrel racing partner for the past five years.
Though Nevala is only in the eighth grade, she will be competing against mostly adult riders -- many of whom she knows from the rodeo circuit.
Until now, the largest purse Nevela has won has been $2,000. What might she do if she wins the top prize? Nevala would like to buy some land in Texas where she can spend winters.
Sounds like she may need that land. Asked if the rodeo circuit is a long-term plan, Nevala said without hesitation, “This will be a career."
