Candy Cane Classic Slot Race winner Hayle Gibson-Stillwell and 2019 mare Buncha Dinero pocket $8,100 at the Tulare, California race December 6-8.
Born with the horse bug, Hayle Gibson-Stillwell has been on the back of a horse since she was 4. Rodeo was her calling, and she pursued roping and barrel racing in junior high, high school and college rodeo. Now, it’s her full-time job.
“I started competing at 4 years old on a gray Arabian,” Gibson-Stillwell said. “I took lessons from a friend who was a jockey on the track for 10 years. I was so small, a western saddle wouldn’t fit me, so I learned to ride in a flat saddle off the track.”
While she also owns Cowgirl Canna CBD with her best friend, selling herbal supplements for animals like horse cookies, CBD poultice and wash, her operation at home is focused on homebred horses. Her first home bred, raised and trained foal was 2019 mare Buncha Dinero (PC Frenchmans Hayday x Rambunchkie x Bellamy Road), who recently won the Candy Cane Classic Open Slot Race in Tulare, California before making the trek to Oklahoma for the OKC Futurity.
“She’s the first baby I have bred and so many hopes and dreams were wrapped up in that little palomino bundle,” Gibson-Stillwell said. “For her to actually come out and be a champion is humbling. It’s an emotion hard to put into words because it runs so deep. Six years in the making to this point and now she’s taking me on a ride of a lifetime! I’m so proud of her and what she is accomplishing.”
The pair ran a 15.663 to win the Open Slot Race, claiming $8,100 and won the first round of the derby for an additional $864, plus $1,231 for second in Saturday’s open race. The next day, “Piper” posted a 15.613 to win the second round of the derby and Sunday’s open race plus the open average for another check of $2,574 before heading east.
“My run in the Slot Race was effortless. I ran another horse before her and had a huge jockey error that cost me,” she explained. “I went into Piper’s run determined to stay out of her way and let her work. She went out there on auto pilot and hit her spots perfectly and ran hard. It was a blur because it was so easy and effortless, I felt like I just sat there. Winning big on a horse I bred, raised and trained is hard to put into words. I always said she was a champion and put that out there when we were flushing her embryo.”
A rewarding time of year for horse breeders and trainers — seeing their prospects competing in their futurity and derby years — Gibson-Stillwell said Piper didn’t get the time she needed in the arena like she had hoped.
“She is just incredible for what she’s doing right now. I promise if you had seen her a year ago you’d never believe it either,” she said. “She’s always been a pleaser and tried so hard with anything you asked, but with my full-time rodeo schedule she hardly got any riding and it was mostly around the ranch. When I entered her she was so green and had only left our place once and had less than a 100 lifetime rides.”
Gibson-Stillwell believes in horses having a job outside the arena, usually ranching and roping on them before they see the barrels. Although she is pursuing the rodeo road, she has enjoyed the futurities with bigger payouts and lighter travel schedules. Regardless, she likes to season colts to the rodeos early.
“Piper has held her own this year rodeoing lightly,” she added. “She placed at some big rodeos and seems to really love a crowd. This year I do plan to put her on the trailer full time and see how she likes it.”
But hauling from California to the south and midwest can be daunting. Knowing her horses and what works for them, Gibson-Stillwell tries to break up long trips and let horses off the trailer to rest. After the Candy Cane Classic, she loaded and headed east to the OKC Futurity in Oklahoma.
“Traveling from Tulare to OKC was long and fast,” she said with a laugh. “I left after I ran Sunday and went five hours, then did a 10-hour day and another five hours the day we got into OKC for our expo, the day before the first round. It was 20 hours from Tulare to OKC and then 28 hours back west from OKC to my house.”
A veteran to traveling because of the demanding rodeo schedule, she said her horses are used to traveling. She offers them all water at every stop and they have alfalfa and grass hay in front of them 24/7.
“I have a stock back trailer, so they have a ton of room and can move around, and it’s well ventilated,” she said. “I give Zesterra and ProVision Microbials before loading and keep them on it throughout the trip.”
Piper and Gibson-Stillwell took home more than $30,000 from the OKC Futurity and Blue Collar Breeders Incentive.
“I like to let the horses tell me what they want by how they feel and are running,” she explained. “She feels great, and I know she loves the crowd, so we will rodeo for 2025 and see how she likes it. I want to give her the best opportunity to shine. She deserves to be seen, so my goal is to give her those opportunities however they may come.”
Candy Cane Classic Open Slot Race Results:
Open Slot Race 1D: 1) Hayle Gibson-Stillwell/Buncha Dinero/15.663/$8,100; 2) Kristin Weaver Brown/Sockie Shot Ta Fame/15.843/$6,750; 3) Ruby Lightfoot/Smart Catalina/15.854/$5,400. 2D: 1) Katie Pascoe/A Smooth Famous Gal/16.764/$5,400; 2) Katie McCaslan/KM Fame Two Point 0/16.798/$4,500; 3) Kellie Romine/JC Shoot Me Twister/16.884/$3,600.
