Find all the 2023 Cheyenne Frontier Days barrel racing results, stories and updates here throughout the 127th running of The Daddy of ‘Em All from July 21–30, 2023. Scroll down for results.
Media updates courtesy Susan Kanode/CFD with contributions from Barrel Horse News magazine staff
Sue Smith and Dashs Centerfold Shatter Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing Arena Record
JULY 29, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — Records fell in the barrel racing on Finals Sunday at Frontier Park in Cheyenne. Summer Kosel of Glenham, South Dakota, and her 2014 gelding Firewaterfrenchfame (Aint Seen Nothin Yet x Fire Water Flyer x Fire Water Flit) ran a 17.02 in the first round in 2022 to break Kristie Peterson’s long-standing arena record of 17.03. On Sunday, Kosel and “Apollo” broke their own record with a 16.97, and it looked like she was on track to win the championship. But Sue Smith of Blackfoot, Idaho, and her 2011 mare Dashs Centerfold (Dash Ta Fame x Diamonds Tiny Effort x Proudest Effort) had other plans. They beat Kosel’s time by eight-hundredths and set a new record with a time of 16.89 to win the Cheyenne Frontier Days championship.
This was the first time for Smith to run Centerfold in Frontier Park, and “she likes it,” Smith said. A trainer of futurity horses who generally competes at rodeos in the Wilderness Circuit, Smith is an EquiStat rider of more than $1.2 million and has earned more than $321,000 in EquiStat reported earnings on “Centerfold.” She has now trained two Cheyenne Frontier Days champions, as Andrea Busby’s 2022 CFD barrel racing champion mount Blazing With My Dude won more than $76,000 at the futurities and derbies under Smith’s training and jockeying.
Leslie Smalygo and Justaheartbeattofame Top Semi Finals Two of Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing
Sixth Perf of Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing Sees Fastest Times so Far
JULY 27, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — Thursday’s barrel racing was one of the toughest Quarter Finals in barrel racing, with nine of the 11 cowgirls posting times under 18 seconds. Three of those times were the fastest of the rodeo so far, with the quickest run of this fast group made by Pawhuska, Oklahoma, cowgirl Wenda Johnson (see full results below). Johnson, who has qualified for the past three NFRs, rode 2016 bay gelding Steal Money (First Moonflash x Im Chica Stoli x Stoli) to win the day with a time of 17.20. Sue Smith and Dashs Centerfold clocked in second at 17.37, and Leslie Smalygo and Justaheartbeattofame had a 17.44 in third — the previous fastest time of the 2023 rodeo was Kassie Mowry’s 17.44 in the first round on Famous Ladies Man.
—> Read more on Wenda Johnson’s arsenal of fast horses
A nurse practitioner, Johnson earned a doctorate of nursing in the spring of 2021. She works part-time in the emergency department, homeschools her two daughters and helps her rancher husband as well as being one of the top barrel racers in the world.
Taycie Matthews Rocks Perf Four of Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing
JULY 25, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — Taycie Matthews from Wynne, Arkansas, is another California Rodeo Salinas champion who competed at Cheyenne today, winning Perf Four on her Janna Brown-trained 6-year-old mare Fame Fire Rocks, by Firewaterontherocks and out of W R Aces Fame by Dash Ta Fame. The reigning National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association champion is loving being in Wyoming again. She won her college title in Casper last month. Matthews, who is a junior at the University of West Alabama, was 11th in the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association world standings in mid-July and is hoping to secure her first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualification. A win here would certainly help her do that.
Fiery Miss West and Jessica Routier on Top of Perf Three at Cheyenne
JULY 24, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — Barrel racer Jessica Routier of Buffalo, South Dakota, and her 2011 palomino mare Fiery Miss West (Firewater Frenchman x Frenchmans Bo Dashus x Royal Quick Dash) took first in the barrel racing in Quarter Finals Three with a time of 17.69. Routier, a mom of five, has qualified for every National Finals Rodeo since 2018, solely thanks to “Missy.” She is currently ranked in the top 10 with a good chance to continue her NFR streak.
Paige Jones Rides Famous Hayday to Perf Two Win at Cheyenne Frontier Days
JULY 23, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — Barrel racer Paige Jones from Wayne, Oklahoma, punched her ticket to the Semifinals at the 2023 Daddy of ‘Em All. Jones and 2012 gelding Famous Hayday (PC Frenchmans Hayday x Jaxsons Olympic Fame x Poco Lijerito) had the fastest time in Frontier Park on July 23 at 17.52. Jones won the Cody Stampede over the Fourth of July and then won the Central Wyoming Fair in Casper. She also placed in qualifying rounds at Cheyenne. Since July 4, Jones has earned a whopping $27,230 in the Cowboy State.
Cheyenne Arena Record-Holders Summer Kosel and Firewaterfrenchfame Top First Performance of 2023 CFD Barrel Racing
—> Read more on Kosel’s 2022 Cheyenne Frontier Days barrel racing arena record
Kassie Mowry and Famous Ladies Man Win First Round of 2023 Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing
JULY 19, 2023 — CHEYENNE, WYOMING — With a 17.44, EquiStat all-time leading barrel racer Kassie Mowry and Famous Ladies Man won the first round of the 2023 Cheyenne Frontier Days barrel racing for $7,599. “Emmitt,” a 2015 gelding owned by Mowry’s fiance Michael Boone, was bred by Busby Quarter Horses and is by Dash Ta Fame and out of blue-hen mare Lady Perks by Dash For Perks.
The duo is no stranger to first-round success in Cheyenne, finishing second in the first go last year with a 17.28 behind Summer Kosel and Firewaterfrenchfame’s arena record 17.02. The Busby name also carries weight at Frontier Park with Emmitt’s breeder Andrea Busby as the reigning CFD barrel racing champion aboard fellow Busby-bred standout Blazing With My Dude.
—> Read more on Busby’s 2022 Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing Championship
2023 Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing Results
Find complete live results for each round here.
2023 Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo Champions
Barrel Racing – Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, $14,296
Breakaway Roping – Joey Williams, Volberg, Mont., $19,589
Bareback Riding – (tie)Clayton Biglow, Clements, Calif., $10,225
Kade Sonnier, Carencro, La., $9,298
Cole Reiner, Buffalo, Wyo., $8,074
Tie-Down Roping – Luke Potter, Maple City, Kan., $15,737
Saddle Bronc Riding – Ryder Sanford, Sulphur, La., $12,114
Team Roping – Billy Bob Brown, Carbon, Texas, and Kirby Blankenship, Lampasas, Texas, $10,600 each
Steer Roping – Troy Tillard, Douglas, Wyo., $11,291
Barrel Racing – Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, $14,296
Bull Riding – Stetson Wright, Beaver, Utah, $15,133
Rookie Bronc Riding – Slade Keith, Stanfield, Ariz., $1,543
All-Around – Stetson Wright, $15,722 in saddle bronc and bull riding
July 30 Cheyenne Frontier Days Barrel Racing Finals Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, 16.89, $10,495. 2, Summer Kosel, Glenham, S.D., 16.97, $8,685. 3, Kassie Mowry, Dublin, Texas, 17.16, $6,876. 4, Lacinda Rose, Willard, Mo, 17.54, $5,066. 5, Tarryn Lee, St. David, Ariz., 17.55, $3,257. 6, Taycie Matthews, Wynne, Ark., 17.56, $1,809.
July 29 Semi Finals Two/Perf Eight Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Leslie Smalygo, Skiatook, Okla., 17.27 seconds, $5,248. 2, Summer Kosel, Glenham, S.D., 17.28, $4,343. 3, Kassie Mowry, Dublin, Texas, 17.53, $3,438. 4, Tarryn Lee, St. David, Ariz., 17.56, $2,533 . 5, Michelle Merrick, Buckeye, Ariz., 17.61 seconds, $1,629. 6, Shyann Lucas, Jackson, Wyo., 17.65, $905. Finals qualifiers: Smalygo, Kosel, Mowry, Lee, Merrick, Lucas, Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho; Lacinda Rose, Willard, Mo.; Taycie Matthews, Wynne, Ark.; Wenda Johnson, Pawhuska, Okla.; Sharon Harrell, Wickenburg, Ariz., and Tara Seaton, Winslow, Ariz.
July 28 Semi Finals One/Perf Seven Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, 17.37 seconds, $5,248. 2, Lacinda Rose, Willard, Mo., 17.43, $4,343. 3, Taycie Matthews, Wynne, Ark., 17.45, $3,438. 4, (tie) Wenda Johnson, Pawhuska, Okla., and Sharon Harrell, Wickenberg, Ariz., 17.65 seconds, $2,081 each. 6, Tara Seaton, Winslow, Ariz., 17.68, $905.
July 27 Quarter Finals Six/Perf Six Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Wenda Johnson, Pawhuska, Okla., 17.20 seconds, $2,413. 2, Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, 17.37, $1,810. 3, Leslie Smalygo, Skiatook, Okla., 17.44, $1,206. 4, Tara Seaton, Winslow, Ariz., 17.50, $603.
July 26 Quarter Finals Five/Perf Five Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Sharon Harrell, Wickenberg, Ariz., 18.14 seconds, $2,413. 2, Tarryn Lee, St. David, Ariz., 18.23, $1,810. 3, Emma Charleston, Reeds, Mo., 18.27, $1,206. 4, Emily Beisel, Weatherford, Texas, 18.43, $603.
July 25 Quarter Finals Four/Perf Four Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Taycie Matthews, Wynne, Ark., 17.70 seconds, $2,413. 2, Jessi Fish, Washington, Texas, 17.77, $1,810. 3, Merritt Potter, Moody, Texas, 17.89, $1,206. 4, Lisa Lockhart, Oelrichs, S.D., 17.93, $603.
July 24 Quarter Finals Three/Perf Three Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Jessica Routier, Buffalo, S.D., 17.69 seconds, $2,413. 2, Cheyenne Allan, Mabton, Wash., 17.97, $1,810. 3, Manchi Nace, Laurel, Mont., 17.99, $1,206. 4, Tracy Nowlin, Nowata, Okla., 18.02, $603.
July 23 Quarter Finals Two/Perf Two Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Paige Jones, Wayne, Okla., 17.52 seconds, $2,354. 2, Michelle Darling, Medford, Okla., 17.62, $1,765. 3, Shyann Lucas, Jackson, Wyo., 17.93, $1,177. 4, Kassie Mowry, Dublin, Texas, 17.94, $588.
July 22 Quarter Finals One/Perf One Results
Barrel Racing: 1, Summer Kosel, Glenham, S.D., 17.71 seconds, $2,413. 2, Doskie Edwards, Casa Grande, Ariz., 17.94, $1,810. 3, Michelle Merrick, Buckeye, Ariz., 18.01, $1,206. 4, Lacinda Rose, Willard, Mo., 18.10, $603.
July 19 Round One/Slack Money Winners (top 72 advance to performances)
Barrel Racing: 1, Kassie Mowry 17.44 $7,599.90 2, Doskie Edwards 17.48 $6,514.20 3, Leslie Foster-Smalygo 17.49 $5,428.50 4, Sue Smith 17.52 $4,704.70 5, Paige Jones 17.53 $3,619.00 tie-6, Lisa Lockhart 17.61 $2,533.30 tie-6 Ashley Day 17.61 $2,533.30, 7, Jessi Fish 17.72 $1,447.60 tie-8, Hailey Kinsel 17.73 $904.75 tie-8, Andrea Bruch Busby 17.73 $904.75
