Cowgirl Up! Saddle Bronc Rider Kaila Mussell Honoured

This past June, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame announced four inductees who will be honored at the 48th annual induction luncheon and ceremony on Nov. 12 in Fort Worth, Texas.

“Every year, we are in awe of the talent and tenacity that our honorees possess, and the 2024 Inductees are no exception,” said museum executive director Patricia Riley in a statement. “Each of them has made impactful contributions to their respective fields, and we are honored for them to join the Cowgirl family.”

Among this year’s inductees is Canadian saddle bronc rider Kaila Mussell. The three other inductees include Ariat co-founder Beth Cross, 18-time Women’s Pro Rodeo Association world champion roper JJ Hampton, and the Pack Horse Library Project.

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Mussell was born in Chilliwack, BC, which she still calls home, but she spends half the year in Arizona or traveling for work as an equine sport therapist.

She grew up competing in barrel racing and steer riding and was a professional trick rider at the Calgary Stampede before beginning her career as a saddle bronc rider.

During a saddle bronc competition, the “ride” is only a total of eight seconds, and a rider must stay on the full eight seconds to make a qualified ride and get a score. Riders much also “mark the horse out”, meaning have their feet above the plane of the horse’s shoulders when they leave the bucking chute after they nod their head. A rider’s free arm must not come in contact with themselves, the horse or saddle during the ride.

In 2002, Mussell entered what was considered a male domain and competed in her first saddle bronc riding event placing among the top performers. Later that year, she pushed the boundaries even further, becoming the first woman to win a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association sanctioned saddle bronc riding event in Oregon. She went on to fill her PRCA and Canadian Professional Rodeo Association permits, becoming the first woman to hold professional status as a saddle bronc rider.

Horse-Canada reached out to Mussell to learn more about her rodeo career and what she’s up to now.

HORSE CANADA: Congratulations on being inducted into the Cowgirl Museum Hall of Fame. How does it feel?

Kaila Mussell: It’s a huge honour to be recognized for my achievements as the first professional female saddle bronc rider. I feel pretty blessed to be part of the group of talented cowgirls to be previously inducted, as well as future generations.

Were horses always a part of your life growing up?

Horses were always part of my life growing up. My grandparents raised and ran Quarter Horses, and my parents did as well. I remember always having at least a dozen horses around and my spare time was spent with them. My dad got me riding colts and at age ten I was starting colts for people up until my mid-twenties as my main source of income. I vaulted, three-day evented and showed horses before starting rodeo.

What drew you to saddle broncs?

I started barrel racing at the age of 11, but I found barrel racing kind of dull after riding steers and trick riding, so for the most part I quit barrel racing at 16. I went on to ride saddle broncs when I was 16 or 17, but was struggling to figure out how to lift and get my feet moving, mostly because I had been riding colts for several years and created bad habits for saddle bronc riding like pulling on my rein and clamping my legs to stay on bucky colts I started. At the same time, I was trick riding professionally and had quite a few shows, so I put bronc riding on the back burner. I stopped trick riding in 1999 to pursue by saddle bronc riding again and finally started grasping the concept of the event.

You seem drawn to the adrenalin sports!

I’ve always wanted to improve and grow and take bigger risks by putting myself out there. Danger provided me with a bigger adrenaline rush and sense of satisfaction when I succeeded. When I learned how to ride saddle bronc I wanted to see how far I could go with it, knowing that I would be the first woman to do so in the more modern style of saddle bronc riding, as there were plenty of women that rode broncs in the late 1800s to early 1900s, but not under the same regulations as today’s rodeos.

What was it like being the only woman in the saddle bronc ring?

That statement remains true today. I am the first and only professional female saddle bronc rider in history since the formation of the PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association) or the CPRA (Canadian Professional Rodeo Association). It has been an amazing sense of accomplishment; however, in my mind what I’ve accomplished isn’t ever good enough as I should be able to do better. It’s this striving mentality where once you accomplish one thing, you move on to the next and keep challenging yourself. That keeps me motivated.

Rodeo is such a male-dominated sport. How were you treated by the cowboys?

When I first started at semi-professional rodeos, I was treated quite [well] because the other cowboys could see I was there for the same reason as them and proved myself. It was a bit tougher for me when I started going to professional rodeos to gain acceptance, and I definitely had to work harder, but I feel like it balanced out. I already was tough on myself mentally and really wanted to prove myself as being capable as a woman in the event. The biggest accomplishment I’ve felt over the years is winning over older cowboys, especially those who felt a woman shouldn’t be doing the sport, nor is capable of doing it. For the most part I’ve felt accepted and those that know me know I’ve ridden for the love of the sport want to improve and excel at it.

What are you doing now?

I’m an equine sports therapist and teach equine sports therapy clinics. I still ride saddle bronc a bit, but not to the capacity I once did (meaning I don’t compete or travel to as many). I also got back into riding saddle horses a few years ago, so I am starting and training my own horses in barrel racing, roping and ranch work.