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Vanderhoof student competes in world’s largest rodeo

Riley Beier took part in the National High School Finals Rodeo in Wyoming
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Riley Beier qualified for the Barrel racing event at the 2022 National High School Finals Rodeo (Photo courtesy Candace Beier).

Last week (July 17-23), a Vanderhoof student joined Team BC for the world’s biggest rodeo, the National High School Finals Rodeo, in Wyoming.

Riley Beier, a recent Nechako Valley Secondary School graduate, was among over 1,650 competitors from across the United States, Canada, Australia, Mexico and New Zealand.

Competing in the barrel racing competition, Beier placed twenty-seventh in performance group four on July 19, with a time of 18.954 seconds.

Later in the week, during the July 21 ninth performance group, she placed seventeenth with a 17.932-second run.

Beier said getting to compete at an event of this size has been a fantastic experience.

“You’re gonna go and you’re gonna try and make your best times, but I was more so going there just for the experience and to meet new people,” she said.

Coming from a rodeo family, Beier started riding around the age of two and grew up competing.

“You kind of gain a little bit of a family through rodeo because you’re doing the same thing and you’re supporting each other. And I think that’s the coolest part about it. You really gain a family through the Rodeo Association,” she stated.

Recently, Beier won the B.C. Barrel Racing Champion title at the B.C. High School Rodeo Association’s provincial finals in Quesnel. Hard work and dedication have brought Beier her success, but she attributes much of it to the support of her parents and multiple sponsors.

Next month, Beier is off to the Canadian High School Finals Rodeo in Saskatchewan.

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