All Around Junior Girl
story by Michele Toberer
Brylee Grubb has competed in the National Little Britches Association since she was in kindergarten. She’s had rodeo fever from the time she was born, spending the first few years of her life traveling to rodeos watching her dad, Jason Grubb compete as a team roper and steer wrestler. She started competing in the pee wee division at rodeos when she was just two years old. Brylee’s dad, and mom, Stephanie, both grew up with ranching and rodeo backgrounds, and as Brylee, 14, and her sister, Tiersyn, 12, became more involved in rodeo, their time was focused on hauling the girls down the rodeo trail. Watching Brylee crowned as the 2019 NLBRA Junior All-Around Cowgirl, 2019, NLBFR Junior All-Around Cowgirl, and 2019 NLBFR Champion Junior Barrel Racer, was an exciting and appreciated moment for the Grubb family. “It was pretty awesome to win the all-around title. You have to do well in all of your events, but also have to have a little bit of luck and things have to go your way; so it was very special to me to have accomplished this in my last year of the NLBRA junior girls division.”
Brylee will be an 8th grader at Spearfish Middle School and looks forward to starting in the senior girl’s division of the NLBRA next season. Besides rodeo, Brylee has also played basketball and volleyball for the Spearfish Spartans, and enjoys learning about her favorite subject, math. The Grubbs like to go hiking down mountain trails when they’re not on the rodeo trail, and Brylee enjoys spending time with friends and family no matter where she is. Jason works for Newcastle Motors and owns a fencing business, and Stephanie is a high school teacher in Sundance, Wyoming, which is about 30 miles from their home in Spearfish, South Dakota.
Competing as an all-around cowgirl takes discipline as well as time management skills to stay at the top of her game in several events. Brylee competed at the 2019 NLBFR in Guthrie, Oklahoma, finishing in 5th in the average and 6th in the world in breakaway roping, 10th in the world in goat tying, 2nd in the average, and reserve champion of the world trail course rider, and as the world champion barrel racer. Although they didn’t end up in the world standings, Brylee is proud of the 8th place finish that she and Tiersyn had in the first round of team roping. “It’s great roping with my sister and was very special to place in the first round with her.”
It says a lot about a cowgirl that can jump on any horse and compete, and Brylee won her all-around title on three very special borrowed horses. In 2013, when she was 7, Brylee borrowed Shelby Smith’s palomino gelding, Friday, and set the arena record at the NLBFR in Pueblo, Colorado with a 19.931-second run. Brylee now competes on the 23-year-old in breakaway roping and was grateful to place so well on him at this year’s finals. “Right before the South Dakota Junior High state finals, my barrel horse twisted an ovary, so Sloan Anderson loaned me her 15-year-old red roan mare, Frosty. It was so nice of her to let me rider her, and I knew that I was just going to have to work it out. I ended up tying for 4th and 5th in barrels so I qualified for nationals on her. At the 2019 NJHFR I won the national finals champion barrel racer title on her just before coming to the NLBFR. Coming to Guthrie and winning the NLFBR world champion barrel racer title also was very exciting!” Brylee borrowed Casey Reimler’s NLFBR world champion trail horse, a 16-year-old sorrel gelding called Lil Bit, and was able to find great success on him at the finals. “Casey is in college and said I could take Lil Bit and ride him; my sister competes on him in goat tying also. We’re so grateful for our entire team of horses that made this possible all season long. I also appreciate my parents for helping me with everything, as well as the Engesser family that has been so supportive of us and helped us with our events.”
