story by Lily Weinacht
Ashlyn Goven from Rozet, Wyoming, won the 2016 NLBRA Junior Girls Pole Bending last summer, her second world title with the association. Her mom learned about Little Britches in 2013 through a family friend and Ashlyn joined that year, winning the world title in Little Wrangler barrel racing. “I’ve been out to Nationals four times, and it took us about seventeen hours to get to the Lazy E this last time,” says 12-year-old Ashlyn. “I liked the consistency of the ground, and my horses did really good there.”
Ashlyn is the first in her family to rodeo. Her parents, Jessica and Matthew Goven, both grew up farming. “My mom worked on an Arabian horse farm and really loved horses, so she bought me one when I was little, and I decided I wanted to rodeo,” Ashlyn explains. “It’s really addicting to spend time with horses.” She competes in trail course, barrel racing, goat tying, pole bending, and breakaway roping, and her favorite event is a tie between barrels and poles. “I just like all the excitement and the nerves. I got pretty nervous at the finals, but I worked it out. I won the first go, and third in the second go in poles, which took me to the short go where I finished sixth. Before that, I had no clue that winning the world was going to happen.”
Another highlight of her 2016 season was qualifying for the Junior NFR in Las Vegas. Ashlyn qualified in the barrel racing in Gillette, Wyoming, at one of the KK Run for Vegas qualifiers hosted during the Kohr Quarter Horses Barrel Futurity in May. The top five contestants in two age divisions advanced to Las Vegas. “We competed in the arena at the convention center, and I tipped the first go and came back and won the second go,” says Ashlyn. “I won a pretty sharp looking belt buckle, which I’m definitely wearing. It was a really fun experience, and I want to do it again!” She and her family have been to the WNFR several times, and Ashlyn has acquired autographs from many of the barrel racers. “Lisa Lockhart is one of my favorites – she does Little Britches with her kids, and it’s fun to watch her ride.”
The Govens live four miles outside of Rozet, population 25, and Ashlyn loves the quiet. She runs barrels on Charlie and pole bends on Lakota, while she breakaway ropes and ties goats off Maggie. “We rescued my trail horse, Shasta, and had her trained. She’s come a long way,” says Ashlyn. When it’s too cold to practice in her arena, she spends time brushing her horses, and also helps take care of her family’s cats, chickens, and dogs, Trixie and Rooster.
A junior at Twin Spruce Junior High, Ashlyn especially enjoys math, where she’s started studying Algebra. She plays basketball, and finished her season with the Twin Spruce Warriors in mid-December. Ashlyn also loves art, drawing her horses or anything else that catches her eye, and she enjoys cooking for her family, particularly spaghetti and pizza. “I like to read – fantasy books, scary books – anything with lots of excitement,” she adds.
In addition to Little Britches, Ashlyn competes in the NWBRA throughout the year, where she won the Barrel Racing Youth Championship in 2016. Her growing collection of buckles are displayed in a case hanging on her wall, and her ultimate goal is to add a gold buckle from the WNFR. “I’d like to keep going in Little Britches – it’s a fun organization to be a part of,” she finishes. “Eventually, I’d like to go to college, then try to qualify for the WNFR, and right now, I’d like to win another world title in Little Britches.”
