story by Michele Toberer
Karli Kyle is a busy Sam Houston High School student that is living life to the fullest. This 14-year-old has a full schedule as a ninth-grade Honor Roll student enrolled in all advanced classes. However, she works hard keeping up with those classes, so that she can use her spare time to dance and rodeo. Karli lives in Lake Charles, Louisiana, but attends Sam Houston in Moss Bluff, where one of her favorite classes is an AP human geography course. “We study about human nature, cultures, and religion, it’s very interesting.” Her favorite subject, however, is math, and Karli is currently excelling in an advanced geometry course. Besides a heavy load of school work, she spends most days practicing 2 hours a day, on the Broncette dance team, so that they are ready for performances at football games, basketball games, and assemblies. Karli has enjoyed dancing since kindergarten and loves being one of the 14 Broncettes on the school team. Karli is also very involved in Student Council, volunteering at the school, and helping in the community.
Rodeo has been a natural lifestyle for her outside of school, as she’s being raised by parents that also rodeoed. Karli’s parents met while they were members of the Louisiana High School Rodeo Association; her father Kenny was a team roper and her mother Jodi competed in barrel racing, pole bending and goat tying. Karli has been riding horses since she was three, and started entering local junior rodeos when she was in kindergarten. She’s been a member of the Little Britches Rodeo Association since she was in 2nd grade, and competed in LJHSRA her 6th thru 8th grade years. The past two years, Karli has qualified for the Little Britches national finals in ribbon roping. She ended up 4th in the world and 4th in the average with ribbon roper Brayden Aymond, and 6th in the world with ribbon roper Kolby Stelly. She is currently in her rookie year in the LHSRA competing in barrel racing, pole bending and breakaway roping. “The LHSRA is like a big family, everyone is there to help.” Rodeo has taught her about sportsmanship and friendship, “You learn how to treat people, and to go with your wins and losses.”
Karli has several horses at home, but currently is hauling three to her rodeo competitions. DotCom has been her favorite barrel horse since 2015. He’s a 13-year-old, blue roan Quarter Horse gelding, “He always protects me when I ride him. There have been times that I’ve went to fall off and he’ll actually move to get under me, so that I don’t!” Scooter is the sorrel pole horse Karli has turned to since 2016 because he is smooth and fast. “He doesn’t look very fast, but clocks great times. He is sweet and always picks with you, but in a nice way.” For breakaway roping, Mighty Mouse, a thick, brown 12-year-old gelding, never lets her down. “He’s very fast, and never quits, especially in the practice pen when I run several on him, he doesn’t ever stop trying for me.”
Karli appreciates many that have rallied to support her rodeo endeavors. The Mudd family; Bobby, his wife Leslie, daughters Bailey and Marcie, and son Bransyn, live in Lake Charles, and Karli is often practicing at their arena, and enjoying their company. Karli’s parents are always around, helping her saddle, enter rodeos, and making sure she has the help she needs with anything important to her. Her brother Barrett, 26, is always supportive of Karli and all that she does. Having a best friend like Allison Prejean is important to Karli, “She is so fun to practice with. Even if I mess up, she’s always there for me. She’s the main person I enjoy spending time with, she makes the rodeos a lot of fun.”
Karli is considering a career as a chemical engineer one day, as it sounds interesting to her because it involves her favorite subjects; science and math. McNeese University in Lake Charles will likely be the place she would study for that career, as she hopes to go to the local college and compete on their rodeo team after high school.
