story by Lily Weinacht
Chasing cans was Lori Todd’s childhood dream, but rather than outgrow it, she grew into it. Born and raised in a ranching family in Montana, she watched many a rodeo, paying particular attention to the barrel racing. Yet beyond a yearly 4-H rodeo and playday, her family didn’t consider the event important enough to pursue. She married into a roping family when she married her childhood friend, Larrie, in 1981, and they moved to his parents’ Warbonnet Ranch outside of Willcox, Ariz., soon after. “I started working with the horses and going to local jackpots in 1984 and trying to hit pro rodeos, but my horses weren’t quite fast enough and we started taking our kids to junior and high school rodeos. I’d put it in the back of my mind that I’d be in my 50s before I’d run barrels and it wasn’t possible, but the Lord gave me a desire, and it stayed with me.”
After seeing her youngest off to college, Lori pulled out the barrels again and started working with Classy and Wrangler, both horses raised on the ranch. Her daughter rode Wrangler on and off through college, and Lori entered several PRCA Turquoise Circuit rodeos in 2013 before getting on Wrangler and discovering his potential. She joined the GCPRA to start seasoning another gelding, Dashin’ Red, but when Wrangler started having trouble in his runs halfway through the 2014 season, Lori made Dashin’ Red her main mount and he carried her to the GCPRA finals and fifth place in the year-end standings.
These days, beyond her firsthand knowledge of how the run went, Lori watches the standings as little as possible. “I don’t know where I’m sitting right now in the GCPRA or the Turquoise Circuit,” she says. “I go forward. I don’t want to look back until it’s over, because it is what it is! I’ve gone to several clinics and used those as stepping stones. At first, starting barrels a little later than some, I was nervous, but you just have to control all that. I think there were steps the Lord took me through to get me where I needed to go. Rodeo isn’t always about winning – it’s about living your dreams – and then you regroup and keep going.”
Lori often hauls to GCPRA rodeos with Larrie, better known as Rooster, who is a heeler in the incentive team roping. Their daughter-in-law, Carly Todd, and granddaughter, Madilyn Todd, also compete in the GCPRA, while their son, Colter Todd, is a team roper, qualifying for the WNFR from 2006 – 2008. “Colter and Carly run the ranch next to ours, and when Larrie rodeos with me, they help take care of things at home. We all help each other with branding – it’s a big family thing and we work good together.” Between her four children and their spouses, Lori has six grandchildren, all of which live within a few hours of Warbonnet Ranch. The entire family held a team roping for Larrie’s dad’s 80th birthday in June, and the former USTRC roper backed into the box with his son, nephews, grandsons, and great-grandsons for the occasion.
In between ranching and rodeoing, Lori also teaches several young barrel racers in Willcox once a week. “I work with several girls – one of them was 14 when we started and now she’s going to college. It’s been a highlight for me, and I love getting together with them to talk about the Lord and what we love to do,” she says. “My goal is to venture out of the Turquoise Circuit a little further, and the GCPRA has been amazing. My other goal is to win the Turquoise Circuit and make it to the Dodge Ram National Circuit Finals. I’d love to compete at that level.”
