story by Lindsay Whelchel
Bailey Basye, the 13-year-old Kansas Junior High School Rodeo Association cowgirl is used to having a full plate when it comes to sports.
“I do basketball, volleyball and track, so you’ve just got to compact it all together,” Bailey laughs when describing her schedule in addition to competing in the KJHSRA where she does team roping, breakaway and ribbon roping, as wells as barrels on the side.
Her main passion is roping. “It’s just an adrenaline rush whenever you get going and sitting behind the cattle it makes you just want to rope it, and it really builds me up and helps me relax a little bit if that makes sense,” Bailey explains.
She comes from a rodeo family. Her parents Darcy and Aaron were involved in the sport, and Bailey has two brothers, Hunter and Trace. Her older brother Hunter, 22, is especially involved in rodeo too.
“He’s my inspiration throughout rodeoing,” Bailey says of Hunter and credits him with helping her along the way.
In addition to her family’s support, Bailey cites the help from the KJHSRA as being integral to her enjoyment of the sport and involvement in the association.
“I like how the association, they’re just really cooperative, and they help you out. You learn something new every time. They help you out with your own events.”
Bailey is in the 8th grade now and will be moving on to high school in the fall where she plans to do high school rodeo as well.
Because of rodeo and being involved in so many sports, Bailey has learned a lot about time management.
“It helps me figure out what I need to do and when I need to do it, and it keeps me put together, that way I know I have something to constantly be doing,” Bailey says. Her school sports take up the last two hours of her school day at least, and after she’s dismissed, she heads straight home to catch all three of her horses and get to work.
She tries to practice most every night, or if she’s unable to get into the arena she’ll at least keep the horses legged up.
When she competes Bailey likes to just think of things as a fast-paced practice run to keep her mental game strong and calm.
Bailey’s personality is self-described as ecstatic and straightforward. She puts emphasis on being kind to others and helping others out where she can. Those same skills will come in handy for her future dream of being a nurse practitioner, and no matter what she does in the future, the young cowgirl will no doubt benefit from what rodeo has taught her about planning.
