story by Ruth Nicolaus
Sometimes Chelsea Pullara can be found in the rodeo stands, cheering on her husband. But occasionally she’s the one in the arena, as a Colorado Pro Rodeo Association contestant.
The cowgirl has been a CPRA member since 2006, competing as a header with her husband Nick in the mixed team roping. Because of the couple’s two sons, she doesn’t get to rope too often, estimating she only competed about five times last year, but she loves it nonetheless.
Chelsea grew up in Colorado Springs, the daughter of a dad who team roped. She swung a rope from the time she was a little girl, roping in the branding pen and heading for her dad at local jackpots.
She graduated from Colorado State University in 2004 with a degree in business management and restaurant and resort management, and she and Nick, who had roped together as kids but then lost touch till after college, married in 2006. She was sole proprietor of a coffee shop for five years, beginning in 2005. When her oldest son, Landon, was born, she sold the shop.
While Nick trains and sells team roping horses, she runs a horse boarding facility and keeps track of Landon and the couple’s younger son, Jasper, who is nearly two years old. Nick ropes at many of the CPRA rodeos and she loves to go along. She loves to rope, but she doesn’t mind watching her husband, either. “I love everything about rodeoing, and watching my husband rope.”
When obligations allow, she and the boys go along with Nick and make mini-vacations out of their rodeo trips. They love to see the sights along the way, spending an extra day to do it. They’ve hiked near a favorite waterfall in Steamboat Springs, enjoyed the natural springs at Hot Springs, and fished in mountain streams. Rodeo is also a way to spend time with friends. “I wouldn’t see half the friends I have if I wasn’t at rodeos,” Chelsea said.
When she’s not chasing her boys or taking care of the boarding facility, she loves to read and drink coffee. She’ll read nearly any genre of books, and lattes are her favorite.
The family spends their summers in Fountain, Colo., and their winters in Salome, Ariz., just west of Wickenburg. They have just recently moved into a remodeled farmhouse on her dad’s property.
