story by Riata Cummings
Thirteen-year-old Jacob Millett hails from the small town of Chester, Utah, and is the son of Kami and Nathan Millett. Jacob has two sisters Abby and Skylee, as well as an older brother, Cameron Briggs. His father works at the prison in Gunnison, Utah, and his mother is a middle school counselor. Jacob runs a pony training business with his little sisters, and the three spend a lot of time breaking and selling ponies. When he isn’t busy with rodeo, the ponies, or school, Jacob also likes to hunt with his brother. Jacob’s mother competed in rodeo, and she was responsible for him starting the sport. His first rodeo was a junior show in Manti, where he rode a calf at only eight-years-old.
Today he is an all around cowboy, competing in team roping, ribbon roping, tie down roping, bareback riding, bull riding, goat tying, breakaway roping, and a few other events outside of the Utah Junior High School Rodeo Association. His favorite event alternates between bareback riding and team roping, both of which are high adrenaline and entertaining. He competes on two horses, Lisy and Nelly, and practices every chance he gets. His favorite rodeo so far was the National Junior High School Finals, where he was able to stretch his comfort zone a little and make a lot of new friends. He also competed at the National Little Britches Finals this summer, walking away fifth in the world in bareback riding, fourth in saddle bronc riding, and seventh in ribbon roping. This year he hopes to do even better than last year, constantly improving and never giving up.
One of Jacob’s favorite quotes is something Lane Frost once said, “Don’t be afraid to go after what you want to be and what you want to do. But don’t be afraid to be willing to pay the price”. Jacob has experienced the price, the hard work necessary to be successful. Rodeo has taught Jacob that the goals and dreams we have are just on the other side of hard work. His hero is Sage Kimzey, thanks to a talk they had at the the 2017 WNFR. Jacob somewhat bashfully admitted that he was a barrel racer, but when Sage admitted to being a barrel racer at a young age, and even attributed some of his success to the event, it helped Jacob embrace it.
Because Jacob’s brother has some disabilities, Jacob spends a lot of time looking out for him and helping him make good choices. Because of those experiences, Jacob feels that helping others is one of his greatest strengths. He strives to be helpful to those around them, encouraging them to be the best they can be. Jacob hopes that one day his legacy will include his kindness and willingness to help others, as well as his hard work and refusal to give up.
