story by Michele Toberer
Jaycee Leinaweaver has a few tricks up her sleeve when it comes to rodeo. The announcer’s love gaining the astonishment of rodeo spectators who are pretty surprised to see the 9-year-old 4th grader not only competing at the American Professional Rodeo Association events alongside grown barrel racers.; but their surprise turns to awe when they see Jaycee racing around the arena displaying electrifying stunts as an APRA trick rider. “I’ve been a member of the APRA since 1998 and I’ve been the barrel racing director for the APRA for 12 years. Jaycee has grown up in the association, and from the time she was in a stroller she couldn’t take her eyes off the trick riders. As she got older, she was always spending time and making friends with the trick riders at rodeos, and I knew she was seriously interested in it. I waited until last March, when I felt she was strong enough to do it and let her take some lessons in Mississippi. She was a natural at it right from the beginning, and she’s been blessed to have mentors like Kelsey Lauberth of the Trixie Chicks, and Dusti Crane Dickerson,” explains Jaycee’s mom, Lisa Barone.
As a typical elementary student at Franklin Township Elementary, Jaycee’s favorite subjects are math, reading, and writing. But when the final school bell rings for the day, Jaycee’s focus changes to riding and practicing for her “job.” “I spend a lot of time riding, especially my trick riding horse, Dude, who is a 15-year-old flea-bitten grey gelding that used to belong to Dusti Crane-Dickerson. She used to do fire jumps and roman riding with him. He’s been such a great trick riding horse for me since I got him last May. He understands me and If I tell him I don’t feel comfortable doing a new trick yet, he’ll go slow until he can tell I’ve got more confidence. I feel like he knows when he can go faster and when I need him to go slower. He’s an amazing horse and takes good care of me.” Jaycee and Dude enjoy wowing the crowds with several tricks as they perform individually as well as part of a team act with Lexi Lowzowski. “My favorite stunts are the neck layover and the side backbend. Trick riding is the perfect thing for me because I love riding horses, gymnastics, and performing. “
With Jaycee’s mom so involved in barrel racing in several other rodeo associations, including the APRA, it’s no surprise that Jaycee also runs barrels at the rodeos. She rides a 17-year-old bay roan gelding named Blue and often has to quickly change out of her sequin covered costumes so she can get Blue around the cloverleaf pattern as fast as she can. “When I’m running barrels at a rodeo that I’m performing tricks at, I usually run in slack because I don’t have enough time to change and get ready for barrels during the show.” Jaycee has been booked by numerous APRA as well as IPRA rodeos this season and she is thrilled to see her calendar filling in with all that she loves. “I love trick riding and hope to continue on with a career in it when I grow up because I love doing it.” Jaycee also competes in the Central Pennsylvania Youth Rodeo Association and has a black 7-year-old gelding named Spider that she uses for goat tying and breakaway roping.
Jaycee appreciates the support of her mom, an RN at Chambersburg Hospital; and her dad, John Leinaweaver, who has a cattle transport business and not only works as a pick-up man at APRA rodeos, but also competes as a steer wrestler and bull rider in multiple rodeo associations. She is also thankful for the support of her stepdad, Dylan Murphy, who owns the All-American Rodeo Company, sanctioning APRA, PRCA, and IPRA rodeos. “I definitely thank my family who has been very supportive, and also Kelsey Lauberth and Madison McDonald. I just really love rodeo and the adrenaline that comes from competing and performing. It’s super fun and I care about the spectators that watch me as much as I care about my horses!”
