By Lily Weinacht
Kassidy Rambat from Medicine Lodge, Kan., finished her first season in the KJRA with a flourish in August. The ten-year-old, sporting her silverbelly cowboy hat, won both rounds in the barrel racing, putting her in first place for the average and second place for the year-end. Kassidy also finished fourth in the goat tying for the season. Now moving up to the 10 – 13 age division, Kassidy is competing in barrel racing, pole bending, and goat tying, though barrels are a firm favorite. “I do the best in barrels, and I like going fast!” she explains.
A rodeo competitor for the last six years, Kassidy was introduced to the sport by her parents, Jace and Kendra Rambat, who both competed in rodeo growing up. “Rodeo is fun, and I like to strive to win first place, but I also like seeing my friends and family, and competing in front of an audience.” Kassidy also competes and has won titles in the CRC, HYRA, and UHYRA, which keeps her in the saddle year-round. She practices several times a week with her parents, and adds, “I want to be like Sherry Cervi, and I also want to be like my parents because they help me take care of my horses and get prepared to go to rodeos.” Kassidy’s grandparents, Royce and Jan Rambat, and Rod and Mabel Boots, are equally supportive of her rodeo dreams.
Kassidy, her parents, and her six-year-old sister, Tallie, live in Medicine Lodge, while their horses live in a pasture about a mile away. Since Tallie also rodeos, competing in barrel racing, pole bending, and flag racing in local rodeos in the area, the sisters often practice together at one of their friends’ arenas. With a new baby brother or sister on the way, Kassidy and Tallie are excited to introduce another member of their family to the rodeo world.
The other half of the Rambat family is their horses. Tallie rides one of Kassidy’s previous rodeo horses, Sorrely, and Kassidy runs barrels and poles on Quanah, an 11-year-old sorrel mare that was raised by her grandparents and trained by her parents. Kassidy’s mount in the goat tying is a little gelding named Jacky, which came from a family friend. Along with their horses, the Rambats are accompanied to their rodeos by their dog, Lola.
A fifth grader at Medicine Lodge Grade School, Kassidy’s favorite subject is reading. She enjoys books of all kinds, but especially ones about animals, and horses in particular. Kassidy plays basketball in the winter and softball in the spring, while she does dance throughout the entire school year. “I do ballet, jazz, tap, and gymnastics, but tap dancing is my favorite,” says Kassidy. “It’s pretty hard at times, but I’ve been dancing since I was three.” When her homework is done, Kassidy is either riding her horses, or astride her bicycle, exploring the neighborhood with her friends.
Pulling on her boots and jeans and heading to a rodeo is Kassidy’s favorite, however. “I liked competing in Emporia since it was the KJRA finals and I felt more confident,” she says. Kassidy uses the time spent in the truck going to rodeos to work on her Rainbowloom, making things like bracelets, necklaces, rings, and even a miniature guitar. Kassidy finishes, “I want to keep rodeoing when I grow up, and I’d also like to be a teacher, and a world champion barrel racer!”
