story by Lindsay Humphrey
Even though 18-year-old Natalie Kinderknecht drives to KHSRA events by herself, she’s never really alone. “My favorite part about competing in the KHSRA is the atmosphere,” said the high school senior from WaKeeney, Kansas. “Everyone is so supportive and I’m always meeting new people who always turn into family. My siblings and I grew up rodeoing and that’s how I met my best friend, Bella. She moved to Oklahoma to college rodeo but we’re still close. We never would’ve met if it wasn’t for rodeo.” All of Natalie’s siblings – Kylie, 23, Caden, 21, and 16-year-old Nolan – at least dabbled in rodeo for a short time. Kylie and Natalie are the only one’s who have stuck with it.
“We always rode horses because my dad ranched and team roped. My aunt was a prairie circuit barrel racer and trainer, and after we bought a finished horse from her, she started taking my sister along to jackpots.” Nine-year-old Natalie fell in love with the event and started competing also, but she didn’t start taking it serious until junior high when she better understood just how wide-spread the sport is. She started putting more time in on the clover leaf pattern and waited patiently for the work to pay off. “It’s hard to not see the results right away and sometimes I wanted to give up, but I knew it would get easier and with more practice I would get better.”
Backed by an older sister who still has skin in the game, Natalie’s always had extra help in the practice pen. “She’s always sending me different training videos and calling me before my runs to tell me what I need to do and what to expect on different patterns depending on which horse I’m riding.” Kylie always wanted to help her little sister any way she could. More than just helping Natalie with the horse she’s running; Kylie has been a lending hand as well. “My other horse had a bad slip so we are keeping her on the pasture until the summer so she can rest. I’m using my sister’s young horse right now. She’s a stay-at-home mom with two babies, so it’s good to have someone using her horse so she’s ready for her when she has time to ride again.”
Natalie’s parents, Lance and Niki, are the quiet heartbeat of her rodeo career. “They are really supportive; they pay for the horses and to get me down the road.” Even though Natalie’s parents come to as many rodeos as they can, sometimes they can’t get away from work to get across the state. Always an independent soul, Natalie enjoys traveling on her own. She describes the KHSRA as a small, tight-knit community. It’s given her an opportunity to get close to a lot of different people. The same is true at her high school – Trego Community High School. “I enjoy getting to see and interact with people who are different than me. I’m the only one there who rodeos so it’s pretty interesting. People ask me often if I ride bulls. Even in a small town it’s interesting that people don’t know much about it. Rodeo is my sport, it takes a lot of time, dedication and it has a lot of ups and downs.”
In her last year of high school rodeo, Natalie isn’t holding anything back with each run she makes. She’s optimistic that her sister’s horse will be just the ticket for helping her try to qualify for her first high school nationals. “It’s a huge accomplishment to make it there after working all year for it. I’ve been close every year of high school. I was two holes out one year and maybe five or six holes the next. That had to do with rider errors and then some horse health issues. Riding my sister’s young horse, I think we have a chance – she’s really fast and if something goes wrong, I know she can make it up.”