PRORODEO Sports News - October 4, 2024

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Hailey Kinsel, Dona Kay Rule receive AQHA honors Standouts

BY TANNER BARTH A star-studded horse can make all the difference in the sport of rodeo. Ask any successful cowboy or cowgirl and they will tell you the same thing. In four rodeos this season – the NFR Open (Colorado Springs, Colo.) in July, Cinch Playoffs (Puyallup, Wash.) in September, Cinch Playoffs Governor’s Cup (Sioux Falls, S.D.) in September, and NFR (Las Vegas) in December – AQHA offered Fan Favorite Horse voting and awards. The award is open to timed-event horses registered with AQHA and competing in the event’s finals and fans can cast their votes using a QR code available at events where Fan Favorite voting occurs. Dona Kay Rule and her barrel racing horse Valor were selected as the Fan Favorite Horse of the Cinch Playoffs in Puyallup. Valor is 15-year old gelding and has led Rule to all four of her National Finals Rodeo appearances. “I really don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this horse,” Rule said. “I hope I’m worthy, I’ve worked my whole life to get to this point. He’s sure been a blessing to our family and I’m just as proud as I can be that others have taken notice as well.” Each AQHA Fan Favorite Horse winner from the select rodeos over the course of the season receive $1,000 and a commemorative plaque from PRCA. In Sioux Falls, S.D., for the Cinch Playoffs Governor’s Cup it was four-time WPRA World Champion Barrel Racer Hailey Kinsel and her standout palomino mare Sister receiving the horse of the event honor. The duo was nearly unbeatable at the Governor’s Cup. Kinsel and Sister won three out of the four rounds of competition, including a lightning-fast run of 13.72 seconds in the Final Four round to capture the $30,000 first place check. “Sister is such an interesting horse because she has matured in a lot of ways over the years, but in so many ways she hasn’t. I mean that in a good way,” Kinsel said. “She still has the same youth and tenacity that she’s always had. In all of her maturing and all of her wins she’s never gotten complacent or lost her drive to compete. I think that’s why she has had success for so long.” To have your horse eligible for Horse of the Year and AQHA Fan Favorite Horse awards, make sure your horse’s registration is up to date with a call to AQHA Member Services at 806 376-4811 or by creating an account and logging into www.myAQHA.com.

Hailey Rae photo Dona Kay Rule and her standout horse High Valor “Valor” were selected as the AQHA Fan Favorite Horse of the Cinch Playoffs in Puyallup, Wash.

PRCA ProRodeo photo by Clay Guardipee Hailey Kinsel and her 13-year-old palomino mare DM Sissy Hayday “Sister” were dominate in Sioux Falls, S.D., winning three out of the four rounds of competition.

ProRodeo Sports News 10/4/2024

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