DOIN’ IT RIGHT: Junior High Rodeo Spotlights

BY KRIS BLANKMAN

Mylee Dolan, photo by Alesha Bailey

Mylee Dolan

Meet Mylee Dolan. She is the definition of “Cowgirl Up!” This amazing young lady is a 14-year-old 9th-grader at Wahlquist Jr. High. She is a member of the UYRA, the Idaho High School Rodeo Association, and the Turn Pro Jackpot Assoc. Mylee’s favorite event is poles, which she competes on with her horse Coke. She also competes in barrels, goat tying, and breakaway roping. Due to a serious knee injury in April, she missed out on the spring rodeo season. A big accomplishment for Mylee was being part of the National Jr. High Cinch Team. Though she couldn’t compete, she was present to cheer her peers on. She is hopeful to be back and competing by January. Like most serious competitors, her goal is to make it to the High School National Finals Rodeo. Mylee’s mantra is “Stay weird, life is funner that way!” She says she has the longest legs in the family and that, sometimes, it provides comic relief because she looks like a newborn filly learning to walk. Mylee is a big sister to her younger brother, Daxton, who also rodeos. Her hero is her great-grandma Wanda. She loves to hunt, snowmobile, go four-wheeling, and raise hogs for the county fair. Mylee has big goals and plans on being an Equine Chiropractor and practicing Equine Sports Medicine.

Brykn Burnett, photo by Tiffany Burnett

Brykn Burnett

“Never Give Up! Because when things get hard, if you give up, you will never have the chance to succeed.” This is the code that 15-year-old cowboy Brykn Burnett lives by. He is a 10th grader at Fremont High School. He is the real deal, competing in tie-down roping and team roping. Brykn would rather rodeo than go to school, but since that’s not possible, he likes math and PE. He is a wrestler at Fremont High School and likes to hunt, fish, and camp. Brykn broke his leg six weeks ago when a horse fell on him. He was told he wouldn’t be able to get back on for three months. Three weeks later, he was in a cast up to his thigh, with his leg strapped to his saddle with rubber bands. He and his partner won the team roping event. Brykn says catching that steer was a great accomplishment for him. This young man gives new meaning to the words ‘Cowboy Tough’. As part of a rodeo family, they are at it every weekend, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. Along with his horses Rio, Goose, and Wildcat, they have goals of qualifying for the National High School Finals Rodeo in the next few years. Brykn plans on rodeoing in the PRCA when he graduates.

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