CIRCUIT FINALS: TURQUOISE BARRELS NEXT GENERATION Madison Bean Following in Aunt Jana Bean’s Footsteps By Kristen M. White W hen Madison Bean’s aunt put her on the back of a barrel horse
in an 8-and-under competition, that was it. The rest was history for the young cowgirl, who now has a Turquoise Circuit Rodeo average win to her name. Of course, when your aunt is a barrel racing great (Jana Bean, three-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier and Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame inductee), you’ve got some good training and advice to follow. During her junior high and high school days, Madison rode a horse out of her grandfather’s stud, raised and trained by Jana. Her experiences gave her a great foundation for college and professional rodeo, both of which she’s currently competing in. “At the beginning of the season, we kind of threw around the idea of trying to make the circuit finals,” Bean
Madison Bean made headlines at the Turquoise Circuit Finas Rodeo winning the average title and punching her ticket to her first ever NFR Open in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Photo by Bobby Rosales
said. “I didn’t have much, my good horse was hurt and so I missed some of the bigger rodeos. But then I took a horse raised and trained by Jana to Scottsdale and that was kind of the turning point for me in the circuits. It pushed me to go.” Bean credits some of her success to the help of her aunt, who also hauls in the Turquoise Circuit, so she’s been able to help the younger cowgirl juggle college classes and horses and where to be when. Headed into the circuit finals, Bean said she had zero expectations. It was also the first big pro rodeo she’d been to without her aunt by her side, so she had a go-and-see attitude. “I knew my horse Moon liked the Arizona ground and he just kept getting faster at the circuits, and the next thing I knew, we were winning the average,” Bean said. “I didn’t believe it until they said my name! When I saw my name at the top of the average before the last round, I told myself not to let the pressure hit and just keep my head down. Whatever happened was in God’s plan.” Bean put herself in contention to win by finishing second in the first round in 17.54, and then third in the next round in 17.39 seconds. In the last round, she finished out of the money, but her time was
fast enough to keep Bean at the top spot. She won the average in a time of 52.65 seconds on three runs, edging Sabrina Ketcham in 52.85. “The chance at the NFR Open is very exciting,” Bean said. “I’m so blessed to go there and have fun.” For now, Bean’s biggest focus is the College National Finals. She qualified last year in breakaway and barrels, and transferred to Texas Tech for her junior year where she hopes to qualify again. She’s studying animal science with a concentration in business, and her hybrid blend of classes lends a little flexibility to her schedule so she’s able to bounce between school, college rodeo and the circuit pro rodeos. “I just take it day by day. There’s a lot going on,” Bean said. “I have an amazing support system. I could not do this without my family and friends, who have been a rock. They have no problem getting in the truck and hauling a horse for me if I need to catch a flight to a rodeo. They are so great.”
20 WPRA NEWS FEBRUARY 2024
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