CIRCUIT FINALS: MONTANA BARRELS TWO TITLES Moeykens Brought the Heat to Frigid Montana Circuit
Finals By Joe Kusek T ayla Moeykens had a fashion dilemma. Since June of 2021, the Montana cowgirl has worn the championship buckle she earned at the College National Finals Rodeo. During an arctic weekend in Great Falls in mid-January, she picked up not one, but two more shiny championship accoutrements at the Montana Pro Rodeo Finals. But there was no way she was replacing the CNFR buckle. “I bought a new belt,” said the senior marketing student at Montana State University. “Now I can swap them back and forth.” Moeykens, of Three Forks, chose Blue to earn green, dominating the Montana Circuit Finals Rodeo Jan. 11-13 at Pacific Steel and Recycling Center. She won all three rounds to sweep the year- end and Finals titles for 2023.
Moeykens and her 18-year-old sorrel mare, “I know, a red horse named Blue,” she said with a laugh, posted times of 12.81, 13.10 and 12.93 seconds to earn $11,827. She finished her 2023 circuit season with $29,274. “Shocked … mind blowing … very thankful,” said Moeykens said of her Finals. Blue, registered as Dash of Blue Sky, also carried Moeykens to the CNFR title. “I can’t describe her, she means so much to us,” said Moeykens said of the horse sired by BobbiesDashTaFame and out of Blue Sixes the family purchased five years ago. A cold front settled over Montana with temperatures reaching minus 36 in Great Falls and the wind chill pushing up against minus 50. “We spent so much time worrying about the welfare of the horses, we didn’t worry about it,” said Moeykens of the title race. “They had box stalls for shelter out of the wind. We over-prepared. We had extra blankets, a heated blanket, a heated bucket and extra grain. We had extra of everything.” Moeykens qualifies for her first NFR Open, scheduled for July in Colorado Springs, Colorado. “I’m really excited about it,” said Moeykens. “It’s been on my bucket list, you could say. I am super-excited to experience it. I hear they treat the contestants very well. I’m excited to be part of it.” She will be joined by Ashley Day of Volborg, who finished second in the standings. Day earned $17,905 in 2023, mostly aboard Pearl, registered as Flash N Dynamite. The buckskin mare sired by First Moonflash and out of Ima Dyno Doc Tari, carried Day to the bulk of her money in four
Tayla Moeykens dominated the Montana Circuit Finals in Great Falls winning all three rounds, the average and the year-end title. Moeykens and her 18-year-old sorrel mare that she calls Blue posted times of 12.81, 13.10 and 12.93. Photo by Clay Guardipee
states, including a third-place finish against a world-class field at the Home of Champions Rodeo in Red Lodge. Moeykens spent her summer riding Yeti (KN Fames Best Yet), a five- year-old chestnut quarter horse and Lizard (JM PocketsDoubleDash), a 10-year-old brown quarter horse. Lizard earned Moeykens $9,360 and Yeti another $8,087. “I have to credit those two horses,” she said. “They got me to the Finals.” Blue was injured in February after jumping a fence, “We think she got spooked. It was half ice and half mud,” Moeykens said. Blue spent three months in a stall before being ridden again in August and September. Moeykens opted for Blue over Yeti for the Finals. Great Falls was Blue’s only circuit rodeo. “We decided to go with Blue because of age and experience,” she said. “With the arena being offset, you come in from the right side at the first barrel and don’t get into pocket. “Blue is a little older, has more experience. She has seen more things, more arenas. That’s the thing with Blue, she is so consistent. We joke I am the monkey on her back. I keep my hands forward and drive her. She does the rest.” Moeykens has plenty on her plate before the NFR Open. She leads the Big Sky Region barrel racing standings and is third in breakaway roping and will graduate from MSU in May. “I’ll finish the last semester of school,” Moeykens said of her 2024 plans. “I’ll try to be in the top 35 to qualify for the big winter rodeos in 2025. We’ll just take it run by run and see how it goes.”
32 WPRA NEWS FEBRUARY 2024
Made with FlippingBook - PDF hosting