“It was a crazy moment,” she said. “I looked up at the scoreboard and couldn’t believe it. It was, ‘Oh my gosh, that just happened.’ ” Summer Kosel set a new arena record in 17.02 seconds in the qualifying round. Busby’s fourth performance time was also the third- fastest at Frontier Park. Busby earned $15,948 to rocket into the top 40 of the WPRA world standings. Cheyenne Frontier Days was a little extra special for Busby, who grew up on the family ranch in Lusk, Wyoming, 140 miles northeast of “The Daddy of ’em All.” “That made it really cool. Tons of family and friends were there,” she said. It also brought back special memories. “Cheyenne was the first rodeo I went to with my parents,” Busby recalled. “I was pretty little. We got to meet Charmayne James and Scamper. I got to sit on Scamper and get a picture with Charmayne. Everybody wanted to be Charmayne.” However, there was also sadness during the week. Busby’s uncle, Chuck Brook, died right after her semifinal run. “He was like a father to me,” said Busby, who lost her father John this past November. “I tried to make it to the hospital in time, but he had died.” The spacious Frontier Park layout was only the fifth rodeo for Tito. “She took to Cheyenne like a duck to water,” said Busby, who had started the horse at Pecos, Texas, followed by a win at Santa Fe, New Mexico, and a run at Greeley, Colorado.
Long-time family friend Sue Smith trained Tito. “Sue does a complete job. She gets them ready for any situation,” Busby said. “Tito, she’s so honest. She does exactly what you tell her. If we screw up, it’s my fault. “She is pretty easy to have in the trailer. She knows we love her.” In college, Busby set aside her barrel racing to play setter for the Montana State University volleyball team. “Division I volleyball is very demanding of your time,” said the admitted competitive athlete. “I’ve always been competitive. My basketball coach said I didn’t do anything for fun. Winning is fun.” Busby earned her degree in nursing and worked in the ICU unit at a hospital in Billings, Montana. She has been married to her husband 12 years and they have been together for 15. “He’s the reason I am in Texas,” Busby said with another laugh. Busby is traveling with two-time world champion Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi of Lampasas, Texas with an eye toward the 2023 season. “At the beginning of the season, I wanted to season all the young colts we have,” said Busby who has two to three horses in her trailer. “I wanted to bring back a better horse than I started with when I rode.” The season-changing victory at Cheyenne did not alter her 2022 schedule. “This year, I’m setting myself up for next year. I decided to stick to my plan,” said Busby who was entered through mid-September. “We’ll go back to Texas, get ready for breeding season, give the horses some rest and start all over again.”
Andrea Busby, second from right, stood on the stage at the Daddy of ‘em All in front of a packed house to accept the prize package for winning the barrel racing title. A title she had dreamt about for years and it was icing on the cake to win the title aboard Blazing With My Dude, a product of Busby Quarter Horses. Photo by Jackie Jensen
SEPTEMBER 2022 WPRA NEWS 13
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