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WPRA WORLD FINALS - CARDHOLDER/PERMIT  All in due time


Crowther, McCauley post wins as skill and good fortune


collide in Waco By Johnna Espinoza


I


t is easy to see that athletic ability and hard work are keys to success in barrel racing, but other factors come into play as well. Such is the case with a couple of winners at the WPRA World Finals, held Oct.


20-23 in Waco, Texas. Margo Crowther (card holder and futurity) and Shelby McCauley (permit) won their respective competitions and while the human and horse talent were the real reasons they went home with victories, good timing also had something to do with it. Both barrel racers have plans to rodeo more often in 2017 and each hope to make their mark in the WPRA.


Stay tuned.


and Shes Packin Fame It takes a long time to mend a broken heart. Sometimes it doesn’t fully mend, but often there is forward progress and there is the possibility of something amazing happening. It has been almost eight years since Crowther lost her beloved mare, Fast Tyme Lynx, barn name, “Lexus” to illness and the timing was right at the 2016 WPRA World Finals for Crowther to enjoy a breakout performance with her new horse, Shes Packin Fame, “Sissy.” Crowther and her 4-year-old mare swept the card holder and futurity competitions in a tight race. The Fort Myers, Fla., cowgirl and Sissy got  card holder race in 15.263 seconds. Finished second in the second round   WPRA World Standings to kick start her 2017 rodeo season.  into the futurity competition and won the futurity average as well. Sis- sy’s outstanding performance in Waco capped off what has been an emo- tional journey for Crowther, who didn’t know if she would ever reach the winner’s circle again or return to riding after losing Lexus on July 5,  she bought her last April. Sissy is by Carrizzo, a Dash Ta Fame stud. “She’s really been consistent since day one,” Crowther said. “She has either won or placed at every single futurity we’ve been to all year long. I think I’ve hit just one or two barrels since I’ve had her.”  dream to ride, Crowther said. “She just melts in my hand,” Crowther said. “I have to stay really quiet. I can’t ride her aggressive because she listens to every little move I make.” “It’s deceiving,” Crowther added. “A lot of people ask, ‘where is she making up her time?’ She never really slows down. She stays very square in her turns and when she leaves a barrel she leaves them hard.” Today, it’s hard to imagine that the teaming of Crowther and Sissy may not have happened. Crowther grew up in Florida riding and show- ing horses. Crowther earned a rodeo scholarship to Tarleton State Uni- versity in Stephenville, Texas and nearly made the College National Fi- 


32  WPRA WORLD FINALS RODEO 2016 Right time – Margo Crowther a business degree.


After college, Crowther and Lexus hit the rodeo trail and were just getting going when Lexus, then a 7-year-old, got salmonella and died of a complication related to the disease.


“She died in my arms,” Crowther said. “It was devas- tating. I didn’t ride or go out to the barn for probably about six months to almost a year. It was just so sad because my horse was my life. She was like my baby, my daughter. It was just me and her in college, basically.” Crowther moved on. She met her husband, Casey, they had two children. It was Casey, a golfer, who realized his wife needed to


WPRA President Doreen Wintermute presented Margo Crowther with a beautiful Montana Silversmiths buckle in recognition for winning the average title in the 2016 WPRA Card Holder Race. All money won was applied to the 2017 WPRA World Standings. WPRA photo by Dudley Barker


Margo Crowther and her 4-year old mare, Shes Packin Fame “Sissy” raced their way to the top of the leaderboard in the WPRA Card Holder race in Waco, Texas. The duo won the average in a three run time of 45.391 seconds but more importantly added $7,311 to their 2017 WPRA World Standings. WPRA photo by Peggy Gander


return to riding and training horses. Casey encouraged her passion and he helped by studying breeding and bloodlines. Crowther watched horse training videos and she and her husband started buying colts. Crowther juggled riding and training horses and taking care of the couple’s kids. Son, Sawyer, is 6, and daughter, Stella, is 4. She rode a lot of horses, but none were quite right until Sissy. Crowther hopes to ride Sissy at some of the big, indoor winter rodeos this year.  won that futurity, it just clicked with her. It is really quite amazing.” Crowther is pleased to have found another talented horse, but her col-


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