Montana cowgirl Lisa Lockhart shatters rodeo records, becoming the first woman in WPRA history to surpass $4 million in earnings with unwavering dedication and speed.
Montana born cowgirl Lisa Lockhart has made a huge impact on the barrel racing world through her decades long career.
She has now hit another major milestone with her recent win at the Tucson Rodeo (La Fiesta de Los Vaqueros). This pushed her career earnings unofficially past 4 million, putting her in rare territory as the only cowgirl in Women’s Pro Rodeo Association (WPRA) barrel racing history to surpass that mark.
Lisa may not always be the show stopper with flash and thrill but she is always the consistent performer who gets results time and time again. She rides with heart and determination and the quality of her performance and the hard work that stands behind every ride always shines through.
Her ease in the saddle comes from a lifetime of riding. Lisa got her start riding at just six years old. Lisa had a brief stint as a schoolteacher before realizing her home was really in the arena. Together with her tie-down roper husband Grady Lockhart she made the shift to competing and training horses full time. They were and still are a powerful team, with Lisa training barrel horses and Grady training calf horses.
Her competitive success reads like a never ending list. She joined the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) in 1993 and has been competing on the professional circuit ever since. She has won rounds in both the National Finals Rodeo and the Canadian Finals Rodeo. She estimates she travels over 50,000 miles during a rodeo season. She knows the work never stops, whether it’s practice, training, or logistics, but her devotion to the industry and her four legged partners carries her through.
You’ll find her name in the top four fastest times ever recorded at the National Finals Rodeo. Not only does she clock fast times, but she is often a repeat winner. She won the Canadian Finals Rodeo barrel racing championship four times and the National Finals Rodeo average three times. She has also qualified for the NFR more than 19 times. Not to mention her numerous other big wins and awards like her 2 time wins at the Hondo Rodeo and winning the Guy Weadick Award at the Calgary Stampede in 2016. Her horses have been celebrated too with her horse An Oakie with Cash “Louie” being part of a three way tie for the 2019 Purina Horse of the Year from the American Quarter Horse Association (WPRA).
Her family is deeply involved in the rodeo industry, with her husband having his own claim to rodeo fame with circuit final wins in the tie-down roping. Lisa and her husband currently reside in South Dakota but their rodeo roots stretch far and wide. Her nephew Jess Lockwood has experienced tremendous success in the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) since he got his start at 17 and won a world championship. In addition, her daughter is married to a pro rodeo announcer.
Above all else, Lisa is quick to say the horses she rides and trains are like her kids. Her love for them and for the sport itself sustains her. She is still on the road this season with undoubtedly many more wins to come. How far past $4 million in earnings will she take her success? The sky is truly the limit for someone with her heart and talent and the same passion in the mindset of the horses she trains and rides.
Keep your eye out for Lockhart in the months to come.