2025 Breakaway Roping World Champion Taylor Munsell discusses planning her summer run, her team of horses, and advice for rookies.
Reigning Breakaway Roping World Champion Taylor Munsell is no stranger to the demands of life on the road. With five consecutive National Finals Breakaway Roping (NFBR) qualifications under her belt, she’s learned a thing or two about efficiently planning her rodeo schedule. As she heads into the ever-important summer run and Cowboy Christmas, the Oklahoma cowgirl feels as prepared as ever.
Making sure her horses are well rested and properly conditioned for the strenuous summer run is Munsell’s top priority. Joining her on the road is a talented string of horses that include:
- Ray: An 18-year-old palomino gelding who Munsell considers to be her “old faithful who makes winning easy.” He has carried her to back-to-back Reno Rodeo championships (and hopefully a third very soon).
- Colonel: A 14-year-old sorrel gelding Munsell rode at the 2025 NFBR and four of the five NFBRs she’s qualified for. He will be making his summer debut at the Greeley Stampede after spending some time with the Outlaw Equine rehab team.
Munsell is also planning to compete on Vegas, a 14-year-old paint gelding, Goon, a 10-year-old bay gelding, and Monster, a 19-year-old bay gelding who is one of the most recognizable breakaway horses in the game.
“I think it’s most important to go into the summer run with your horses feeling good. They’ll be tired by the end of it so you don’t want to start them out that way,” she says. “I have it good because after Cheyenne I get to come home for a couple weeks and can let the horses that have been gone rest for a bit while the others pick up the slack.”
When planning her rodeo run, Munsell builds her schedule around the best rodeos first, then fills in the rest depending on her draw.
“You enter the best rodeo first for what you want and then just go from there pending on how you get up. It definitely helps to have good hauling partners, people that are willing to come out and help drive and take care of horses and to have more than one horse.”
As a seasoned ProRodeo veteran, Munsell has gathered very valuable advice to pass on to rookie competitors tackling their first summer run and Cowboy Christmas.
“Find a good hauling partner, and enter where you’re going to get in. Don’t make the circle super hard on yourself and your horses,” she says. “There’s a lot of rodeos now – you can go a different route than you see us doing and still go to a lot of good rodeos. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice from other people entered at the rodeos, and that includes barrel racers. They’ve been doing this longer than we have and know all the best places to layover and how to get ahold of a vet or farrier when you’re in need.”
