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DICKINSON - The Dickinson Rodeo Club will be saying good-bye to four of its high school seniors: Kiarra Reiss, Luke Mavity, Samantha Sabrosky and Jasmine Pavlicek, but these kids have big plans for the future. Whether it’s for pleasure or for a paycheck, these young athletes can’t get enough of the dirt slinging, speed chasing rodeo thrill. Together, they share their season highlights and post-graduation plans.
All four student athletes were introduced to rodeo as young children. Reiss and Mavity remember competing together in rodeo around age four. But most of these kids were in the saddle in their diapers.
Reiss started off doing every rodeo event including barrels, poles, goat tying, ribbon roping, team roping and breakaway roping. Over the years, she’s narrowed her favorites down to just breakaway and barrels. She competes every weekend and is constantly on the go.
Last year Reiss went to Nationals and ended up 3rd in the short go, 5th in the second go and 8th in the world in the barrels. For her, rodeo has been a great way to build confidence and community.
“Rodeo is like my family,” Reiss said. “Everyone is rooting for each other and helps each other. It’s a close-knit bond with people that creates life-long friendships.”
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After graduation, Reiss plans to attend Dickinson State University to major in agricultural business and marketing. She will continue her rodeo career at DSU and participate in North Dakota Rodeo Association (NDRA) events. She recently got her pro rodeo card which will allow her to compete with other professional members and win larger amounts of money.
Like Reiss, senior calf roper Luke Mavity takes his rodeo career seriously. He recently signed to rodeo at Black Hills State in Spearfish, SD and plans to make it to college finals all four years there. He will be pursuing studies in chemistry and chemical engineering.
As a young boy, Mavity started out competing in pole bending and barrel racing, but he found that calf roping was what he really wanted to do.
“I love calf roping because it’s just me. I don’t have to rely on a partner,” Mavity said. “If I make a mistake, I know what I need to work on.”
Mavity says that when he ropes, he tries to keep things as simple as possible because it’s easy to overthink. His fastest time calf roping is 8 seconds flat, which he says is pretty good considering most pros score a 6 or 7. Mavity’s end goal is to make it to the National Finals Rodeo. Within the last few years, he ended up 3rd in the world for calf roping at Little Britches Finals in Oklahoma. He says that rodeo has helped him build character and become resilient.
“I grew up doing this and I found rodeo as something that I excelled in,” Mavity said. “I want to keep doing it.”
Similarly, Dickinson Rodeo Club member Samantha Sabrosky plans to continue her rodeo career after high school at DSU. She practices team roping, barrels, goat tying and breakaway but her favorite of all is team roping. At DSU, she plans to compete primarily in breakaway and team roping. She will be majoring in agricultural business with a minor in equine management.
One of her favorite rodeo accomplishments to date was winning a team roping jackpot with her sister Macey at The Crooked Spear Arena last summer. Sabrosky says the trusting relationship she has built with her horses is important in achieving success as a rodeo athlete.
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“My horses are everything to me,” Sabrosky said. “I treat them like angels. I think that if you have a good working horse, you’re going to do a lot better and go a long way. If you treat them well, they will treat you well.”
Fourth and final Dickinson Rodeo Club senior Jasmine Pavlicek has enjoyed team roping and pole bending throughout her childhood and high school rodeo career. She grew up on a ranch and was always on horseback to help work the cattle. She has not yet decided if she will continue advancing her rodeo career in college. She says that pole bending is no longer a rodeo sport after high school.
“I think it’s because it takes a long time to set the poles,” Pavlicek said. “It’s a time killer but it’s an intricate sport. I like pole bending because it is one event that my horse is really good at. It took me a long time to get good at it because there is a lot going on really fast.”
Pavlicek says that if she does continue rodeo at DSU, she will compete in team roping. She is eager to start her major in criminal justice at DSU in the fall.
This Monday, May 30, the Dickinson Rodeo Club will put on a Memorial Day Rodeo at Stark County Fairgrounds. The cutting competition will begin at 7 a.m. followed by the rodeo at 9 a.m.
This will be the seniors last high school regular season rodeo of the year before State Finals. High school competitors have to place in the top 24 to qualify for State. Reiss and Mavity have already secured their spot.
