RODEO competitor Emma Peters of Towrang, a village about 10km north of Goulburn, is barrelling along merrily, having won a couple of events in recent weeks.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mrs Peters, 32, won three of four Australian Professional Rodeo Association (APRA) cowgirl events in Finley, far southern NSW, and Beechworth, northeastern Victoria.
Making a late charge for a top-15 ranking and qualification into the 2016 Australian championships, she won the barrel race and breakaway roping at Finley, and backed up the next day to win the barrel race at Beechworth.
Rodeo riding is in her blood as her family has been in competitions for many years.
“Both Mum and Dad, as well as my brother Russell, have all competed in rodeos in the past and my husband, Phil Peters, also does team roping,” Mrs Peters said.
“We grew up around the Bargo area in the Wollondilly [shire] and moved to Towrang when I was 16.”
Mrs Peters said the barrel race and breakaway roping are her two favourite events.
“The barrel race is a fast-paced event, whereas breakaway roping requires more skill and provides more of a challenge, because you have to try and get the rope around the calf’s neck fairly quickly,” she said.
Mrs Peters rides with both APRA and the Australian Bushmen’s Campdraft and Rodeo Association (ABCRA), which can require rodeo competitors to travel as far north as Queensland and down south to Victoria.
Both Mr and Mrs Peters have many more opportunities over the next three months to gain championship points, as there are another 27 rodeos scheduled for the season.
Mrs Peters competed in the ABCRA National Finals, January 21 to 23 at the Australian Equine Livestock and Events Centre (AELEC) in Tamworth, and will return to the Southern Tablelands to take part in the Taralga Rodeo on January 26.
The next APRA Rodeo will be held in NSW at Wagga Wagga on January 30, then in Victoria at Ballarat on February 13.
Many of her interstate counterparts will also head to Victoria for three rodeos, which will be held over the long weekend of March 11-13.
Over the Easter long weekend, there will be two in NSW, four in Victoria, and four in QLD.
For more information on the Taralga Rodeo, go to the Taralga Showground website at taralgashowground.com and select the Taralga Rodeo and Campdraft link.
More information on the Wagga Wagga Rodeo is on the APRA website: prorodeo.com.au.