“Why Buy Yourself a Saddle When You Can Win One?”
Some rodeo careers begin with a great horse, a polished plan and years of experience.
Adalynn Graybeal's began a little differently.
She had always loved horses. Some of her earliest memories are riding alongside her mom, Papa and Nonnie. But when she became eligible for Idaho Junior Rodeo in sixth grade, Adalynn was competing in just two events: barrels and poles.
Then her uncle gave her a piece of advice only a rodeo kid could fully appreciate:
“Why buy yourself a saddle when you can win one?”
So she decided she'd better learn a few more events.
Adalynn picked up goat tying and breakaway roping, stepping well outside of what was comfortable at the time. She couldn't have known then just how much that decision would change the direction of her life.
Those two events eventually helped her earn multiple college rodeo scholarship offers.
And somewhere along the way, chasing a saddle turned into something much bigger.
For countless hours, they pulled that dummy around the arena while Adalynn learned to rope. What looked like a makeshift practice setup became the place she discovered just how much she loved the event.
That willingness to work with what's available instead of waiting for perfect circumstances has followed her ever since.
When injuries sidelined her own horses, she rode horses other people trusted her with.
When she couldn't keep roping calves at home, people opened their arenas.
When she needed instruction, coaches gave their time.
And Adalynn kept showing up.
Built With What She Had
There wasn't always a perfect setup available.
When Adalynn was learning to rope in eighth grade, she practiced on an old borrowed horse while her mom pulled a roping dummy behind a four-wheeler.
The dummy's transportation system?
A snow sled.
A legitimate, slide-down-a-hill snow sled.
It wasn't fancy. But it worked.
When the Plan Changes
Adalynn knows something about adapting.
In September 2024, her horse fell while she was competing in a cowgirl triathlon, breaking the arch of her foot.
With rodeo season approaching and eventually cleared to compete if she could tolerate the pain, Adalynn rode through her junior season with the injury. She still qualified for State in every event she competed in and earned the District Goat Tying Champion title.
Eventually, surgery couldn't be avoided.
Recovery was expected to take roughly nine months. Then a screw used to repair her foot fractured, requiring another surgery, removal of bone and a bone graft.
Her senior rodeo season wasn't going to look anything like she'd planned.
So Adalynn changed the plan.
She competed in her first eight rodeos in a walking cast. In goat tying, she completely changed the way she dismounted, stopping her horse before getting off to reduce the risk to her foot.
And she won her district in goat tying again.
The experience taught her something she'll carry much farther than any rodeo arena:
Success doesn't require perfect circumstances. Sometimes it requires adapting to the circumstances you've been given and refusing to quit.
It Takes a Village
Ask Adalynn about the people responsible for her success and you'll quickly realize she has no intention of taking all the credit.
Her roots in Gooding, Idaho, run deep.
Her mom, Emily, was a first-generation cowgirl who found success in breakaway roping. Her dad, Jason, works alongside Adalynn's Papa, Rod Thomas, at the Gooding Airport. Rod built a crop-dusting business from the ground up with his brother and flew the planes himself. Her Nonnie, Cinda Thomas, founded a Gooding institution of her own: Zeppes Pizza & Subs.
Hard work, entrepreneurship, horses and community have surrounded Adalynn her entire life.
But her village reaches well beyond her immediate family.
There was Bekkie Bowerman, who trusted Adalynn with talented horses when her own was injured.
Julee James Smith, who spent countless hours helping her with goat tying and refused payment—even when practice fell on Mother's Day.
Marne and PJ Curtis, who gave her a place to rope and horses to compete on.
Acee and Laynee Lucero, who shared their knowledge and another talented horse.
Bailey Gifford, who helped a young cowgirl navigate the unfamiliar world of college rodeo recruiting and turn her accomplishments into five full-ride offers.
Romy Allen, whose reined cow horses helped Adalynn discover an event that eventually took her to nationals.
And Nikki Nelson, Brian Silva, the Hartman family, Karl Smith and family, Stan and Colette Born—and plenty of others whose time, horses, arenas, knowledge and encouragement became part of her story.
Adalynn describes the generosity she's experienced with genuine gratitude.
She also understands what comes next.
Someday, she wants to be the person opening the arena, lending the horse, sharing the knowledge and giving the next kid an opportunity.
Because that's how rodeo communities keep going.
Someone helps you.
You do everything you can with the opportunity.
And when you're able, you turn around and help the next one.
More Than a Rodeo Athlete
Rodeo may take up plenty of Adalynn's time, but it certainly isn't the only thing she's interested in.
She's a daughter, student and vet tech who enjoys working out, fishing, golfing, sewing, silversmithing, welding and longboarding.
And then there's thrifting.
Adalynn loves finding one-of-a-kind vintage pieces and putting together a style that doesn't look exactly like everyone else's. She can spend hours digging through racks looking for the hidden gem everyone else missed.
Maybe that shouldn't surprise us.
There seems to be a pattern here.
Whether it's a borrowed horse, a snow sled behind a four-wheeler or a vintage piece buried on a thrift-store rack, Adalynn has gotten pretty good at seeing potential in what's right in front of her.
The Next Arena
In fall 2026, Adalynn will leave Gooding and begin the next chapter of her story at Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, Oregon.
She plans to study Equine Science as she works toward her long-term goal of becoming an equine chiropractor.
In the arena, she'll compete in goat tying and breakaway roping while adding team roping to the list.
But what she's most excited about isn't an event.
It's becoming part of a team.
Adalynn will be the first person in her family to college rodeo, something she says represents years of dedication, sacrifice and support from the many people who helped her reach this point.
She knows balancing academics, college rodeo, horses and life away from home will require more independence, discipline and organization.
She's ready for that challenge.
Her sights are already set high—including a goal of someday qualifying for the College National Finals Rodeo in goat tying and breakaway roping.
This winter, Adalynn will sit down with JYRF to establish the primary goal she'll pursue throughout her two-year scholarship journey and build the habits and accountability system that will help her get there.
Her JYRF goal story is coming Winter 2026.
Why Adalynn
When Adalynn applied for the John Yore Rodeo Foundation Scholarship, she wrote about three values that have shaped the person she's becoming:
Gratitude. Generosity. Ambition.
Her application showed all three.
She is grateful for what she's been given without believing that gratitude means she should stop striving for more.
She has experienced extraordinary generosity and already thinks about how she can someday pay it forward.
And when circumstances have gotten difficult, she has repeatedly found another way forward.
In her scholarship video, Adalynn talked about what it would mean to represent the values she saw in Grampa John's legacy: integrity, hard work, generosity, faith in others and a love for rodeo life.
Those weren't simply the right things to say. Her story had already demonstrated them.
That's why the John Yore Rodeo Foundation Board of Directors selected Adalynn Graybeal as the 2026 JYRF Scholarship Recipient.
And when we asked what she hopes she'll be able to say about herself when this two-year journey is over, her answer wasn't about buckles, championships or even college rodeo.
She hopes she can say she kept showing up, stayed true to her values, trusted God's plan, gave the opportunity everything she had, and became someone who positively represents what this scholarship stands for.
We think that's a pretty good place to begin.
Welcome to the JYRF family, Adalynn. Your story is just getting started.
