Local Pro Barrel Racer Just Won $100,000 at The American Rodeo

A Humboldt County barrel racer just had a very good weekend.

Hayle Gibson-Stillwell, the Redcrest resident who captured North Coast hearts last year when she qualified for her first National Finals Rodeo, claimed the barrel racing title Saturday at The American Rodeo in Arlington, Texas — one of the richest single-day rodeo events in the country. She and her mare Buncha Dinero, known as “Piper,” posted a 15.428-second run in the championship round to take home $100,000.

“It really was [an upset], and it shocked me, to be quite honest,” Gibson-Stillwell said Monday in a phone interview heading back to California. “I know I had a great horse and everything, but gosh, the competition was tough.”

For those who followed her NFR debut last December, this won’t come as a complete surprise. Gibson-Stillwell spent most of 2025 grinding out nearly 45,000 miles on her truck, competing at rodeos across the country to earn enough to crack the top 15 money earners in the nation — the only path to the NFR, where the best barrel racers in the country compete over 10 nights each December in Las Vegas. She made it as the only Californian in the barrel racing field that year, calling it a childhood dream.

This year looks a little different. Having an NFR qualification under her belt means she gets into rodeos she couldn’t before — events with bigger payouts that make the road to Las Vegas a bit less frantic, even if the competition is stiffer.

“I don’t have to go as hard as I did before, because the rodeos I’m eligible for pay more,” she said. “But the competition is actually harder.”

She has attended 26 rodeos so far in 2026, 24 of them officially sanctioned events that count toward the Pro Rodeo World Standings. Those standings determine who qualifies for the NFR each year, based purely on total money earned. She sits fourth in the nation with $73,609 heading into the summer — a strong position, though the summer circuit is where standings shift fast.

The American Rodeo was one of the two non-sanctioned events, meaning Saturday’s $100,000 win won’t move the needle on her world standings. She almost didn’t enter for exactly that reason.

“When I got the invite to the American, I really wasn’t sure I was going to go, because it didn’t count for the world standings,” she said. “I had some friends tell me that it was a great opportunity, and I should probably let my horse go and shine, so I’m really thankful they [told] me that.”

The American draws top professionals through a mix of world-standings invitations and a separate qualifier system, where riders compete through regional events all year for a shot at a $2 million bonus reserved only for those qualifiers. Gibson-Stillwell came in as an invitee, eligible only for the $100,000 event prize. Three of her four fellow finalists were bonus-eligible — two of them NFR-level competitors who had deliberately passed up an invitation like hers to keep that $2 million on the table.

Going in without that pressure, she said, actually helped.

“I had no expectations,” she said. “I didn’t have any pressure, because I was an invitee. I was just thinking about the pressure that those kids had… and what they were probably thinking and going through.”

She beat them all. The $2 million bonus is a shared pot split among any qualifying winners across all rodeo disciplines that day — barrel racing, bull riding, team roping and others. Because no barrel racing qualifier won the event, Gibson-Stillwell’s victory didn’t trigger a share of the bonus. Three qualifiers in other disciplines claimed it and split it among themselves.

The field was also missing its biggest name — reigning two-time world champion Kassie Mowry withdrew just hours before the event with no reason given.

Heidi Gunderson finished second with a 15.489, followed by Blake Molle at 15.583 and Dusky Lynn Hall at 15.694.

Piper remains the centerpiece of Gibson-Stillwell’s program — a homebred mare she raised and trained herself from birth, something rarely seen at the professional level. Her dam caught Gibson-Stillwell’s eye years ago while she was working at the Ferndale racetrack, ponying racehorses. She bought the Thoroughbred, retrained her as a barrel horse, and bred her to produce Piper. Gibson-Stillwell has been the only rider to ever sit on her.

She also competes on two other mares — RDC DancingToTheLead, known as “Fancy,” and Smiling N Ta Fame, known as “Sharky” — rotating all three based on arena conditions, though Piper remains her go-to gal.

“Piper, we call her a freak because she can excel in every atmosphere,” Gibson-Stillwell said. “She’s gonna win no matter what you put her up against.”

While Saturday’s $100,000 won’t show up in her world standings total, it matters. It’s financial cushion for a summer of travel and entry fees as she chases a second consecutive NFR qualification — and maybe something more.

“The goal is making the NFR — that’s the biggest goal,” she said. “I would love to win a world title for my horses, but the goal is to make the NFR.”

The summer circuit means more miles and more time away — including missing the local rodeo season back home. But one stop she’s looking forward to is the Salinas Rodeo in July, a week-long California event that puts her a little closer to the North Coast and the fans who have been following along since her NFR debut. Representing Humboldt County on the professional stage, she said, means a lot to her. And if this weekend is any indication, Humboldt has plenty more to look forward to.