Racetrack To Rodeo

06/17/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1cpGP6BcDS/

03/24/2026

Always an honor to be featured by The Western Thoroughbred

Valorie and I will be gearing up for some rodeos soon, can't wait to see what 2026 holds for us!

Paige Leigh Wells and her OTTB mare Miss Valor, aka “Valorie,” started competing in professional rodeo last year. They are shown here at the 90th Annual Toppen*sh Rodeo in Toppen*sh, Washington.

Valorie is an eight-year-old mare bred by Nina M. Hagen and Holly Sturgeon in Washington. She is by graded stakes winner Abraaj and out of Knight Raider, by Tribunal. She won two races and earned $14,395 on the track. Paige and Valorie are a great team! We cannot wait to see what they will accomplish this year!

Photo Credit: Emma Folz Photography

02/24/2026

Weekend Recap with Valorie 🐎🔥
Race 2 of the year is in the books.

Was it as fast as I’d like?
No.

But progress doesn’t always look like a personal best.

🥉 3rd in the 4D Open – $118
🥇 1st in the 3D Senior – $29
Adding to Valorie’s LTE and building consistency early in the season.

We’re not running full tilt yet.
We’re following a plan.
🏋‍♀️ Fitness first.
💪 Strength before speed.
🏇 Speed when it feels right.

Wins are made in consistency daily

We’ll run again on the 28th at Diamond U with Twisted A Productions.

Sunday I skipped auditing a clinic to stay home with my husband instead — built fence, worked in the barn, invested where it matters.

Monday rain = rest day.

Today: • Light pole work for Valorie
• Testing Geraldine to see if she’s ready to step back into light work as her injury finishes healing

The preparation is everything.

If you are looking to restart your own OTTB, download my Racetrack To Rodeo guide here➡️
https://racetracktorodeo.etsy.com/listing/4459195575
On to the 28th. 🔥

02/21/2026

Truer words have never been written on the Good Lord's internet.

02/19/2026

Race week check-in 👇

What's your pre-race routine…

Do you:
A) Make practice runs
B) Conditioning work only
C) Follow a structured plan

I am option C....

Tonight I’ll share what day 4 of my structured routine the week before a race.

02/19/2026

4-Barrel Drill with Valorie 🐎🔥
The last two days were fitness — controlled loping for wind and strength.
Today was about:
✔ Shape
✔ Balance
✔ Keeping her shoulders up
✔ Staying soft
Saturday we compete.
But today?
We sharpen.
We strengthen.
We prepare.

02/18/2026

Day in the Life: Working Woman + Barrel Racer + Barn Manager + Wife + Grandma🐎🔥

7:00 AM – Clock in to my "real job"
Because dreams are funded by discipline.

4:30 PM – Clock out and straight to the barn.

Boarder horses to check on.
Water tanks to fill.
Stalls to clean.
Horses to ride.

Geraldine gets her wound cleaned and rewrapped —
because the best horses still need extra care sometimes.

Then it’s riding time with Valorie to prepare for races this weekend.
Sometimes solo, oftentimes with my granddaughter beside me…
and honestly, that’s the best part.

One horse gets conditioning.
One gets slow pattern work.
One just gets better.

Building athletes the right way.

8:00 PM – Back in the house.
Dinner on the stove for my husband.
Dust still in my hair.
Heart full.

Building dreams and memories.

And if you’re retraining a horse or building your own barrel foundation,
I put my full Racetrack ➝ Rodeo training guide in my Etsy shop:
👉 https://www.etsy.com/shop/RacetrackToRodeo

Follow along for daily barn life + training tips.