Kolton Schmidt is rodeoing on the Flag Ranch-bred futurity superstar mare Carters Won Time Out in 2024, just one year after the horse won $30,046 in Royal Crown heading earnings under A&C Racing and Roping‘s Rhen Richard.
On Carters Won Time Out, Schmidt won Vernal, Utah’s Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo, Stavely, Alberta’s ProRodeo and split the win at Grand Prairie, Alberta’s ProRodeo, and he’s picked up checks at Sisters, Oregon, and High River, Alberta. That brings her PRCA total to $13,590 in just her first month of competition outside the futurity pen.
“Rhen’s a big brother and has been as long as I’ve ever known him,” Schmidt, a two-time NFR qualifier, said. “And we’ve always talked horses, and he’s always had his opinion on my horses, even when I didn’t want it, which I’m thankful for. He’s a true big brother, and this winter, they told me about her, that she would fit me.”
The Richards decided they’d part with the mare, and they priced her to Schmidt when he was driving home from the California run.
“I flew down there, and I ran three steers on her,” Schmidt said. “And it was just obvious that she fit me. She’s what I’m after.”
Both Kaden, who rode Rhianna most of her career, and Rhen, who’s made six NFRs, have slowed down their rodeo careers, and Rhianna’s skills are well-suited for PRCA competition.
“She lets you pull on her in the box,” Richard explained. “The way roping is today, roping softer-type cattle, the barriers aren’t as long, and she’s 14.3-15 hands, and she’d work great in today’s rodeos.”
Her nature in the box and ability to score is one of Schmidt’s favorite things about her, and while she has a motor on her, he sees her being especially fit for setups like Calgary’s Rocky Mountain Cup.
“She kind of feels like that might be more her go-to,” Schmidt said. “She’s got run and stuff like that, but she’s just so easy across the mouth of the box that where I need to use my rope, she gets the steer’s head so fast and shapes him up so good that anything like that I think she’s going to be substantial at.”
The 6-year-old by One Time Honor and out of Carters Time is proof of the successful program the Richards have built, something Schmidt has believed in for a while.
“The whole program over there is cool,” Schmidt said. “From Trinity (Haggard) putting the feel in them, to Kaden’s slow work, to all the extra stuff that Rhen can do to them. As a whole, I’ve always been a fan and now getting to ride one and compete on one, I’m definitely a believer.”
In 2023, Schmidt lost his legendary gelding Tuffys Badger Chex, aka “Badger,” the horse that carried him to his 2013 Canadian ProRodeo title and first NFR qualification in 2016. While replacing the 2016 AQHA/PRCA Horse of the Year is impossible, Schmidt finds qualities in Rhianna that remind him of Badger while still acknowledging her traits he’s never had in his herd.
“If there’s any horse of mine that she compares to, it’s Badger,” Schmidt said. “The way she’s built, the way she scores—that’s the closest thing I’ve ever owned to him. But other than that, I’ve had run, but I haven’t had cow also. Her mixture is what I’m after.”
As for future breeding plans, Schmidt has them in the back of his mind. But for now, Rhianna will be hitting the road with Schmidt.
“I’m going to leave her be for just a little bit, but that was exciting that she was a mare and she fit me because, obviously, the end result is that I can have a program and have some horses to base it off of,” Schmidt said. “But for right now, I’m going to be selfish about it, and I’m going to worry about getting back to winning and win as much as I can.”
Schmidt and Rhianna head next to the 2024 Reno Rodeo short round Saturday, June 29, where Schmidt and Landen Glenn are tied for third, fourth and fifth.
