Canadian header Makayla Boisjoli now calls Stephenville, Texas home sweet home, and her time in the States has been made even sweeter thanks to the USTRC.

Boisjoli picked up $5,450 at the 2016 USTRC Cinch National Finals of Team Roping, heading in the #11 Preliminaries for South Dakota heeler Billy Myers (of Myers Performance Horses and Frenchmans Guy fame). They won second with a time of 33.76 seconds on four head, coming from 16th callback going into the short round.

“This was my first-ever USTRC buckle,” Boisjoli said. “I’ve gone to a ton of US ropings since I moved to Texas, and I’ve always wanted to win one. I was on my good horse, Sneak, who I sold not long ago. I rode her at the US Finals twice.”

Boisjoli is currently college rodeoing for Tarleton State, where she majors in accounting and expects to graduate in 2019. She heads at the college rodeos for her younger sister, Shelby, and also breakaway ropes.

Originally from Chestermere, Alberta, the Boisjolis have spent the winter in Arizona for much of the last decade, where they roped all season long in Casa Grande, Litchfield Park, Cave Creek, and Wickenburg. She roped at Team Roping Canada events while at home north of the border, and she spent her summers high school rodeoing and going to all-girl rodeos as much as she could.

Now in Texas, Boisjoli said she used the money from that Cinch National Finals of Team Roping win to enter even more ropings.

“I want to keep roping, and I want to keep going to the WPRA events, too,” Boisjoli said.