There is no conversation about brother team roping teams without mention of the Minors. Riley and Brady Minor are about to rope at their 12th NFR together, and as of next month will have racked up a grand total of 26 Super Bowl of Rodeo back numbers between them. Some say it’s harder—more pressure—when siblings join forces. The Minor boys don’t see it that way.
Little brother Riley is 37 now. He and his wife, Jordan, have two girls, Monroe, 8, and McCoy, who’ll be 5 on November 3. Big brother Brady is 40. He and his wife, Ashley, have a couple kids of their own. Son Maverick is 10, and daughter Mesa is 5. This particular pair of partners are the pride of their beloved hometown of Ellensburg, Washington—the Minor family was inducted into the Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2007—and have long enjoyed wintering in warmer Wittmann, Arizona.
Riley’s now 12 NFR qualifications came in 2008-09, 2011, 2013-19, 2022 and 2025, all with Brady. Tack on two more for Brady in 2006 and 2021. He heeled for Garrett Tonozzi in Vegas in 2006, back before Riley really got to rolling in his professional roping career. Brady roped with Derrick Begay at the 2021 NFR, after Riley broke his leg in a head-horse fall at the Pendleton Round-Up that year, and barely missed the heading cut in 16th. Riley and Brady, who finished 17th and 19th in the world last year, respectively, have both won well over $2 million with their ropes.
This team’s career highlights include winning $100k a man at The American in 2017. But there has been no bigger win for the Minor boys than the victory lap at their hometowner in 2018. As Riley put it, “There are bigger rodeos than Ellensburg, but winning our hometown rodeo in front of those fans, with all our family and friends in the stands, was a pretty special bucket-list win for Brady and me.”
Veteran horsepower
Then there are their veteran warrior horses, Bob and Sug. Riley’s Bob was the 2018 and 2020 Head Horse of the Year. Brady’s heel horses have also scored the award, including Dugout taking 2011 Heel Horse of the Year honors by a vote of the cowboys, Rey striking twice as the 2014-15 Heel Horse of the Year, and Sug sharing the 2020 Heel Horse of the Year award with Logan Medlin’s Drago (Nita Win Playboy).
Bob (RK Tuff Trinket) is 23 now, and Sug (Leos Highbrow) is 20, which puts them at the same end of the elder-scale spectrum as their 37- and 40-year-old cowboy counterparts. Bob injured a stifle in the fall of 2022, so Riley bought another sorrel he called Frosty from Kaleb Driggers in 2023. He rode Frosty from then through the early part of this year (with the exception of getting to ride Bob at a couple winter rodeos in 2024), then sold him back to Driggers in August.
“Frosty’s a nice horse, and we won quite a bit on him, including Red Bluff and second at Ponoka this year,” Riley said. “I rode Bob most of the Fourth of July this year, and after that at all but Ponoka, Sheridan, Cheyenne and Pendleton.
“I started riding Bob in 2015, and he’s meant everything to my career. I’ve had some other good horses, but he’s been one of the best horses out there in every situation. I’ve never ridden a horse like Bob that tries so hard every time and never tries to screw you, and he’s still damn good at his age. There’s never going to be another horse that fits me like Bob.”
As for Brady’s horses, he rode Sug all winter and spring, and through this year’s Fourth of July run. When Sug felt a little off, Brady gave him a break and cracked out a 5-year-old palomino his kids call Whip Cream (Fire In The Hol) ahead of schedule, and rode him at Cheyenne, Spanish Fork, Ogden, Estes Park, Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs to help the Minors’ cause by almost $30,000.
Thankfully, Sug had no significant injuries, and after Ellensburg veterinarian Joey Bergevin shod him, Sug was good to go again in time for them to get the W at Strathmore the first week of August.
“Sug is so tough,” Brady said. “He’s getting older, and I never know how long he’ll last. But he feels great. I just keep him in shape now, and make a few slow practice runs on him. He’s just so honest and solid, scores good, and is good in any setup. Sug might not be as fancy as some of the others, but he’s easy. My yellow did great, and stepped up to some big shoes. But Sug’s who I plan to ride at the Finals.”
Roping mentors
Which ropers have impacted each brother most is old-school interesting. Riley says he’s always looked up to Chad Masters, and bought a horse from him when he was 16. Brady’s greatest influences go back to guys like Allen Bach and Clay Cooper, who stayed at the Minors’ place while in the Northwest over the years.
“I’ve never been to a roping school, but a bunch of those guys who stayed with us along the way have given me pointers,” Brady said. “We’ve been around the best ropers all our lives.”
When Riley was an 18-year-old rookie in 2007, he headed for BJ Campbell. Brady heeled for Trevor Brazile at the winter rodeos in 2008, then Patrick Smith made the move from Clay Tryan to Trevor.
“I was still a young buck back then, and Trevor and I had won a few checks, but hadn’t lit them on fire,” Brady remembers. “Austin was my last rodeo with Trevor. I needed a partner, so Riley and I decided to rope together. As kids growing up, we figured we’d rope together one day. That was just the timing of it, early on in 2008.”
Brothers first
People often ask them about the pros and cons of being brothers and roping partners.
“I like that I can tell Brady what I’m thinking without making him mad,” Riley said. “Some other partners talk behind each other’s backs, and don’t go straight to the source. It’s an open book between me and Brady. We always know what the other guy’s thinking.”
“We’ve been successful together, whether we’re brothers or not,” Brady added. “I’ve roped with Riley every day since we were kids. The best part is we like to go to the same rodeos, and we want to be home at the same time. We’ve traveled together a lot, and it’s been good. I think it’s easier to discuss things with your brother, and we get to rope together all the time, because we’re neighbors in Washington and Arizona.”
Why do they think they’re one of the most successful brother teams in roping history?
“We’ve just been lucky it worked out,” Riley said. “Teams that have a good, consistent run tend to stay together.”
“It’s probably a stroke of luck,” Brady humbly agrees. “It’s worked out good for us, but I think Riley could go make the NFR with any other No. 10 heeler.”
Like all siblings, the Minors don’t agree on every single thing. As Riley puts it, “We argue all the time, but we don’t ever punch each other or anything.”
Reclaiming the spark
The explanation for their two-year NFR absence also exemplifies their humility, and how tough it is out on the hot and dusty these days.
“The game’s changed and gotten faster, and there are always talented young guys coming up,” Riley said. “There are literally 30 teams at all times with a good chance to make it. There are no guarantees when it comes to making the Finals, and we’re getting a little older and slower.”
One run stung a little extra for Brady at the 2024 fall finish line.
“I heeled a steer by two feet in the short round at Pendleton last year, and he jumped out of it,” he said. “That was devastating, and probably cost us the NFR. That one bad break changed everything. But that’s how it goes out here sometimes.”
The Minors didn’t make any major changes this year, but part of getting their magic back goes back to their horse herd.
“I feel like I’m more consistent after getting back on Bob,” Riley said. “We drew some good steers this summer, and made good runs on them.”
“When Riley got back on Bob, we just went to winning,” Brady agreed. “We had an awesome summer—as good as it’s ever been—and Bob and Sug have been amazing. Getting back to winning and in the standings again gave us a spark this summer.”
Back to Cowboy Town
Neither has taken trips to the NFR for granted.
“When we made it a few years in a row, we kind of expected to be there,” Riley said. “But there are no guarantees of getting there ever. Making that first Finals is what you dream about as a little kid. You practice and work hard, and hope your wishes come true. Pulling back into the Thomas & Mack will probably hit a little different this year.”
“I’ll never take the NFR for granted, especially now after missing it a couple times and knowing how hard it is to make it these days,” Brady said. “For me, the two sweetest ones would have to be my first one and this one.
“That first Finals is amazing for everyone, and with me being older and having kids in school now, this one feels different because life’s different now. It’s nice to prove to ourselves that we can still do it. To come back on our old horses, and with me being on the older end of the ropers now has been good for our confidence.”
They’re both grateful for the return trip to Cowboy Town.
“I’m just thankful for the opportunity to go back and take it all in,” said Riley, who plans to start NFR 2025 on Bob. “If you want to have a big week, you’ve got to place in the average. I just want to play the course, and take it one run at a time. If we’re deep in the average, we’ll want to just keep making our run. If something goes haywire with that, we’ll just try to go fast. Things happen fast in that building, but I’m not going to back in there trying to win all 10 rounds.”
“It’d sure be neat to win that average title over there, but the go-rounds pay so good now that you can’t really back off,” Brady said. “I think everybody entered has the same goal, and that’s to win good in the rounds and the average. But I’m not going to think much about the average the first half of the week.
“Riley and I are planning to buy some Mexican bulldogging steers, which’ll be NFR-type steers, to practice on before the Finals. And at this stage of the game, we’ll make 30 good runs instead of throwing 100 loops a day, like we used to. The money’s better than ever, and I think it’ll be really fun for our kids this time, being a little older.”
What’s next
The Minors do plan to “enter up and rodeo” in 2026. Riley’s always said he’d stay hooked as long as he had a good head horse.
“Like Wade Wheatley told me one time, ‘You can’t ever quit until you’re not qualified,’” Brady smiled. “Riley and I are qualified for the winter rodeos again now, so I’ll plan to ride Sug this winter, then get back on Whip Cream in the spring. He’s ready.”
They don’t see the end to their rodeo careers just yet, but there comes a time for every cowboy and they know they’re no exception. Home is the ranch they grew up on—Mom Mary and Dad Brent’s place.
“Maybe we’ll stay home and chase cows,” Riley laughed.
“Yeah, I’m not sure what the future holds, but Dad will need some help on the ranch one of these days,” Brady said. “Rodeoing and winning are great. And everybody who can’t do it anymore says to do it while you can. They don’t bring the NFR to you. You’ve got to go get it. But you have to be gone to get there, and I like waking up in my own bed. I’ll rodeo as long as I’m competitive. And there’s a lot to look forward to on the other side, too.”
—TRJ—
