Kaila Mussell of Chilliwack is being inducted into the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame in 2024 as the first and only professional female saddle bronc rider in the history of North American rodeo.
Mussell will be flying to Fort Worth, Texas to attend the 48th Annual Induction Luncheon and Ceremony on Nov. 12 presented by the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.
“Every year, we are in awe of the talent and tenacity that our honourees possess, and the 2024 inductees are no exception,” said Museum executive director, Patricia Riley in a release. “Each of them has made impactful contributions to their respective fields, and we are honoured for them to join the Cowgirl family.”
The local saddle bronc star will be honoured alongside fellow inductees Beth Cross, JJ Hampton, and the Pack Horse Library Project, each having made their mark in rodeo, business and public service sectors.
Mussell made her bold entry into professional saddle bronc riding in 2002, placing among the top competitors from the outset. She became the first woman to ever win a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association sanctioned event that same year in Oregon.
Mussell grew up on Sqwá First Nation, a member of a well-known local family, The Mussells, who made rodeo a way of life.
She had tried barrel racing, steer riding and even some trick riding at the Calgary Stampede before settling on the sport of saddle bronc riding.
These days she keeps exceptionally busy as an equine sports therapist and teaching equine sports therapy in clinics. She still rides saddle bronc a bit, but not to the extent she once did. She also got back into riding saddle horses a few years ago, and started and training her own horses in barrel racing, roping and ranch work.
The Chilliwack Progress conducted a quick little Q&A with Mussell to delve even deeper into how Chilliwack's favourite cowgirl is feeling about the upcoming Hall of Fame ceremony and induction.
Q: What does this 2024 hall of fame recognition mean to you, after all the years, and the hard work, is this a special one?
A: This is the most prestigious recognition I've gotten thus far in my career. It's a huge honour to be recognized among such high-calibre cowgirls from all my years of hard work becoming the first professional female saddle bronc rider in North America. I idolized early cowgirls who used to compete against men in the late 1800s and early 1900s, so receiving this induction places me alongside those cowgirls who I looked up to, which is very cool.
Q: Will you be attending the ceremony in Fort Worth, Texas?
A: Of course I will be attending the ceremony! I'm one of only three other individual woman to be recognized this year. The luncheon induction usually has several thousand people in attendance. Some of my family is coming to be there along with a few friends who have supported me over the years. I also had some generous perks that go along with being inducted.
Q: What would you like the community of Chilliwack to know about why you're being singled out?
A: I'm the first and still the only professional female saddle bronc rider in the history of professional rodeo, for which I'm being recognized for at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. I'm also only the second Canadian to be inducted since their formation in 1975.
Q: What's it like to excel in a male-dominated sport like saddle bronc?
A: It's been very rewarding to prove that I'm as capable as my male counterparts. I've always wanted to just be another competitor, proving my abilities rather than a female trying to make headway for woman's rights. Unfortunately that seems to be how I'm been portrayed over the years and that's far from the truth. I grew up with the mentality that if you can do the job, than you can do it - all gender aside. It's been very hard work, frustrating, I've had to overcome mental health issues, a multitude of injuries, financial hardship, and prove time and time again that I belong there to an overshadowing of naysayers. This kind of recognition proves to me all my years spent in the saddle doing what I love has been worthwhile, alongside seeing how I have inspired others over the years
Q: What would you say to up-and-coming female riders who'd like to try saddle bronc?
A: Honestly I wouldn't recommend it, it takes a special kind of female - or male - to do what I do. I've had so many females ask me that over the years, most of whom haven't been that serious about it and wanted more the 'claim to fame' of being one of the only females in what has been traditionally male domain. If they were serious about it there are many factors to consider, the main one being you must be physically fit, determined to do this for the long run because it doesn't happen that you will be awesome overnight. It's the most technical of the 'roughstock' events in rodeo which includes bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding and bull riding. You have to be in perfect timing with a bucking horse for eight seconds so that means it takes hundreds of bucking horses to get your subconscious to respond that way. Injuries are going to happen - it's just a matter of how bad. I'm 46 now and I'm plagued by arthritis finally in our damp coastal weather.
Q: Was it worth it?
A: Totally, but I caution anyone who wants to pursue this that there will be consequences for picking a sport that's so hard on your body. Financially this is a very expensive sport. You can't go into it thinking you are going to make money right off the bat, and honestly when you do, you are lucky if you break even after all your expenses travelling to and from the rodeo and more. I applaud anyone who wishes to follow in my footsteps, but know it isn't going to be easy. I've spent over 25 years doing this and I still ride a few broncs to this day, although I have to play it smarter as a result of injuries.
