Brody Neely, 13, an 8th-grade student in Springs’ iShine program, is a gifted rodeo rider and roper. He competes in two or more rodeos a month and is a top rider in the State of California. He has been sponsored to ride by many companies, and has won many prizes in competitions.
Brody was first exposed to horseback riding through his grandfather who kept horses on his ranch. One of the hands began to teach him to ride, and “I started enjoying it a lot and wanted to do it more.”
Competing in rodeos is difficult, he noted, “because you have to spend a lot of time practicing and learning muscle memory. It is also a very physical sport.”
Competition is fierce, he continued, and he must spend much time practicing. However, “It is really fun and you can make a career out of it.”
Brody began with iShine in 6th grade. The program works well for him, he said, because it gives him the freedom to participate in rodeo events, and to learn at his own pace.
When he’s not riding, Brody enjoys hunting, fishing and flying airplanes with his grandfather. After he finishes school, he’d like to own a house in Alaska, where he can fly airplanes and hunt, and another in Texas, where he can rope.
