Internet Abuzz as Four-Time World Champion Teams up with Veteran NFR Horse

Wait, wait, wait, which barrel racer rode which horse at the Hondo Rodeo in Phoenix, AZ?

Hailey Kinsel competing at the Hondo Rodeo Fest / Hillary Maybery for Rodeo on SI

For those who have not competed at the highest level of barrel racing, it is hard to understand how rare the caliber of horse to win at those events truly is. And you know what is even more rare? A horse that can win at that level with multiple jockeys.

KN Fabs Gift Of Fame is just that kind of mare. The 2009 daughter of Frenchmans Fabulous out of Mistys Dash Of Fame by Dash Ta Fame has over $1 million in recorded lifetime earnings - mostly earned "the hard way" in barrel racing standards.

Over the past decade, "JLo" has won at every level, making multiple 16-second runs on standard patterns with different jockeys. Owned by Kenny Nichols and Dale Barron, the mare has built the kind of record that breeders, owners, and jockeys dream of.

JLo first found success her futurity year (2014) with trainer, Kelsey Lutjen Treharne of Collinsville, TX. Within the next few years, Kelsey and her late mother, Lisa Lutjen, both qualified for the American on JLo. After a standout futurity year and continuing to rack wins in the aged events with Kelsey, JLo paired up with Ivy Conrado Saebens.

Saebens and JLo proved to be another great team, building a stellar WPRA career together and earning Reserve Horse of the Year titles in 2018 and 2019. The duo notched major wins across the US and Canada, from rounds at Calgary to the National Finals Rodeo. In 2019, they captured the coveted NFR Average title for the fastest time on ten runs.

JLo experienced a life-threatening health complication in 2020. The mare had to take the latter half of the season off and missed the NFR that year, but was back in 2021. Saebens, who now resides in Nowata, OK, has always put JLo's best interests first and has not pursued full-time rodeo competition since 2021. JLo, however, was not fully retired and continued to win anytime Saebens broke her out.

Rodeo and barrel racing fans were surprised and buzzing this morning, with an announcement from Saebens on Facebook after the Hondo Rodeo in Phoenix, AZ:

"I guess it's time to post about it... first and foremost I want to emphasize that we still have big goals we want to attain for The Queen "JLo"! Thankfully one of my best friends has the opportunity to accelerate the possibility of accomplishing the goals that I have always dreamed of for this mare. If there's one thing we all know about JLo it is that she loves the crowd, she loves the chaos and she LOVES The Thomas & Mack!

Currently with where my career is and JLo's age we just aren't in a place that I feel comfortable pounding the pavement, she doesn't deserve the trailer time it takes to get to these events. So a huge thank you to Hailey Kinsel for giving JLo this opportunity to compete at The Hondo Rodeo and the WNFR 2024. She rode her perfectly!

I've said it a million times but this mare is unlike any other that there has been. Through all her trials and tribulations she continues to show her love for competing and until that love diminishes I will ALWAYS put my ego aside and give the horse the best opportunity for their career I can.

Thank you to Kenny & Dale for always trusting me to manage this mare. I can't wait to see what she does when she is loaded up in her favorite alley way. What a sight it will be to see JLo side by side with the one & only Sister. Last night Hailey & JLo snagged a 3rd place finish at their first rodeo together. None of this would be have been possible without Dr. Marty Tanner."

Hailey Kinsel shared the post with her own caption, "Like Justin McKee said last night: "That's a good buddy, that's a good friend, to loan you their rockstar horse..." Thank you JLo, Ivy, Kenny & Dale!"

Kinsel, a four-time WPRA World Champion Barrel Racer aboard her yellow rocket DM Sissy Hayday "Sister" (PC Frenchmans Hayday x Royal Sissy Irish), is making her 8th consecutive trip to the NFR this year. Coincidentally, Kinsel tends to find the winners circle aboard palomino mares. She and DH Jess Stellar "Jules" (Mighty Jess x PC Frosted Stellar) also earned the Women's Rodeo World Championship in 2022.

The $2.2 million cowgirl from Cotulla, TX, took the lead in the World Standings this year after winning the Governor's Cup in Sioux Falls, SD. Kinsel had already experienced an incredible year aboard Sister, but the $30,000 win in the final weekend of the season pushed her over the $200,000 mark in season earnings. Now heading into the NFR in the top spot, it will be fun to watch what Kinsel and JLo can do together in a building where they have both found so much success.