18-Year-Old Rookie Cowboy Commanding the Arena and Standings

One Resistol Rookie cowboy is well on his way to several titles and his first trip to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

Wacey Schalla / Omar Ornelas/El Paso Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Turning 18 years old is an exciting time for many cowboys and cowgirls as it is the year that they can officially become card carrying members of their respective professional rodeo associations.

What about being 18, a rookie in the Professional Rodeo Association, leading the Resistol Rookie All-Around Cowboy standings, and being ranked second in two events while also holding down the number 10 spot in the Bull Riding World Standings?

That is where Arapaho, Okla. cowboy Wacey Schalla finds himself. As a first year member of the association, Schalla is running away with the Resistol Rookie All-Around Cowboy standings. He has earned $116,930 while Cole Clemons of Lipan, Texas follows with $77,107.

Schalla has made quite a resume for himself during the 2024 season by winning in both the bareback and bull riding events. In Mt. Pleasant, Texas earlier in the year, the young superstar won both events and the all-around.

While it seems that Schalla excels in the bull riding, he certainly holds his own in the bareback riding event. The two-event man finds himself ranked at number 28 in the World Standings for the bareback riding along with holding down the number two spot in the rookie standings.

Weston Timberman from Columbus, Mont. is the leader in the Rookie standings for the bareback riding with nearly $94,000 in earnings. Schalla follows with his $51,747.

In the bull riding event, Schalla has shined. He is just about $1,500 behind the Rookie Standings leader Cooper James who has almost $114,500 to Schalla's $113,048. Jeter Lawrence is right in the mix of things sitting third currently with $109,028.

Schalla recently gained some ground by winning the Lovington, New Mexico Xtreme Bulls event. The $13,508 he won certainly aids his quest of winning the Rookie title along with making his first appearance at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas, Nevada in December.

It seemed like Schalla was on a mission at the event. He won the first round with an 89.5-point ride aboard Pete Carr Pro Rodeo's Richard Slam. In the final round, Schalla scored 88 points on Salt River Rodeo's Crawfish to give him the total of 177.5 points and the win.

In his interview with ProRodeo Sports News, Schalla said, "I didn't know exactly what I needed. I knew that the two riders before me stayed on, so I had to stay on and put up a solid number. I don't know what it is about the Xtreme events. I definitely wanted one of those X buckles for winning a Division 1 event. To stay on both rides and get that buckle means a lot."

He may have wanted that Division 1 event buckle, but it wasn't his first Xtreme Bulls win. Earlier this year, Schalla was the champion at the Northern Most Xtreme Bull Ridings in America event in Palmer, Alaska.

Schalla has always known what he wanted to do, and he has remained committed to bull riding. The bareback riding is a bit of an added bonus, but make no mistake, he is talented at both events.

As it stands currently, the 18-year-old talent is ranked number 10 in the World Standings of the bull riding.

With a little more than 45 days left in the season, Schalla will need to stay focused to make sure he stays in the top 15 as there is a lot of money left to be won.

His recent performances lead fans and viewers to believe he is well on his way to his first WNFR. In just the first nine days of August, Schalla has deposited $24,014 in bull riding earnings along with an additional nearly $2,500 in bareback money.