Bailee Stanton

Rodeo star Lacey Stanton may be lightning fast in the barrel-racing event, but younger sister Bailee is hot on her heels.

The two young adults — Lacey is 21 and Bailee just turned 19 — are literally steering their horses down the same path. Last year, Lacey took top prize at the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Barrel Racing Championship and Bailee followed suit by winning the 2010 running of the event in April.

“I run with Lacey at other rodeos and I always kind of see where I am sitting compared to her,” Bailee explained, adding that she went into the 2010 Intercollegiate Rodeo “thinking I could win but you have to go into every rodeo the same.”
Both girls grew up on the historic Brewster Kananaskis Guest Ranch in Exshaw, which was established in 1923 and sees thousands of western enthusiasts pass through its lands every year. Lacey and Bailee were introduced to the competitive side of the ranch lifestyle when they participated in English horse showmanship events as children.

The girls were introduced to rodeo a few years later and quickly fell in love with the rough and rugged nature of the sport.

Lacey Stanton, left, and her sister Bailee won the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Barrel Racing Championship in successive years. Photo by Jeremy Nolais

Lacey and Bailee grew up on the historic Brewster Kananaskis Guest Ranch. Photo by Jeremy Nolais

“Eventually, we both got to a level where we had to pick,” Lacey recalls.

“If we took another step into English riding we were going to have to go for it completely but we picked rodeo because it’s a little less political, a little more easy going and a little more fun.”

The Stanton sisters began honing their rodeo skills by attending numerous development clinics and signing up for the Devils Head Mountain Rodeo Team. Around this time, both sisters also attended and graduated from Cochrane High.
As the sisters progressed up the rodeo rankings, they found that the number of events offered for women began to narrow.

“(Barrel racing) kind of ends being your favourite because in college rodeos it’s pretty much the only thing you can do,” Bailee explained.

Lacey noted that cowgirls “used to compete in all of the other events.”

“But we’re not that stupid anymore,” Bailee quickly chimed in.

Now, with high school out of the way and a national title under each of their belts, the Stanton sisters seem set on continuing to work closely with animals. Lacey is currently obtaining her Bachelor of Equine Science through Breyer State University in the U.S. and Bailee is going into third year of pre-veterinary medicine at the University of Alberta.

Both sisters also plan to continue devoting time to barrel racing, noting that their sport requires constant practice and a great deal of patience.

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