The WPRA Athlete of the Week Tessa Arnold made history with an unforgettable week, establishing a new arena record at the iconic National Western Stock Show and Rodeo after coming in through the Denver qualifier.
In the initial run of Bracket 5, Arnold clocked in at 15.09, earning her the fifth position. The Texas cowgirl then followed up with a 14.78-second run in Round 2 to secure the No. 1 spot in the Average with 29.87 seconds on two head, splitting the lead with fellow barrel racer Jamie Olsen.
Arnold locked in her fastest run of the rodeo in Semifinals 3 as she stopped the clock at 14.50 seconds, setting a new arena record on her equine partner Latte Ditto, a clone of the gelding Mary Walker won her 2016 World Championship on.
Arnold broke a mark that had already been reset twice during the week, the first time was a 14.68 by Chelsea Moore and the second by four-time World Champion Hailey Kinsel, a 14.63, in Bracket 7.
The Short-Go did not go as Arnold had hoped as she hit a barrel, eliminating her from the leaderboard, however, Arnold did not leave Denver empty handed as she pulled a check for $3,870 while leaving her mark on history at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo.
