Kaitlin McWhorter among top rodeo competitors in nation

Kaitlin McWhorter of Cobden is ranked number eight in the nation out of 543 girls in the senior division who are participating in the National Little Britches Rodeo Association, NLBRA.

The 18 year old is headed to the 2016 NLBRA finals at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Okla., in July. The Lazy E Arena is the largest indoor arena in the country.

The NLBRA finals are scheduled July 5-10 and are expected to feature more than 900 rodeo athletes who will be working to win a world championship and a portion of the more than $280,000 in prize packages.

Contestants compete for prizes such as saddles, buckles, gift certificates, and college scholarships. 

McWhorter has already been notified that she was one of four students to receive the Rainwater Family Memorial Scholarship for 2016 when she attends Murray State University in Murray, Ky.

During the past year, McWhorter has competed in Searcy, Ark., at the Central Arkansas Little Britches Rodeo, CALBRA and ALBRA in Somerville, Ala.

In order to qualify for the nationals, competitors needed to rank five times in the top seven of their events. 

McWhorter has qualified in all of the six events in which she participated: breakaway roping, goat tying, barrel racing, pole bending, trail course, and ribbon roping. 

McWhorter is nationally ranked 9th in goat tying, 13th in pole bending, 13th in trail course, 33rd in barrel racing and 32nd in breakaway.

At the CALBRA finals in June, McWhorter won an All-Around Championship saddle for the year and All-Around Championship saddle for the finals and was awarded 10 championship buckles for season and finals. 

She also received an All-Around Championship saddle for the Alabama Little Britches Rodeo Association this month.