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7/14/2009 3:33 AM

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By Pamela Murphy, for the Observer-Reporter

This article has been read 1302 times.

Jocelyn Lucsko is about to live her dream.

Lucsko, 15, of Buffalo Township, recently qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo to be held in Farmington, N.M., next week.

"I'm very excited to go," Lucsko said. "I've been doing this for eight or nine years, since I was 6."

Lucsko, who will be a sophomore at McGuffey High School this fall, will be competing against about 1,500 other students from 41 U.S. states, British Columbia, Canada, and Australia, in pole bending. In the event, six poles are placed 21 feet apart in a straight line. Competitors must ride past all six poles, turn and weave back through them, turn and weave through them again, and then ride back to the beginning past all six poles.

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"It's a very big deal," said Jocelyn's mom, Amy, who will be traveling to New Mexico with her. "It's the world's biggest rodeo. It's a full week ... and college recruiters will be there."

Lucsko also competes in barrel racing, goat tying and breakaway roping.

"Pole bending wasn't even our best event at the beginning of the season, but we came out of nowhere at the end," Lucsko said of herself and Jezzy, her 11-year-old pony paint mare. She has owned the horse for four years. "She's a good little horse."

Lucsko has been preparing for the past nine months, traveling with her parents to 26 rodeos in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Virginia. The top four competitors in each event qualify to advance to the Nationals.

"It has been a long nine-month journey, but all of her hard work, practice and travel have paid off," said her father, John Lucsko.

Lucsko is a member of the Pennsylvania High School Rodeo Association, which was established in 1990 with the goal of keeping the Western heritage alive in Pennsylvania. It is a part of the National High School Rodeo Association, an international, nonprofit organization dedicated to the development of sportsmanship, horsemanship and character in youth through the sport of rodeo. High school students in grades 9 through 12 are eligible to join. There also is a Wrangler division for grades 6-8.

Lucsko would like to win a title, but is happy to have this opportunity. "I'm hoping to have a lot of fun and have a good experience out there," she said.

Of her daughter, Amy Lucsko said, "It's always been a dream for her to compete at this level. She is definitely fulfilling that dream."

The National High School Finals Rodeo will be televised from July 19 through 25 on RFD TV, where available. For more information, visit www.rfdtv.com. Students interested in joining the NHSRA should call 800-466-4772 or e-mail membership@NHSRA.org.

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1 comments

rodeo : 7/27/2009
way to go kid! we'll be rootin for ya

me-in-c

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