Jan 21, 2022 5 min read

Chloe Brennen is committed to winning. And with a big competition on the horizon, she is definitely not horsing around.

The avid horse lover, longtime rider and 16-year-old daughter of Matt and Lisa Brennen of Waynesburg is currently preparing for a trip to Fort Worth, Texas, where she will compete in The Junior American Patriot Event Finale, where she and her 10-year-old horse, Fivestar Tiny Bobby, will attempt to win in the barrel racing and pole bending categories.

Brennen will compete in the event in the first week of March against the best youth equestrian athletes from around the world.

“This is going to be a great experience for me, and even though my nerves our on edge I cannot wait to get there and compete against the best,” she said.

Brennen’s foray into horse riding competitions began gathering steam in 2021. Last year, she and Fivestar Tiny Bobby qualified for the Junior American Patriot competition. For the pole bending competition, she qualified at an event in Columbiana, Ohio, in April, and for barrel racing she qualified at another event in Gifford, Ill., in October.

They also qualified for the Best of the Best in youth (19 and under) and open (all ages) in Columbiana, Ohio, and Uniontown.

The duo also traveled to Perry, Ga., last summer for the World’s Youth National Barrel Horse Association finals, which Brennen said she will never forget.

“I had such an amazing experience there,” she said. “It was huge. There were 8,000 horse stalls and more than 3,000 riders. And not only did I gain a lot of insight, I also got to meet and make new friends from all over. Once you’re a part of that world, you meet so many other riders who want to help. It’s like one big awesome family.”

Brennen said she and her family are looking forward to the Junior American Patriot. At the end of February, they will head to Fort Worth; the big event will start the first week of March and will be aired live on RFD-TV.

“We are so very proud of her and her achievements and accomplishments,” said Lisa Brennen. “This has been Chloe’s dream since she was a little girl.”

Chloe has been riding horses since she was four years old and has been racing for almost seven years. She has two horses – her other horse, Lil Bell, is Fivestar Tiny Bobby’s younger sister – and she rides three to four times a week, all year round, to be sure they stay in shape.

Lisa Brennen said she and Chloe began riding horses together.

“I started riding when she was 4 years old and very soon after she showed interest and was trail riding too,” Lisa Brennen said. “It was about six or seven years ago when we went to a barrel race and we both loved watching it and knew we wanted to try it, so we started racing together.”

Chloe said many people have inspired her over the years as she continued to ride. In addition to her mother, she worked with many trainers and found inspiration from professional riders and racers, including Fallon Taylor, a barrel racing world champion and multi-time qualifier of the National Finals Rodeo.

Chloe said she went through many horses to find the one she “clicked with.”

“I went through a lot of trial and error finding my horse, and when I found her, I knew she was the one,” she said of Fivestar Tiny Bobby, who was named after the Oklahoma ranch where she previously lived. “We instantly hit it off, and she has been the light of my life ever since.”

Chloe and Fivestar have been inseparable since they first bonded three years ago. She said although Fivestar enjoys both pole bending and barrel racing, her heart belongs to the barrels.

“We had to start working together on both right after I got her, and it took us a good year to get her used to them,” she said. “It was a lot of work, but once she got the hang of it, it just got easier.”

She set a big goal for herself in 2021 and achieved what she set out for: competing in several big qualifiers, and earning some big checks, a belt buckle, a coat and more.

And now she’s excited about what the future holds for her and Fivestar Tiny Bobby, in 2022 and beyond.

“This year, it’s about competing in the Junior American Patriot and any other events we can,” she said. “Next year, I’m focused on making the Patriot Vegas Finals and then pursuing my dream of moving on one day to the National Finals Rodeo. I know I have lot of hard work ahead, but I cannot wait to see where this ride takes me.”

As for Fivestar Tiny Bobby, Chloe said she is grateful to have found her.

“I am very blessed,” she said with a smile. “She is such a big part of my life. We make a great team.”