Bareback rider Kade Sonnier will compete at his second National Finals Rodeo in three years when the 10-day championship begins later this next week. He is sixth in the world standings and will battle for rodeo’s gold at Las Vegas.
(PHOTO BY DAVE JENNINGS)

 

CARENCRO, La. – Even business trips to Las Vegas are supposed to be enjoyed.

Kade Sonnier didn’t feel that way two years ago when he arrived in the Entertainment Capital of the World, home of the National Finals Rodeo. It was his first qualification to the sport’s grand finale, and he had tasks to handle.

“I was so narrow-minded, so goal-oriented and so focused on the end-goal that I didn’t enjoy the process to get there,” said Sonnier, 26, a bareback rider from Carencro. “I didn’t enjoy any aspect of it, and it just went by so fast that I didn’t soak it all in.”

He missed out on some of the aspects of advancing to the NFR, rodeo’s World Series that takes place Dec. 4-13 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. He’s right in that this is a business venture, and he has a job to do. Imagine, though, had Tom Brady not enjoyed every Super Bowl appearance. That’s what happened in Sonnier’s rookie season.

He still closed out the 2023 campaign on a big note. He earned $112,000 over 10 days, catapulting him to a third-place finish in the final world standings. His sophomore year didn’t go quite as well. Injuries not only sidelined him but also hampered Sonnier’s performance when he was able to compete. Still, he secured $95,000, a substantial annual salary.

Alas, he finished 22nd on the money list in a sport where only the top 15 earn the chance to play for the biggest pay in rodeo. He gained redemption in 2025, collecting $171,507 during the regular season, which ended Sept. 30. He will compete at his second NFR as the sixth-ranked bareback rider in the field

“This year I’m going to try to take it day to day,” he said. “I didn’t enjoy myself the last time. I didn’t enjoy the company I had. I didn’t enjoy the locker-room time.

“This is what you dream about as a kid. It wasn’t until the fifth round that I finally soaked it all in and had tears in my eyes. You’re supposed to do that the first night.”

He’ll have that chance to experience all the feelings that come with playing on such a magnificent stage. This is the world’s richest rodeo, which features a $13.5-million purse. Go-round winners will earn nearly $37,000 per night. By the time the curtain draws to a close on that final Saturday, world champions in every event will be crowned.

That’s where Sonnier wants to stand. Of course, none of this is even possible without his first NFR adventure in 2018. That was the year his father, saddle bronc rider Joey Sonnier, earned his only trip to Sin City’s championship. Father and son had driven a bit of a rocky road through their early years and rekindled in time for a spectacular family reunion.

“I got to spend 10 days ion Vegas to watch my dad,” Kade Sonnier said. “If it wouldn’t be for that, I wouldn’t be doing this. That’s where the flame for rodeo rekindled. That’s pretty much where God told me right then, ‘This is where you need to be.’ I started craving it. I had never been on a bucking horse in my life. I hadn’t thought about riding bucking horses since I was 8 or 9 years old.”

Getting to this point became a blessing of faith. His parents, Joey Sonnier and Jamie Lynn Guidry, split when he was young. Kade Sonnier has a strong relationship with both parents, and there was some outside influence to help direct the young man along his path.

“When I went to high school, I was fortunate to have rally good baseball coaches and be part of a really good baseball program – we ended up winning two state championships my junior and senior year,” said Sonnier, who credits his return to the NFR to his sponsors, Boot Barn, Resistol, Ariat, Stace Smith Pro Rodeos, Burgess Brothers Bucking Horses, Waggoner Services Inc., The Handmade Heifer and FCA Rodeo. “Those coaches were great role models and did a lot to really help me.”

Sonnier played college baseball and spent a semester on the track team at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, Louisiana, but that bronc riding bug was overwhelming. The first track meet in the spring semester of 2020 helped Sonnier build toward his future.

“The track meet was at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, which happened to be the same weekend as the ProRodeo,” he said, noting that he transferred to McNeese State for rodeo. “My dad had already called Jake Brown, who had just made his fourth or fifth NFR, to see if he had any old spare bareback riding riggin’s, and he said he was coming to Lake Charles for the rodeo and could drop them off.

“I don’t think God could have designed it any better. Somebody had already given me spurs, but he gave me everything else.”

With equipment in hand, a new career was born. He got with people to teach him the ropes, men like fellow Louisiana cowboy Waylon Bourgeois, who is going to his first NFR this December, and veterans like Kaycee Feild and Tilden Hooper. Feild owns the record for the most bareback riding world championships with six.

Sonnier built on natural athleticism. Instead throwing darts to second base or speeding around first en route to another double, he took to spurring 1,200 pounds of equine dynamite. He makes a good living doing it and will have a chance to increase his earnings even more when he arrives in the Nevada desert.

The goal isn’t just to be the greatest bareback rider for 2025; it’s also to care for his 19-month-old daughter, Kalgary.

“What I’m trying to show my little girl is that if you feel like God has put something in your heart, do it, and don’t let anything stop you,” Sonnier said. “The only person that can keep God’s plan from happening is you. I’m fortunate that I get to make a good living riding bucking horses, and I get to provide for her. I hope I can give her the best life possible.

“I want to create a winning culture within my family. I feel like my dad’s done that for me and my little sisters. We’ve all been very successful in athletics, and I’d like to piggyback off that and do the same thing for my kids.”

Success comes from the driven soul. Kade Sonnier has that, and it’s mixed with strong faith, a lot of support, tremendous athleticism and an undeniable work ethic.

It’s why the Louisiana cowboy is in position to claim the most cherished prize in rodeo, a world champion’s gold buckle.