Bareback rider Brayze Schill rides Penthouse Pro Rodeo’s Blue Wake for 82.5 points to take the early lead at the Waller County Fair and Rodeo.
(PHOTO BY PEGGY GANDER)
HEMPSTEAD, Texas – Just four years ago, the Waller County Fair Board rebuilt and rebranded its rodeo arena, putting a roof over the top of it so the facility could be used year-round.
It came in handy during Thursday’s first performance of the PRCA rodeo at the Waller County Fairgrounds. Even with recurring deluges of rain, the covering offered a nice respite for all inside to either watch the action or be part of it.
Bareback rider Brayze Schill has ridden in the mud inside the same complex many times before. He rode Penthouse Pro Rodeo’s Blue Wake for 82.5 points to take the early lead in Hempstead.
“I actually came to youth rodeos over here that were put on by the Cannon family,” said Schill, 21, from West Columbia, Texas, a community of 3,600 people about 80 miles south of Hempstead. “They put on a youth rodeo here every weekend when I was growing up, so I’ve spent a lot of time in this arena before it had a cover.
“We’ve rode ponies in the mud here many times before.”
He may have trudged through a little mud and a lot of wet ground to get inside the complex, but he was plenty comfortable once it was time to compete. He rode the powerful bay to take the lead with two nights remaining.
“I knew that was a pretty good horse,” he said of Blue Wake. “I knew I had a pretty good chance of winning. I just had to show up and do my job right and get it done.”
Schill is a bit of a hybrid. Not only does he compete in ProRodeo, he’s also attending Sam Houston State University on a rodeo scholarship. Just two weekends ago, he won the bareback riding title at the first intercollegiate event of the Southern Region in Panola, Texas.
“This past year was pretty rough for me,” Schill said. “I broke my leg, and last (2025) summer was pretty slow. This year, my winter started off pretty slow, so I stayed fairly close to the house to work some and rodeo close to here to save up some money so I can go hard for (the 2027 season).”
He’s timed it well. The 2026 regular season concluded Wednesday, so the next season’s run of rodeos started Oct. 1. Whatever earnings he claims in Hempstead will count toward qualifications in 2027.
“So, 2027 is my year, and so far, we’re starting it off pretty good,” he said.
He needs a good jump start to build his credentials. Every event titlist at the Waller County Fair and Rodeo earns an automatic qualification into RodeoHouston, one of the sport’s highest-paying regular-season events that takes place each March. Money earned in Reliant Stadium can go a long way toward world championships.
In fact, of the nine RodeoHouston Champions, all but one have qualified for the 2026 National Finals Rodeo – the only holdout suffered a serious injury this year and missed most of the season with it.
“We’re going to make the NFR this year, and it will be my first NFR,” Schill said. “We’re going to speak it into existence.”
Waller County Fair and Rodeo
Oct. 2-4
Hempstead, Texas
Bareback riding: 1. Brayze Schill, 82.5 points on Penthouse Pro Rodeo’s Blue Wake; 2. Toby Deudney, 80.5; 3. (tie) Bodee Lammers and Kash Loyd, 78 each; 5. Blayn Hughston, 74.5; no other qualified rides.
Steer wrestling: 1. (tie) Cody Harmon and Cameron Haumea, 3.8 seconds; 3. (tie) Austin Hurlburt and Tristan Martin, 4.0; 5. Justin Shaffer, 4.2; 6. (tie) Jacob Daniell, Colin Fox and Rhett Witt, 4.3; 8. (tie) Grant Peterson and Brayden Tanner, 4.6.
Team roping: 1. (tie) Brenten Hall/Jake Clay and Tanner Tomlinson/Wesley Thorp, 4.4 seconds; 3. Wyatt Bray/Sid Sporer, 5.0; 4. Denton Parish/Brock Borkman, 5.1; 5. (tie) Jeff Kanady/Caden Beatty and Cole Thomas/Boogie Ray, 5.2; 7. Kody Harrell/Kinney Harrell, 5.3; 8. Conley Kleinhans/Kyler Kanady, 5.5.
Saddle bronc riding: 1. (tie) Ethan Cart, on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Full Moon, Ira Dickinson, on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Downtown, and Wyatt Lavergne, on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Secret Agent, 84.5 points; 4. Zane Magner, 76; 5. Blaise Freeman, 74.5; 6. Warwick Southern, 72; 7. Dane McPhail, 70; no other qualified rides.
Tie-down roping: 1. (tie) Kincade Henry and Lane Livingston, 8.0 seconds; 3. Lane Webb, 8.2; 4. (tie) James Collins Jr., Cash Enderli and Shad Mayfield, 8.5; 7. Landyn Duncan, 8.7; 8. (tie) Austin Hurlburt and Jarvis Demery, 8.9.
Breakaway roping: 1. Kirby Rawlinson, 1.8 seconds; 2. (tie) Rylee A George and Aspen Miller, 2.1 each; 4. (tie) Jade Mitchell and Loni Kay Yates, 2.2; 6. Hadley Thompson, 2.3; 7. (tie) Bailey Gubert, Taylor Jones and Amy Ohrt, 2.5; 10. (tie) Samantha Kingsbury and Rylie Edens.
Barrel racing: 1. Morgan Addison, 15.25 seconds; 2. Emma Parr, 15.33; 3. Abby Fields, 15.37; 4. Ceily Simpton, 15.40; 5. (tie) Gracen Harman and London Lyne, 15.44; 7. Brittany Fellows, 15.46; 8. Tiany Schuster, 15.48; 9. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 15.50; 10. Kaycee Killingsworth, 15.56; 11. Shelley Morgan and Sherri Reagan, 15.62; 13. Acey Pinkston, 15.63; 14. Jennifer Driver, 15.66; 15. Lauren Davang, 15.68.
Bull riding: No qualified rides.