BELLE FOURCHE—It was a special night at the Branding Iron Steakhouse for their annual Las Vegas NFR send-off and Calcutta on the evening of November 8. Two area rodeo athletes, Bull Rider Mason Moody and Breakaway Roper Joey Williams, were on hand for the celebration.
Breakaway Roper Joey Williams is heading to the National Finals Rodeo for the fourth time in her professional rodeo career. She is sitting in the 10th spot with $110,550.03 in year-end earnings. The roper hit the rodeo trail hard this year and entered a total of 76 rodeos to earn her spot.
Not being new to the finals, Williams has her game plan laid out, which includes entering the Kimes Ranch Million Dollar Breakaway event for female breakaway ropers on her way to Vegas. “I think we’ll just go this year—same game plan as always—we’ll go about a week early and head down to Arizona the week before; they have that big Kimes Ranch breakaway roping, and I’ll rope in that,” Williams explained. “And then we’ll head up to Vegas and get ready for the finals, and hopefully all the practice and preparation we’ve done will pay off.”
Having been to the NFR before, Williams knows what to expect. “I think every year is still just as exciting as the last because, I mean, every year the road to get there looks so different; every year has a slightly different feel,” she shared. “But yeah, I definitely think it helps to have been there before—maybe not quite as nervous anymore.”
Joey is from Broadus, MT, and grew up in Buffalo, SD. She and her husband, Taylor, have three kids cheering her on—Landon is nine, Carson is seven, and Shay is four.
Mason Moody is from Letcher, South Dakota, and is headed to his first NFR rodeo. He goes into the finals sitting in 12th place in the standings. As he heads into the finals, he isn’t quite sure how he is feeling. “Well, I don’t know yet! I’ll tell you after round one. I am really excited, but I have mixed emotions going into it,” he said.
Moody is no stranger to rodeo; he spent his youth rodeoing in all of the area South Dakota rodeo associations like National High School, National Junior High, and 4-H rodeo.
Before deciding to focus on bull riding, Moody participated in all of the boys’ events. “I calf roped and team roped in high school, and then in junior high I did about everything—I actually made it to nationals in the goat tying and ribbon roping and bull riding and the bareback steer riding,” he shared.
When the time came for Moody to specialize in one event going into professional rodeo, it was an easy choice. “Well, I was probably always a better bull rider than anything else, but I grew up wanting to be a bull rider and kind of put all my time into being the best at riding bulls,” he said.
In preparation for going pro, Moody said he had to get on a lot of bulls. “Now I’m kind of at the point where I don’t get on a lot of practice bulls unless I need it, but I still go to the gym a lot and try to stay as fit as possible,” he shared.
Coming off an injury to his knee last year, Moody has spent his time rehabbing from the injury and getting in shape to make a run for the NFR this year. “I’ve been doing it pretty much since I was 18. I tried to make the NFR for the last two years, but last year I blew out my knee and had to sit out, and then this year it worked out, and here we are!”
To prepare for the upcoming finals, Moody has returned to his family’s ranch to enjoy working outside and spending time with his family. “I’ve been getting on a few practice bulls, and I’ve been going to the gym a lot, and it has been nice to be home,” explained Moody. “I live on a ranch, and being able to help out and just do that kind of stuff—that’s my other passion in life besides rodeo—so it’s been kind of nice.”
In addition to the festive send-off, the night was also dedicated to a local professional barrel racer, Jessica Routier, and her family, who recently suffered a devastating house fire. A special live auction was held to help the family with rebuilding efforts; all of the proceeds went to the Routier family. The live auction included a new saddle, an Aussie Shepherd puppy, leather chaps, various top stud fees, a basket of ropes and supplies, and much more.
The event was hosted by the Branding Iron and takes sponsors to help put together an evening of celebrating, honoring, and preparing for the NFR. Sponsors for the event are Branding Iron; Tony Moncur and Roxi Dobesh; Eaton Construction, Tessa and Wayne; Porterfield Elec., Sandie and Scott; Pete’s Clothing and Hodges Bootery, Sheila and Lee; and Exit 8 Phillips 66, Kelly and Ryan.
If you want to cheer on the two professional athletes at the finals, the 2025 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is in Las Vegas at the Thomas and Mack Center from December 4–13. The National Finals Breakaway Roping is at the South Point Arena & Equestrian Center from December 2–3.
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