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TAKING HOME THE GOLD

Illinois cowgirl, Wisconsin cowboy, among champions at Franklin Rodeo

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When the dust settled after the Franklin Rodeo this weekend, an Illinois cowgirl ended as champion barrel racer.

Katie Chism of Tiskilwa, Illinois, rounded the barrels in 17.36 seconds to win the title as best barrel racer in Franklin for the 2025 rodeo.

She was aboard her eight-year-old stallion, whose registered name is MF Aces Famous Fling, and is known as “Ace.”

Photo Gallery – Franklin Rodeo Scenes 2025

The stallion was born and raised on her and her husband Kasey’s farm, Maubach Quarter Horses, where they breed and raise performance horses.

“Kasey and I are the only people who have ridden him, and we trained him,” she said. “He’s pretty special to our family and our farm.”

The stallion, who is a chocolate palomino roan, “has very good agility and speed,” Chism said. “He’s an incredible athlete, and very well-minded. He’s very smart and adaptive.”

In March, Chism broke both bones in her arm when she and Ace slipped going into the arena in Montgomery, Alabama. At the time, she was ranked in the top 15 barrel racers in the world, but a broken arm put her on the bench for five weeks.

Ace didn’t suffer any injuries from the fall. She made a few runs with the cast, but not many.

“I didn’t have the mechanics in my left arm to help (Ace) like I needed to," she said.

Chism’s goal is to finish the regular season in the top fifteen barrel racers in the world, which would qualify her to compete at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in December. It’s not easy, criss-crossing the nation, competing at rodeos every week, but she has a good support system.

“My husband is my biggest supporter,” Chism said. “He’s the most selfless man. He does everything for our family, to help me chase my goals. I couldn’t do it without him.”

And Ace is the biggest reason she can chase her barrel racing dreams. 

“He really loves his job,” she said. “He really enjoys rodeoing. He’s changed our lives. He’s won close to $150,000 so far. He’s literally changed our lives.”

Chism complimented the Franklin Noon Rotary Club rodeo committee, for the arena conditions for the barrel racing horses. Last year, Ace slipped, and she was pleased with better footing for the horses this year.

“We really care about our horses and they put their hearts and efforts into making a run for us," she said. "Being able to ride him down that alley (into the arena), knowing the ground was safe for him, was important.”

Chism has qualified for the Great Lakes Circuit Finals Rodeo twice; she is the 2024 Great Lakes Circuit Finals Rodeo winner. She and husband Kasey have a five-year-old son and an eight-month-old daughter.

In the bull riding, a Wisconsin man went home with the gold.

Kolt Achenbach, Prairie du Chien, scored 85 points on the Pickett Pro Rodeo bull Uncool.

The bull “was a little tough to get out on, in the chute,” Achenbach said. “He knocked me into the well (the inside of the spin) a little bit, so my weight dropped into the well, and it’s hard to get back out of there once you drop in. But I sat up and finished the ride.”

Achenbach was out for all of 2023 due to hip surgery to repair a torn labrum and the head of the femur, which was deformed, due to contact sports and rodeo.

The 25-year-old cowboy is rodeoing more this year than in past years, and he loves it.

“I love going to new places and new rodeos, and checking things out," he said. "Every rodeo is different, and they all have something special about them."

Achenbach loved the facility and the hospitality, and he loves his prize for winning first place: a Jack Daniels barrel lid, engraved with “Franklin Rodeo,” the year, and his name. Typical rodeo prizes are belt buckles, but the Franklin Rodeo does it differently.

“I like winning the stuff you don’t normally get,” he said.

Achenbach competed at the Great Lakes Circuit Finals Rodeo in 2024.

Other champions from the Franklin Rodeo are bareback rider Luke Thrash, Bastrop, La. (88 points); steer wrestler Clay Clayman, Highlandville, Mo. (4.0 seconds); team ropers Ryan Pope, Westville, Fla. and Zak Dobbins, Bay Minette, Ala. (4.5 seconds); saddle bronc rider Gavin Nelson, Sentinel Butte, N.D. (81.5 points); tie-down ropers Judd Grover, Cresco, Iowa and Andrew Burks, Kiln, Miss. (8.6 seconds each);

Next year is the 75th anniversary of the Franklin Rodeo, which will be held May 14-16, 2026. The rodeo began in 1949; it was canceled two years, in 2020-2021, due to the pandemic.

It is a service project for the Franklin Noon Rotary Club. Each year proceeds from the rodeo benefit local and international charities. Last year, rodeo proceeds were given to sixty-plus charities in the area.

Results, Franklin Rodeo, May 15-17, 2025

All-Around champion: Judd Grover, tie-down roping and team roping

Bareback riding 

1. Luke Thrash, Bastrop, La 88 points on J Bar J Rodeo’s Delta Hawk; 2. Waylon Bourgeois, Church Point, La. 84; 3. (tie) Tanner Aus, Granite Falls, Minn. and Kooper Heimburg, Marshall, Mo. 83.5 each; 5. Nick Pelke, Mondovi, Wis. 82.5; 6. (tie) Owen Brouillette, St. Francisville, La. and Blayn Hughston, McBain, Mich. 80 each; 8. Mike Solberg, Sunnynook, Alb. 78.

Steer wrestling

1. Clay Clayman, Highlandville, Mo. 4.0 seconds; 2. Tyler Mann, Humansville, Mo. 4.7; 3. Will Collier, Malden, Mo. 5.2; 4. Sam Dixon, Lockesburg, Ark. 5.3; 5. Christian Cagle, Canton, Ga. 6.2; 6. Joshua Ellison, Clanton, Ala. 6.6; 7. Cole Bilbro, Pelahatchie, Miss. 7.8; 8. Hank Burgess, Rocky Face, Ga. 8.0.

Team roping

1. Ryan Pope, Westville, Fla./Zak Dobbins, Bay Minette, Ala. 4.5 seconds; 2. Joe Beaver, Huntsville, Texas/Levi Pettigrew, Keota, Okla. 4.6; 3. (tie) Keven Daniel, Citra, Fla./Parker Carbajal, New Smyrna Beach, Fla. and Kaston Peavy, Bay Minette, Ala./Jason Hill, Ashburn, Ga. 4.7 each; 5. (tie) Logan Graham, Emmet, Ark./Cole Walker, Sparta, Tenn. and Cory Kidd V, Stephenville, Texas/Dustin Davis, Terrell, Texas 5.0 each; 7. (tie) Brady Schmidt, Cottage Grove, Tenn./Ross Lowry, Summerville, Ga. and Bradley Massey, Perry, Fla./Zack Mabry, Piedmont, Ala. 5.2 each; 9. Cooper Cowan, Lamar, Miss./Cade Cowan, Lamar, Miss. 5.3; 10. Travis Dorman, Dade City, Fla./Craig Stevens, Tallahassee, Fla. 5.5.

Saddle bronc riding

1. Gavin Nelson, Sentinel Butte, N.D. 81.5 points on J Bar J Rodeo’s Straight Timber; 2. Cable Wareham, Whiting, Kan. 81; 3. Jace Angus, Nocona, Texas 80.4. Michael Womack, Bastrop, La. 79.5; 5. Treyson Antonick, Overton, Texas 79; 6. Tyler Pruitt, Chesnee, S.C. 78.5; 7. (tie) Jackson Ford, Sturgis, S.D. and Rudy Troyer, Gallatin, Tenn. 78 each.

Tie-down roping

1. (tie) Judd Grover, Cresco, Iowa and Andrew Burks, Kiln, Miss. 8.6 seconds each; 3. Luke Coleman, Madisonville, Texas 9.4; 4. Clay Ellis, Dows, Iowa 9.6; 5. Cory Dummit, Centerview, Mo. 9.8; 6. Justin Thigpen, Waycross, Ga. 10.1; 7. (tie) Trent Creager, Stillwater, Okla.; Macon Murphy, Keatchie, La. and McKade Wickett, Muldrow, Okla. 10.2 each.

Barrel racing

1. Katie Chism, Tiskilwa, Ill. 17.36 seconds; 2. (tie) Ashley Parks, Dania Beach, Fla. and Deb Shefveland, Monticello, Minn. 17.42 each; 4. Austyn Tobey, Bemidji, Minn. 17.46; 5. (tie) Nikki Reynolds, Ellsinore, Mo. and Madison McFall, Columbia, Tenn. 17.48 each; 7. Jenna Beaver, Huntsville, Texas 17.56; 8. Melora Potter, Marion, Kent. 17.57; 9. Kristen Hanchey, Okeechobee, Fla. 17.65; 10. Kylie Hecht, Merrill, Iowa 17.73.

Bull riding 

1. Kolt Achenbach, Prairie du Chien, Wis. 85 points on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Uncool; 2. Luke Mast, Hutchinson, Kan. 83; 4. Jason Landing, Sullivan, Mo. 77.

All results unofficial.

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