Jackie always had a love for horses, even though she didn’t own one and for that matter she didn’t even have a place to keep one even if she did have one.
For fun on Sunday afternoons Jackie would attend the “Buck Outs” in San Antonio which were held by Jess Ackers. One day, due to a dare, Jackie rode a donkey at the “Buck Out” and enjoyed it…Jackie was never one to turn down a good dare. Soon after that Jackie was turned on to bull riding by her cowboy friend, Jody Seevers , who later became Jackie’s Brother-in- Law and between the donkey, Jody and bulls Jackie’s rodeo career began.
Jackie’s first entry in a rodeo was at Bodie’s Arena in Sequin, Texas in 1945, where she rode for mount money in the bull riding and from then on she was entering in rodeos everywhere. Some of the rodeos she contested in were Ft. Stockton, Corpus Christi, Jacksboro, Childress, Belton as well as many other in Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas.
Jackie rode both bulls and bareback broncs. She even rode a few saddle broncs but later she said that she learned right quick that saddle bronc riding takes real skill, so she had better keep to bulls and bareback. Her favorite event was bull riding and her most favorite rodeo was in Jacksboro, Texas at Jackie Worthington’s (a six year All Around Champion). It was at this rodeo Jackie won four first place. She was first in the bareback broncs each consecutive night and first in the average.
Although Jackie was plagued by many injuries her drive to be a top rodeo contestant was still alive even after breaking her back in 1950. After breaking her back Jackie rode for another two years with a brace finishing her career at a rodeo in Dallas in 1952.
In 1948 Jackie joined the Cowgirl Rodeo Association and she can always be found visiting friends, which she enjoys doing, and she is never to busy to take time to reach out to help others.
