My name is Kayla and I am from North Carolina. I compete in the sport of Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association. In this sport, we compete using single-action revolvers in a timed competition. We shoot balloons in a random pattern to focus on speed an accuracy. I grew up competing in the kid's division called Wranglers at the age of four. I am still competing to this day at the highest level in our sport.
On October 23rd of 2020, I was competing at a shoot in Doswell, Virginia. My shoot was not going how I wanted it to and I was being really hard on myself. I had just come home from the CMSA World Championship in Amarillo, Texas. Scooter, my young buckskin, and I placed second in the Open Youth AQHA class at our very first World Championship together. And here I was, a week later in Virginia, shooting like it was my first time ever. I had my head down walking out of the barn when I ran into a dear friend. They began to ask for advice and I openly shared my thoughts. At that moment, I realized something. I was more excited about helping a fellow shooter than I was about how my match was going. I thought about it for a while before making the decision to create my facebook page called “Underdog Mindset”. I never thought on that day that the Underdog Mindset would be as big as it is today. I never considered the thought of thousands of people wanting to read the thoughts of a young, Mounted Shooter from a small town in North Carolina. But here we are, almost three years later, and I'm still sharing my story, along with others’ stories, every day.
My ultimate goal with Underdog Mindset LLC is to encourage rodeo athletes across the nation to chase their dreams! We all go through challenges in our rodeo careers and often feel as though we are alone. With the Underdog Mindset community, we are reminding everyone that challenges are something each athlete faces in their careers. It is okay to have setbacks as long as you keep moving forward! I encourage each and every one of you to follow your dreams! Remember that with the Underdog Mindset, there is no dream that is too big or too small!
For more rodeo inspiration, make sure you check out our facebook and instagram pages!
-Kayla L.