08/28/2026
💔 A HEARTBREAKING DAY FOR TNLBRA 💔
Today has been heartbreaking for us at TNLBRA.
After a great deal of thought, discussion, and emotion, we have made the extremely difficult decision that TNLBRA will no longer continue as a franchise of NLBRA.
This was NOT an easy decision, and it certainly was not made lightly. We love our rodeo families, we love these kids, and we have worked incredibly hard to provide them with a safe, competitive, and fun place to rodeo.
Unfortunately, we have reached a point where we feel the actions of the National Board have made it increasingly difficult for us to continue operating while doing what we believe is best for our contestants and families.
I believe our members deserve to know how we got here.
It started in February 2026.
I was sent screenshots showing National Finals fees posted in two different places on the NLBRA website from a rodeo member while they were sitting at another little britches rodeo. I emailed the NLBRA Executive Director and Board asking whether those amounts were correct. I received no response.
Because the information was publicly posted on the NLBRA website, I made a post on the TNLBRA page telling our families that if they were planning to attend Finals, they might want to start saving their pennies because the entry fees appeared to be increasing. I included a link directly to the NLBRA website showing the increased entry fees.
A day or so later, we were contacted and told they “did not know that was live.” The entry fees were then changed back to the previous year’s amounts. Since my post was no longer relevant, I deleted it.
A few days later, I received an email stating that TNLBRA had been placed on probation because of a “negative social media post.”
I immediately requested an appeal. I also requested a copy of the post they considered negative and asked exactly what rule TNLBRA had violated.
I was never provided a copy of the alleged negative post. Instead, I was sent a list of rules from the rulebook that, in my opinion, had nothing to do with franchise social media activity. When I questioned those findings, I was later told they would need to speak with an attorney.
At the end of March, I received another email stating that the probation decision had been reversed.
I was also told that I was the reason a new social media rule was created. Sorry, I guess! 🤷♀️
To this day, however, I still have not been provided the alleged negative social media post, nor has anyone adequately explained to me exactly what TNLBRA did that justified the original probation.
Fast forward to our August rodeo.
We hired a bullfighter who had fought bulls the previous season at a Little Britches rodeo in Kentucky.
Anyone who knows us knows that SAFETY is something we take extremely seriously. I believe we have some of the best bullfighters and pickup men around, and I will never apologize for putting qualified people in that arena to protect our kids.
I had received approval from the office to send our associate membership cards in with our rodeo paperwork. Because this bullfighter had worked a Little Britches rodeo the previous season, I assumed he already had a card and that I was simply renewing it.
That assumption was apparently incorrect.
On August 26, I received an email from Executive Director Sami Williams containing a letter dated August 28, 2026, stating that TNLBRA was being placed on probation for one year because we allegedly did not have the appropriate number of bullfighters in the arena according to the rulebook.
WE HAD TWO BULLFIGHTERS IN THE ARENA.
And here’s the ironic part: I AM THE ONE WHO SUBMITTED THE RULE CHANGE REQUIRING TWO BULLFIGHTERS!
Then, on August 27, I received another email stating that one of our bullfighters did not have a card and, because he was considered a new bullfighter, his membership needed to be submitted electronically. I sent in a paper copy.
So at this point, I am honestly unsure whether the probation is because they believe we only had one bullfighter—which is simply not true—or because one of the two bullfighters did not have the correct $105 membership card processed at the time of the rodeo.
The probation letter also states that if we violate anything during the next year, further action can be taken against our franchise.
Our judges are also facing consequences over a judgment call made during the rodeo. Anyone who knows rodeo understands that judges are human. They make calls based on what they see at that moment, and sometimes a call could go either way. This particular situation involved two contestants, was addressed, and ultimately worked out.
What has become so discouraging is the feeling that decisions affecting franchises, volunteers, judges, contestants, and families can be made without first speaking to the people directly involved and asking what actually happened.
No warning. No conversation. Straight to probation.
Were we wrong for assuming the bullfighter already had the required card because he had worked a Little Britches rodeo the previous year? Yes. I can admit when I make a mistake. With the conversion to the new system, however, records were not always pulling over correctly. At one point, nearly half of my contestants were showing as ineligible until the day before our rodeo.
But I will also say this:
I would make the decision again to put a qualified bullfighter in that arena to protect your sons.
A membership card does not physically protect a bull rider when he hits the ground. A qualified bullfighter does.
What hurts the most is that this organization is supposed to be about THE KIDS. It should be about providing opportunities for young people to rodeo, learn responsibility, build friendships, compete, and grow.
Instead, we have reached a point where we no longer feel we can effectively serve our families under the current circumstances.
So today, with a very heavy heart, we are choosing to step away.
I also encourage every NLBRA member to stay informed and ask questions. Ask where the additional $5 of your membership is going. Ask about the additional $5 NLBRA fee per rodeo. Ask questions about expenses, meetings, Finals costs, and where the Winter Board Meeting will be held in December.
You pay the fees. You are members. You have every right to respectfully ask questions and expect transparency.
I am sure there will be plenty of opinions about this decision. That is okay.
I can only speak to what we have experienced, the correspondence we have received, and the decisions we have had to make.
To our TNLBRA families: THANK YOU. ❤️
Thank you for trusting us with your kids. Thank you to every parent who volunteered, every contestant who entered that arena, every sponsor who supported us, every judge, bullfighter, pickup man, announcer, secretary, stock contractor, and person who helped make our rodeos happen.
The hardest part of this decision is all of you.
This may be the end of TNLBRA’s chapter as an NLBRA franchise, but it does NOT change how much we love rodeo or how much we care about these kids.
They have always been—and will continue to be—the reason we do what we do. ❤️🤠
Please give me a little time and I will be refunding all TNLBRA memberships and sponsorships.
This is truly breaking my heart to have to post this but the national board members have and will make it extremely difficult for us to complete this year.
With love, respect and many tears
Whitney Watts
Em Cragar
