Horse Power with Barrel Racer Shaye Andrews

When Shaye Andrews bursts into a rodeo arena, one hand gripping the saddle on her quarter horse, dubbed “Ace,” the intuitive pair rounds the first of three barrels with a keen combination of speed and agility that’s putting this Vero Beach teenager on the national rodeo map.

In just seconds, Shaye and Ace circle two more barrels in a cloverleaf pattern before bolting toward the exit—horse and rider proving to a cheering crowd that training and trust pay off.

“We’ve definitely developed a very strong connection,” Shaye says of Ace, a 9-year-old male red dun whose registered name is “Wonders Exhibit A.”

“I can tell he really trusts me, and I really trust him,” she adds; “I think that’s the most important thing, or else you’re not going to be able to have a good pattern.”

This ambitious 17-year-old barrel racer, who has been nuts about horses since as far back as she can remember, has been racking up blue ribbons and cash prizes as she and Ace travel the state and beyond to compete in a rodeo sport Shaye has loved from the start.

In the arena, riders race against the clock in a contest of speed and skill to execute quick, precise turns without mistakes. A fraction of a second or a single bumped barrel can determine the winner.

“I always wanted to barrel race,” says Shaye, who grew up in Pompano Beach riding and bingeing on videos of horses, rodeos, barrel racing, and pole bending contests. “I just like the speed events. I mean, that’s what it is, a speed event: who runs the fastest time without knocking those three cans over?”

And Shaye knows how to win: she has pocketed around $9,000 from competing in more than 250 sanctioned events, most governed by the Florida High School Rodeo Association, the National Barrel Horse Association, and the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association, and also at the Indian River Riding Club in Vero Beach.

“I’ve been competing every weekend or every other weekend for probably three or four years now,” says Shaye, who plows her winnings back into supporting her horses and related expenses.

She is also attracting business sponsorships with Boot Barn, Quanta Services, Audrey’s Feed & Tack in Vero Beach, and other retailers that connect her with mentors, training, fitness experts, horse care, and more.

“It’s a lot of help for me,” Shaye says. “A lot of my sponsors are for my horses, like with [supplement company] OE Nutraceuticals, I get a discount at the vet. That’s a big thing, because obviously my horse is at the vet quite a bit.” Ace receives constant training and a mix of massages, chiropractic care, and supplements to remain in top form.

“Horses can fall out of shape within two weeks,” she says, “so I really try to make sure he’s in the best shape.”

Shaye also produces her own social media campaigns to track her rodeo road trips and boost the brands that help back her barrel racing.

For Shaye and her parents, Richie and Nikki Andrews, moving to Indian River County from Broward four years ago meant they would be closer to Nikki’s parents, Norman and Carla Sauey, who live in Vero Beach.

“They really wanted us to move up here,” Nikki recalls. “They thought it’d be great for her, with her horse riding and … there’s just more access to horse-related events up here, and more barrel racing. It just seemed to fit better here.”

Shaye’s riding pursuits also follow a family tradition: in Nikki’s youth, her grandfather, Norman Sauey Sr., operated an Arabian horse farm in Ocala. “My parents, who have helped finance this very expensive hobby, are very appreciative and happy that this is truly her passion, horses,” says Nikki. “It’s kind of been a family generational thing.”

A lifelong love of horses may be thanks to Nikki’s family, but Shaye’s zeal to win comes from her dad—a Florida State football kicker in the 1980s who turned pro for three years.

“She definitely inherited her competitive drive from me, and it’s been incredible to watch her channel that determination into achieving her goals,” Richie says. “Shaye sets her sights high, but she always backs it up with relentless effort, both inside and outside the arena.”

Summer Almand, owner of Painted Sky Farms on 41st Street in Vero Beach, where Shaye keeps Ace and her other horse, Cash, sees her on-site every day “doing what’s best for her horse.”

“She’s a well-rounded, kind, hardworking individual, and in this sport, you do have to work for it,” Almand says. “She puts in the effort.”

As a barrel racer, Shaye joins a rodeo tradition started in Texas in the 1940s by women who wanted to participate in the male-dominated world of bronco riding, calf roping, and steer wrestling, according to madbarn.com.

Barrel racing and pole bending—which involves racing around poles set in a straight line—evolved into sanctioned events that generate thousands of dollars in prize money and, for the very best, a chance to compete at the annual National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.

In July, Shaye and Ace competed against the top four barrel racers from every state and six countries during the National High School Finals Rodeo in Rock Springs, Wyoming. She and Nikki drove a grueling 33 hours each way while hauling Ace in a trailer on his first trip out of Florida. “It was an incredible experience that I’d dreamed of,” says Shaye, flashing a huge grin recalling the thrill of performing on a national level. “I knew if I worked so hard I would get it at some point. But I didn’t know how soon it would come to me.”

Adds Nikki: “She placed in the top half, which, between all the travel and being hard on Ace, we thought he did amazing.”

Shaye was also selected as one of the 2025 Boot Barn Future Stars of Rodeo, which earned her an all-expense-paid trip to watch the National Finals Rodeo, held in December.

Kaitlin Olson, president of the Indian River Riding Club, where Shaye competes in weekly jackpot events, says she’s earned the accolades. “Shaye was top 12 in Florida for WPRA in the youth [division],” Olson says.

Olson selected Shaye as an ambassador to represent her online store, Fancy Broke Western Apparel, because of the way she treats her horses, other animals, and her peers. “Shaye goes above and beyond for all three,” Olson says. “She really makes everyone feel important and cared for.”

Shaye’s achievements were further recognized in September, when the Indian River County Cattlewomen awarded her $1,000 as “an outstanding young barrel racer whose talent, determination, and positive spirit shine both in and out of the arena,” the organization’s president, Anna Kirkland, says.

After Shaye finishes high school in 2026 at the online Florida Virtual School, she says she plans to begin college-level barrel racing as she ponders a rodeo-related career. “I really want to do something with horses, maybe like wellness with them,” she explains. “There’s so much you can do, and I’m interested in all of it.”