2025 Nutrena Breakaway Roping Horse of the Year

Cajun cowgirl Josie Conner is a constant contender in the breakaway roping world championship conversation. Her sorrel sidekick, Stylish Drifter, has everything to do with her dominance on the elite stages of this booming event. “Dutch” is 16 now and was named the 2025 Nutrena Breakaway Roping Horse of the Year, presented by AQHA, for the second straight year.

“Dutch has everything to do with my success,” says Josie, who’s 22. “I went to 65 rodeos this year and rode Dutch at 56 of them. This is the most money I’ve ever won in the regular season, and at the least amount of rodeos. That’s all Dutch. I have the most confidence backing in the box when I’m on him.”

Dutch, who was bred by Mike and Linda Silveira of Lipan, Texas, is a 2009 chestnut gelding by Playin Stylish and out of Gold Cloud Miss by White Lighting Ike.

Josie this year qualified for her fourth-consecutive National Finals Breakaway Roping. The 2025 NFBR was originally scheduled for December 2-3 at the South Point Arena & Equestrian Center in Las Vegas. Due to the EHV-1 outbreak, it has been postponed to December 22-23 and will be held at the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas.

This has been Josie’s second full year on Dutch, and he’s obviously enjoying the breakaway life after his past one as a tie-down roping horse.

“I think Dutch’s past experience and being trained as a tie-down horse has patterned him,” she says. “It helped him score flat, and just the way he reads a calf is awesome. He might not have lasted as long at this level had he been a breakaway horse all his life, just because our event is so fast and we ask so much out of them by throwing fast every time.”

Josie’s reigning world champion tie-down roper boyfriend Riley Webb has also ridden Dutch at rodeos on occasion. Dutch and Riley’s 2025 Tie-Down Roping Horse of the Year, Marked Up Cat, aka “Rudy,” are big buddies and spend a lot of time together, like their owners. Like Riley and Rudy, Josie and Dutch have a flair for going fast. They own arena records from Redmond, Oregon, to Salt Lake City.

“Dutch is a standout breakaway horse, because he truly loves his job,” Josie says “He’s a winner and wants to be good at what he does.”

So what does it take for a horse to excel in such a lightning-fast event?

“The great ones score flat and hold distance before the throw,” Josie says. “When they hold distance in the throw, it helps you clock. A couple tenths of a second make a big difference in our event, and holding that distance makes it easier for me personally to catch.

“Horsepower is everything in our event. A great horse can make a good roper great, and it works both ways. Without a great horse, a great roper becomes less dominant.”

Dutch stands 14.2 hands tall and tips the scales at 1,150 pounds. He’s also spoiled rotten by his grateful cowgirl.

“Dutch gets all the special treatment,” Josie says. “He’s literally treated like a king. He has a stall knee-deep in shavings with a fan on the front of it and gets turned out several hours a day. He’s a special boy, and he absolutely knows it and loves his baths. He’s a 100 percent diva.”

Dutch is now just the second two-time breakaway horse of the year. Shelby Boisjoli-Meged’s No Wimpy Turns, aka “Onna,” took the honors in 2021 and 2023. The top 25 breakaway ropers in the world vote on the winner.

“This is one of the coolest accomplishments I have,” Josie says. “Having a horse of the year once is something a lot of people dream about. Winning it back-to-back is very cool. Shelby and Onna are an incredible team, so that’s some great company.

“Day in and day out, Dutch gives me so many chances to win. We won our second rodeo of the year in Fort Worth and ended the regular season winning second at the big rodeo in Sioux Falls (South Dakota). I’ll never take Dutch for granted. I’ve never had a ‘feel’ like I do on Dutch, and I know that doesn’t last forever. So I’m going to keep treating him like a king and enjoying every run.”

Cheyanne McCartney’s Aladdins Approach, aka “Lexus,” is this year’s reserve breakaway horse of the year, and Craig Miller’s Jigsaw Wildcard, aka “Jigsaw,” who’s ridden by Aspen Miller, finished third in the 2025 voting.