Shift in mindset has Jess Pope in thick of bareback race

Jess Pope is on a heater.

The 2022 PRCA World Champion bareback rider has turned his season around during the summer run.

On June 16, Pope sat 14th in the PRCA | Bill Fick Ford World Standings with $53,841. Fast-forward 51 days later, Pope has picked up nearly six figures more in earnings and sits third with $149,518.

“I drew like absolute crap for about three months and didn’t think I was even going to make the NFR,” Pope told the PRORODEO Sports News at the Douglas County Fair & Rodeo in Castle Rock on July 30. “Then I just decided to let it all loose and enjoy every second of it.”

The shift in mindset has paid off for the six-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier (2020-25) and three-time NFR Average champion (2020-22).

Since he earned his first gold buckle in 2022, Pope has stayed squarely in the mix for another world title but has fallen just shy of the top spot. He finished second in 2023, fifth in 2024 and third last season after making a late charge for the champion by winning Rounds 7 and 8 at the NFR.

“The last couple of years, I’ve just tried to go where I had a good (draw), and I had to learn to enjoy rodeo again a couple years ago,” Pope said. “I just have fun everywhere I go. I like to mess around with everybody, make fun of people and just be me. And I enjoy rodeo more now than I did back in my early years toward my rookie season.”

The biggest test for Pope’s rekindled love of rodeo came when he thought things weren’t going his way. But he found a way to remain positive and make the most of life on the road.

“I had to learn how to enjoy it when I wasn’t winning,” Pope said. “I got to where I was just winning, and that’s where I was finding enjoyment in it. (Changing my mindset) was good for my career and good for me. And it worked out.”

Pope’s priorities have also shifted in the last few years. He married his wife Sydney in May 2023 and welcomed a baby girl, Linlee, on May 3 this spring.

“The main thing I’m learning is that the thing you’re doing doesn’t identify who you are, whether it’s rodeoing, working an office job, picking stock or anything like that,” Pope said. “Rodeo doesn’t define who I am as a human being.

“I’ve just got to show up, be me and smile. It’s a very short-lived career, so if you’re not having fun, what’s the point in doing it?”

The chase for a PRCA Bareback Riding World Championship remains wide open as the season enters its final stretch before wrapping up on Sept. 30. Pope trails the world leader Bradlee Miller just over $90,000, with plenty of money left on the table.

-PRCA