Steer wrestler Dalton Massey finds right horse to reach 1st NFR

At 14 years old, Dalton Massey took part in his first steer wrestling competition. From that moment, he was hooked. The sport became his passion, and he focused all his attention on being a professional rodeo cowboy.

The journey since has been filled with plenty of success, but also a fair share of struggles. Coming into this season, Massey took some self-inventory, pondering a difficult question: Will I ever break through?

“I got married last fall, and it dang sure was a win-or-go-home season this year, it felt like,” Massey said.

He finished top 20 in the world standings in 2022 (17th) and 2021 (19th), just missing the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo cut of top 15. “There are a lot of guys who have bulldogged awesome for their whole careers and never made the NFR. I didn’t want to be one of those guys.”

At 30 years old, Massey felt like he had the necessary experience to turn the corner in 2023. What he needed were some solid draws and a horse that would put him in position to win.

Early on this season, he amassed a little more than $21,000, using several equine partners along the way. He arrived at RodeoHouston in March looking to solidify himself as a top-15 competitor with a real shot at making his first NFR.

That’s when Massey met Eddie, an 11-year-old gelding owned by Tanner Milan.

Purchased in 2020 from Arizona, Eddie started his rodeo career as a barrel racer and then a team roping horse, but struggled at both. Once he got the opportunity to chase something and try to outrun it, he found his calling.

“He just didn’t want to stay behind the steers at all,” Milan said with a laugh. “He’s just took to it, and he’s been a winner.”

At Houston, Massey placed in three preliminary rounds, including a win in the third, to reach the finals. There, he and Eddie blazed to a time of 4.5 seconds to win the round and the $50,000 prize that came with it.

By the time Houston was done, Massey had almost $76,000 on his ledger for the season, vaulting him to the top spot in the world standings, where he would remain the rest of the season.

“(In the past), you get so close to being top 15 in the fall, and then you’ve got a chance until the last week in September, and then don’t get it done. It’s pretty hard on you. It’s pretty taxing,” Massey said. “So to come out this year and seal the deal really in March, it was kind of surreal.”

After the Houston win, and with the rodeo schedule about to kick into high gear, Massey decided to join up with Milan and his travel partners so he could continue riding Eddie.

“(Dalton) didn’t really have a plan for the summer, and we had an open spot. He kind of just jumped in with us, and the rest was history,” Milan said.

What started in Houston turned into a tandem that would reset records and propel Massey to one of the best steer wrestling seasons in PRCA history.

Over the course of the year, Massey won seven rodeos and more than $193,000, breaking Ty Erickson’s 2017 regular-season earnings record of $163,152.

More than that, it started a partnership that carried Massey to his first NFR and resulted in Eddie being picked as the American Quarter Horse Steer Wrestling Horse of the Year.

With a $30,000 advantage in the world standings for much of the regular season, Massey used some rodeos during the latter portion of the year as an opportunity to season his own horse, Rodney. The 11-year-old gelding helped Massey make several strong showings late in the schedule, so Rodney is now a strong backup option if the need arises.

But for now, Massey and Eddie are the featured team, and with good reason: They won a record amount of money together. Through six go-rounds at the NFR, Massey is still atop the world steer wrestler standings, with $246,353 on the year. But he’s eighth in the NFR average, so Massey and Eddie need money-making runs to finish it off as they pursue pro rodeo’s highest honor — a world title.

“Rodney’s doing great, but there’s just a certain edge when you’re riding a horse like Eddie that you need to have when you draw (a steer) that runs a little harder or a little stronger. Something to get your feet on the ground that much faster is huge,” Massey said. “Rodney’s still going to be my second. I’m going to stay riding Eddie as long as Tanner will let me.”