Dust plumes in the air. Hoofbeats ring out. She pivots around the barrels before racing back to the gate.

The clock stops. 16.176 seconds. Good time. Really good time.

Anabella McNelly took fourth place at BOD Rodeo #1 in Saginaw. Behind that placement was years of history.

She has competed in rodeo independently since she was 13 and began to ride for school her freshman year. During her sophomore year, McNelly chose to homeschool in the hopes of going pro.

Shortly after transferring, her horse tore a suspensory ligament running down the back of his leg, putting him out for about six weeks.

“He wasn’t fit enough for me to ride him,” McNelly said. “That was part of why he pulled that ligament.”

McNelly then took an extended break from rodeo – longer than the six weeks that she couldn’t ride.

“That injury put my confidence level really low,” McNelly said. “I didn’t know if rodeo was really something I wanted to do.”

Between a lack of social interaction and a constant feeling of being behind in school, McNelly found herself struggling with mental health.

“I was really isolated,” McNelly said. “I felt like I was on my own and I didn’t have anybody to enjoy things with other than my mom. I love my mom, but, you know, she’s my mom. I was extremely depressed, and I just struggled with the fact that my horse was hurt and I had nothing to do.”

Wrestling with depression, McNelly began to feel stuck.

“I couldn’t do anything about it,” McNelly said. “There was no fixing it. He had to sit in the pasture or in his stall for six weeks. We’d also moved to a different town at the same time. It was not fun. It was just hard.”

After her junior year, McNelly decided to go back to what she loved, and started riding again.

“My mom really pushed me to get back into it,” McNelly said. “I did, and I’m glad I did.”

With more time available than she had when first going to homeschool, it became easier for her to balance schoolwork and riding.

“I just had to get it in my head that I need to balance, not procrastinate, and get stuff done, so then at home I can focus on the horses,” McNelly said.

Shortly after reentering competition, McNelly found success at the North Texas High School Rodeo Association.

“Over the summer, we won Reserve Champion at a series,” McNelly said.”It really made me realize that this is something that I really want to pursue. This year, I came and won fourth my first rodeo, and second in my second rodeo. It was nice to know that I could compete with the big dogs at North Texas.”

McNelly has grown to view riding as a stress reliever rather than a stressor.

“I’m out there by myself, and there’s nobody else that I need to put on a show for,” McNelly said. “I can just be myself. If I want to scream at the world, I can. If I want to rage, I can. My horse doesn’t care.”

She has one piece of advice for those going through a similar struggle with their passions.

“Just realize that you love what you do,” McNelly said. “Thrive on that.”