Amberley Snyder facts for kids

Amberley Snyder, born on January 29, 1991, is an American professional cowgirl. She is famous for her skills in rodeo, especially barrel racing. She also competed in pole bending and breakaway roping. In 2010, Amberley was in a car accident that caused her to become paralyzed from the waist down. Even with this injury, she worked hard to keep competing in rodeo. In 2015, she earned a special chance to compete at The American Rodeo. Today, Amberley is also a popular motivational speaker.

Amberley's Early Life

Amberley Snyder was born in California on January 29, 1991. Her parents are Tina and Cory Snyder. She is the second oldest of her five siblings: Ashley, JC, Taylor, Aubrey, and Autumn.

Rodeo Beginnings

Amberley first rode a horse when she was only three years old. She started competing in rodeo barrel racing at age seven. During her summers, she spent weekends competing in barrel racing, pole bending, and breakaway roping. In 2009, she won the All-Around Cowgirl World Championship in the National Little Britches Rodeo Association. She was also the Utah State FFA President for 2009–2010.

Car Accident and Recovery

On January 10, 2010, Amberley was driving from Utah to the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado. After a gas station stop in Rawlins, Wyoming, she forgot to fasten her seat belt. Less than 10 miles later, she looked down at her map. Her truck drifted into the other lane, and when she tried to correct it, the truck slid off the road. It rolled seven times.

Amberley was thrown from the truck and hit a fence post. This crushed her T-12 vertebra, which left her paralyzed from the waist down. With a lot of hard work in physical therapy, and using a special seat belt on her saddle, she was able to ride and compete again. This happened about a year and a half after her accident. She later transferred from Snow College to Utah State University. There, she became the captain of the school's National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association team. In 2014, she also won the Shane Drury "Nothin' But Try" scholarship.

In 2015, Amberley received a special invitation from fans to compete in RFD-TV's The American Rodeo. This big event took place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. With her horse, Power, she finished her run in 15.3 seconds. This was only 0.6 seconds slower than the winning time. In 2016, she was among the top five competitors for the Rocky Mountain Pro Rodeo Association. She also earned her Women's Professional Rodeo Association card in 2016. Now, she competes in the RAM Wilderness Circuit.

Life as a Motivational Speaker

Amberley Snyder now works as a motivational speaker. She shares her story to inspire others. She also posts a weekly "Wheelchair Wednesday" video on social media. In these videos, she shows how she handles everyday tasks that can be more challenging. Amberley has also written an illustrated children's book. It is called Walk Ride Rodeo and is about overcoming difficulties.

Film About Amberley

Amberley Snyder's inspiring story was made into a Netflix movie. The biopic, titled Walk. Ride. Rodeo., was released on March 8, 2019. Amberley herself performed all the horse stunts in the film that happened after her accident. Her younger sister, Autumn, performed the stunts that took place before the accident. This was because their riding styles were very similar. Amberley also made a short appearance as herself in the third season of the TV show Yellowstone.