C
Casey Allen
Guest
Adios Pantalones officially took the title of all-time high earning barrel racing stallion, a record previously held by the NFR talent, Slick By Design, after crossing the $630,000 earnings mark in April 2025.
“I didn’t think he’d be doing this as a 5-year-old, that’s insane,” his owner, rider and trainer, Tricia Aldridge said. “And I didn’t think we’d be doing it with rodeo money. But he’s just a 15-year-old rodeo horse in a 5-year-old stallion’s body out here.”
That’s right—the all-time leading futurity horse has been bouncing around inside the WPRA’s Top 15 in the World standings all 2025 season long. It was his two massive wins on the weekend of April 11—$8,087 for a 16.93 on Logandale’s standard pattern, and $3,188 in Oakdale, California, to be exact—that brought it home.
“He’s done the best at the biggest rodeos. He wants the crowd, the noise, the lights. He’s built for it,” Aldridge said. “I mean, we all know he has a big ego. But when you get out here, the ground is different, the setups are different — and nothing ever really seems hard for him. At Logandale, the ground was shifty and the horses were tough. He just felt like he took it all in stride. He didn’t get to see the arena at Waxahachie, at Fresno, at Logandale. There’s no exhibitions out here. And it doesn’t matter — he just walks in and does it.”
When it became clear Adios Pantalones had crossed the all-time earnings mark for a competing stallion, Tricia Aldridge picked up the phone and called the people who would know best — Highpoint Performance Horses‘ Jason Martin and Charlie Cole, the owners of leading stallion Slick By Design, the previous record-holder.
“Jason had asked me to let him know first when it happened,” Aldridge said. “They’d made a post a few weeks ago as we were getting close, and after this last weekend, I reached out and told them my total.”
Martin took to social media, making a powerful statement in support of Adios’ journey.
The moment wasn’t just about breaking the record — it was about doing it in the footsteps of one of the top breeding programs in the game.
“Highpoint’s always been so encouraging,” Aldridge said. “What they did with Slick — that’s the dream. So to be following in that path is just really cool.”
For Aldridge, it’s never just been about the money. She’s worked hard to make an impact not only on her own career, but the lives of others—with a focus on beginners in the barrel racing sport, and the small-time breeders and owners in the game.
Tricia Aldridge and Adios Pantalones won the Run at the Rose Futurity 2024. 4S Photography AZ.
Futurities were a wild ride for the golden stallion and his owner during his 4-year-old season, when he rose to the title of all-time earning futurity horse.
The team’s success, combined with the jockey’s colorful outfits, outspoken social media presence and utilization of platforms like TikTok on her Red Hot Running Horses account have grown the young stud’s base to exponential heights.
It’s already been a wild ride for this duo, but rodeos have provided a unique experience in their maiden voyage on the full-time road.
“There’s way more strategy involved in rodeo than in a futurity,” she said. “In the futurity world, the fastest horse usually wins. But in rodeo, it’s not always the fastest — it’s the smartest. The one who handles the ground. The one who shows up in chaos and still puts it together.”
The self-made businesswoman, trainer and breeder admitted that the learning curve is sharp in rodeo, but her experience with it has felt charmed.
“I don’t want to say it’s easy, because it’s not — but it’s definitely not as hard as I thought it would be,” she said. “Everything’s just kind of fallen into place. I figured I’d be trying to crack the top 40, and now I’m out here with a five-year-old winning at the biggest rodeos. It’s been really cool.”
So, is the 2025 NFR truly achievable for Aldridge? Well, as of April 11, the Sanger, Texas, talent was seated No. 11 in the standings with $28,462 earned, and her big weekend will only help her catapult up the list. She’s also confirmed via the 2025 World Standings to compete in the 2025 Calgary Stampede, a setup she feels will suit Adios’ aggressive style.
“I definitely think now — like, I might actually get this thing done. I hope so, because I don’t want to do this again,” she laughed.
Still, it’s not the potential of Las Vegas lights that drive Aldridge and the internet-shattering stallion to greater heights. It’s a mixture of their bond, Aldridge’s relentless pursuit of her goals and her love for the industry.
The post A Unicorn Story: Adios Pantalones Breaks All-Time Barrel Racing Stallion Earnings Record appeared first on BarrelRacing.com.
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“I didn’t think he’d be doing this as a 5-year-old, that’s insane,” his owner, rider and trainer, Tricia Aldridge said. “And I didn’t think we’d be doing it with rodeo money. But he’s just a 15-year-old rodeo horse in a 5-year-old stallion’s body out here.”
That’s right—the all-time leading futurity horse has been bouncing around inside the WPRA’s Top 15 in the World standings all 2025 season long. It was his two massive wins on the weekend of April 11—$8,087 for a 16.93 on Logandale’s standard pattern, and $3,188 in Oakdale, California, to be exact—that brought it home.
“He’s done the best at the biggest rodeos. He wants the crowd, the noise, the lights. He’s built for it,” Aldridge said. “I mean, we all know he has a big ego. But when you get out here, the ground is different, the setups are different — and nothing ever really seems hard for him. At Logandale, the ground was shifty and the horses were tough. He just felt like he took it all in stride. He didn’t get to see the arena at Waxahachie, at Fresno, at Logandale. There’s no exhibitions out here. And it doesn’t matter — he just walks in and does it.”
When it became clear Adios Pantalones had crossed the all-time earnings mark for a competing stallion, Tricia Aldridge picked up the phone and called the people who would know best — Highpoint Performance Horses‘ Jason Martin and Charlie Cole, the owners of leading stallion Slick By Design, the previous record-holder.
“Jason had asked me to let him know first when it happened,” Aldridge said. “They’d made a post a few weeks ago as we were getting close, and after this last weekend, I reached out and told them my total.”
Martin took to social media, making a powerful statement in support of Adios’ journey.
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The moment wasn’t just about breaking the record — it was about doing it in the footsteps of one of the top breeding programs in the game.
“Highpoint’s always been so encouraging,” Aldridge said. “What they did with Slick — that’s the dream. So to be following in that path is just really cool.”
For Aldridge, it’s never just been about the money. She’s worked hard to make an impact not only on her own career, but the lives of others—with a focus on beginners in the barrel racing sport, and the small-time breeders and owners in the game.
Tricia Aldridge and Adios Pantalones won the Run at the Rose Futurity 2024. 4S Photography AZ.
Futurities were a wild ride for the golden stallion and his owner during his 4-year-old season, when he rose to the title of all-time earning futurity horse.
The team’s success, combined with the jockey’s colorful outfits, outspoken social media presence and utilization of platforms like TikTok on her Red Hot Running Horses account have grown the young stud’s base to exponential heights.
It’s already been a wild ride for this duo, but rodeos have provided a unique experience in their maiden voyage on the full-time road.
“There’s way more strategy involved in rodeo than in a futurity,” she said. “In the futurity world, the fastest horse usually wins. But in rodeo, it’s not always the fastest — it’s the smartest. The one who handles the ground. The one who shows up in chaos and still puts it together.”
The self-made businesswoman, trainer and breeder admitted that the learning curve is sharp in rodeo, but her experience with it has felt charmed.
“I don’t want to say it’s easy, because it’s not — but it’s definitely not as hard as I thought it would be,” she said. “Everything’s just kind of fallen into place. I figured I’d be trying to crack the top 40, and now I’m out here with a five-year-old winning at the biggest rodeos. It’s been really cool.”
So, is the 2025 NFR truly achievable for Aldridge? Well, as of April 11, the Sanger, Texas, talent was seated No. 11 in the standings with $28,462 earned, and her big weekend will only help her catapult up the list. She’s also confirmed via the 2025 World Standings to compete in the 2025 Calgary Stampede, a setup she feels will suit Adios’ aggressive style.
“I definitely think now — like, I might actually get this thing done. I hope so, because I don’t want to do this again,” she laughed.
Still, it’s not the potential of Las Vegas lights that drive Aldridge and the internet-shattering stallion to greater heights. It’s a mixture of their bond, Aldridge’s relentless pursuit of her goals and her love for the industry.
The post A Unicorn Story: Adios Pantalones Breaks All-Time Barrel Racing Stallion Earnings Record appeared first on BarrelRacing.com.
Continue reading...