Barrel Racer Appeals After Case Dismissed Against San Angelo Rodeo

AMARILLO, TX — A barrel racer whose lawsuit against the San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo Association was dismissed last year has appealed the ruling.

Danica Wilde, 36, who is from San Angelo and graduated from Wall High School, is seeking more than $250,000, but not more than $1 million, in damages.

Wilde was injured during a match horse race Oct. 29, 2023, according to her lawsuit, which states it was the first time that event was held at the Cinch Roping Fiesta. 

Wilde also competes as a barrel racer at rodeo events.

The San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo’s attorney, Jon Mark Hogg, filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which was granted Oct. 30, 2024, by Judge Carmen Dusek.

The motion to dismiss cited Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code Section 87.003, which states, in part, that “all persons, including a farm animal activity sponsor . . . are not liable for property damages or damages from the personal injury or death of a participant in a farm animal activity or livestock show if the property damage, injury, or death results from the dangers of conditions that are an inherent risk of a farm animal activity…”

The case was appealed to the Third Court of Appeals in Austin.

However, the Supreme Court of Texas ordered last week for the case to be transferred to the Seventh Court of Appeals in Amarillo.

A date for the next court hearing has not yet been set.

The case is unique because Wilde was not injured in a typical rodeo event. She was competing in a straight sprint between two horses that covered a distance less than one furlong (660 feet), which was held in an enclosure at the Cinch Roping Arena, 200 W. 43rd St.

As the horses finished the race, the short length of the enclosed track at the roping arena forced the riders to veer to the left to slow and avoid running into the fence that enclosed the end of the track, according to the lawsuit.

Positioned on the outside of the horse she was racing, Wilde was blocked by the competing horse from steering her own horse to the left, and was forced to cut behind the other horse and rider. Left without enough room to stop, Wilde pulled back on the reins to try to slow her horse, and the horse decelerated abruptly, throwing Wilde headfirst into the border fence and causing her to crash to the ground, the lawsuit stated.

Wilde claims she sustained “serious personal injuries” as a result of the incident.

Wilde’s lawsuit also states she was an invited entrant in the match horse racing event being held on the grounds of the San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo Association, and she was therefore an invitee on the defendant’s premises under Texas law.

Wilde is being represented by David Chapin, a personal injury attorney from Houston.