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| Kollin VonAhn |
Full Name: Kollin VonAhn | Current Status: Active professional team roper (heeler), competing on the PRCA and ARHFA circuits in 2026
Nine years is a long time to wait for a second chance. Kollin VonAhn went from a 2015 world title to nearly a decade off the NFR map, then clawed his way back to Las Vegas at age forty-one with a partner he'd never once competed alongside professionally. This is the story of how he got there — twice.
Biography Summary
Kollin VonAhn is a professional team roper who competes as a heeler, the partner who ropes a steer's hind legs a half-beat after the header catches the horns. Over two decades in the arena, he has won two PRCA world championships and three Wrangler National Finals Rodeo average titles.
He grew up far from rodeo's traditional strongholds, learning the craft in the Iowa cornfields before moving to Oklahoma to chase it professionally. What followed was a career of sharp peaks, a long valley, and — most recently — a comeback few people outside the roping world expected.
While cross-checking his 2024 return against the official Wrangler NFR qualifier list, what stood out to me was the gap itself: nine full seasons between his second gold buckle and his sixth trip to Las Vegas, a stretch most competitors never climb back out of.
Early Life
VonAhn was born June 23, 1983, in Sac City, Iowa, a farm town with no rodeo tradition to speak of. His father Gene, later a banker, had always kept and traded horses, and his uncles did the same. "There was no such thing as a finished team roping horse in Iowa," VonAhn has said of those years, "so we never could buy one — we made everything we had."
The family studied instructional roping videos and rebuilt every lesson in a barn barely big enough to swing a rope in, working around Iowa's short outdoor season. VonAhn graduated from Sac City High School in a class of forty students, then headed south to Southeastern Oklahoma State University, where he won the College National Finals Rodeo heeling title in 2005. His youngest brother, Ryan, later won the same college title in 2009.
Professional Career
VonAhn's career reads less like a straight climb and more like two separate careers joined by a long stretch of silence — a fast rise to two gold buckles by 2015, nearly a decade largely away from the sport's biggest stage, and then an improbable return in his forties.
The Iowa Kid Turns Pro
VonAhn turned professional in 2006 after relocating to Durant, Oklahoma, and began building a reputation as a heeler who rarely missed. By 2009, roping with header Nick Sartain of Yukon, Oklahoma, he had climbed to the top of the heeler world standings. That December in Las Vegas, the pair claimed both the PRCA World Championship and the Wrangler NFR team roping average title, a rare double for a first-time champion.
Building With Hock and Chasing Luke Brown
The years after his first title were about partnership and horsepower as much as roping. VonAhn later teamed with Stephenville, Texas, header Luke Brown, and the pair built one of the tour's most consistent runs. In 2013 they placed in six rounds at the NFR to win the average title, and VonAhn finished the season second in the world heeler standings.
Much of that success rode on a sorrel gelding named Hock, a horse VonAhn had barely used before trusting him at rodeos. "To this day, I bet I've only heeled maybe fifteen or twenty steers on him ever in the practice pen," VonAhn said of the horse, whose smooth, unhurried style suited his riding better than any horse he'd owned. In 2014, VonAhn and Brown won Round 4 of the NFR in 3.6 seconds, good for $26,231 apiece, on their way to another strong finish.
A Second Gold Buckle in 2015
The partnership peaked in December 2015. VonAhn and Brown won the average title for a third time together, clocking 65.3 seconds across ten head, and VonAhn edged out Brown's own header, Aaron Tsinigine, to claim his second individual world championship. Brown missed the header's gold buckle by just $3,000 — team roping's team-based scoring means partners can split a title outcome, and this was one of those rare, bittersweet splits. That summer, VonAhn also added a Cheyenne Frontier Days championship, a title he would repeat in 2017.
The Quiet Years
What followed was less a decline than a deliberate stepping back. VonAhn partnered with longtime friend Brandon Webb, prioritizing family and business over a full ProRodeo schedule. Between 2016 and 2022, he appeared in the top 50 of the world standings only twice and cleared $30,000 in a season just as rarely.
"I think I won $50,000 last year, but it was kind of an eye-opener for me of how rodeo had changed," he admitted, noting that the money required to make the NFR had roughly doubled since his 2015 title. He has said he wouldn't trade that stretch of family time for anything, even knowing what it cost him competitively.
Sioux Falls and the Return to Las Vegas
In 2023, VonAhn partnered with Jake Clay for a fresh run at full-time competition, calling it an eye-opening reset. The real breakthrough came in 2024, when he teamed with Andrew Ward of Edmond, Oklahoma — two longtime friends who, remarkably, had never ProRodeoed together before that season. Entering the final weekend with VonAhn twenty-first in the heeler standings, the pair needed a big finish at the Cinch Governor's Cup in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
They delivered, winning the event and a $30,000-per-man payday that vaulted VonAhn into the top ten and locked up his sixth career NFR qualification. At the Thomas & Mack Center that December, Ward and VonAhn won Round 10 outright in 3.5 seconds and finished the season sixth in the heeler world standings with $247,311, closing out what VonAhn called, simply, a great opportunity he wasn't taking for granted.
Career Timeline
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1983 | Born June 23 in Sac City, Iowa |
| 2005 | Wins College National Finals Rodeo heeling title (Southeastern Oklahoma State University) |
| 2006 | Turns professional, joins the PRCA |
| 2009 | Wins first PRCA World Championship and NFR average title with header Nick Sartain |
| 2010 | Qualifies for his second Wrangler NFR |
| October 2013 | Marries WPRA barrel racer Angie Meadors |
| 2013 | Wins NFR average title with header Luke Brown; finishes second in world standings |
| 2014 | Wins Round 4 of the NFR in 3.6 seconds with Brown |
| 2015 | Wins second PRCA World Championship and third NFR average title with Brown; wins Cheyenne Frontier Days |
| 2017 | Wins a second Cheyenne Frontier Days championship |
| 2016–2022 | Steps back from full-time competition, partners with Brandon Webb, prioritizes family |
| 2023 | Partners with Jake Clay and returns to full-time PRCA competition |
| 2024 | Teams with Andrew Ward, wins the Cinch Governor's Cup, qualifies for his sixth NFR after a nine-year absence |
| 2026 | Active on the PRCA and ARHFA circuits; develops young rope horse AR Metallic Man for sale |
Major Achievements
VonAhn's résumé spans two distinct competitive eras, separated by nearly a decade but connected by the same fundamentals: clean loops, patient horsemanship, and partners who trusted him under pressure.
- Two PRCA World Championships in team roping heeling (2009, 2015)
- Three Wrangler NFR team roping average titles (2009, 2013, 2015)
- Six career Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifications
- Two Cheyenne Frontier Days championships (2015, 2017)
- 2005 College National Finals Rodeo heeling champion
- Career PRCA earnings exceeding $1 million
Awards & Honors
Beyond his gold buckles, VonAhn has been recognized within the roping community for his horsemanship as much as his roping. His work developing rope horses — including Hock, who compiled wins at Cheyenne, Omaha, and Salt Lake City — has been profiled repeatedly in trade publications as a model for bringing along young horses without burning them out early.
Career Statistics
| Season | Partner (Header) | NFR Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Nick Sartain | World Champion; NFR average champion |
| 2010 | Nick Sartain | NFR qualifier |
| 2013 | Luke Brown | NFR average champion; second in world standings |
| 2014 | Luke Brown | Won Round 4 in 3.6 seconds; NFR qualifier |
| 2015 | Luke Brown | World Champion; NFR average champion |
| 2024 | Andrew Ward | Won Round 10; sixth in heeler world standings, $247,311 |
Net Worth
VonAhn's PRCA competition earnings have been independently verified at over $1 million as of 2022 reporting, but no updated, itemized net worth figure — factoring in sponsorships, horse sales, and outside business ventures — has been published by a reliable source. Any specific dollar figure circulating online should be treated as unverified.
His income streams extend well beyond arena winnings. He and business partner Chris Pomeroy have built AR Metallic Man, a young gelding sired by the influential stallion Metallic Cat, into a rope horse with more than $116,000 in earnings as of a May 2026 win at the Gold Buckle Spring Showdown — money that reflects the broader horse-trading business VonAhn has run alongside his own roping career since childhood.
Gear & Equipment
As a heeler, VonAhn rides with a rope built for trailing shots rather than the shorter, stiffer loops favored by headers, and he has long favored horses with a calm, unhurried style through the corner — Hock and, more recently, AR Metallic Man both fit that mold. He has spoken about customizing tack, including a specially fitted saddle pad, to protect a horse's back over a long season of travel.
Playing Style
VonAhn's heeling is built on patience rather than raw speed. Teammates and horses alike describe him as someone who waits for the correct shot instead of forcing a fast but risky one, a habit that shows up in his relatively low no-time rate across three NFR average titles. He has said he prepares horses at home by rehearsing every possible run length, from four-second sprints to ten-second grinds, so nothing at the rodeo itself catches them off guard.
Injuries and Challenges
VonAhn's biggest on-the-road setback wasn't an injury to himself but to his horse. On the Fourth of July in 2013, in Red Lodge, Montana, his primary mount Frank escaped and was severely cut by barbed wire alongside horses belonging to Travis Graves and Luke Brown.
With his top horse suddenly unavailable, VonAhn turned to a green, largely untested mare named Hali, who carried him to that year's NFR anyway. He has also weathered the slower, injury-and-priority-driven stretch of 2016 through 2022, when limited rodeo entries — not physical setbacks — kept him off the sport's biggest stages.
Personal Life
VonAhn married WPRA barrel racer Angie Meadors in October 2013; the couple has a son, Steele Lynn. His father, Gene, is a banker who has bought and traded horses throughout his life, and his mother, Jan, works as an interior decorator. His brother Ryan followed him into competitive roping and won his own College National Finals Rodeo team roping title in 2009. The family's move from Sac City, Iowa, to Blanchard, Oklahoma, put VonAhn at the center of American team roping's geographic hub.
Official Social Media Profiles
Legacy
VonAhn's place in team roping history isn't just the two gold buckles — it's the shape of the career around them. Plenty of ropers win young and fade; fewer disappear from the sport's biggest stage for nine years and manage to climb back onto it. That 2024 return, built on a partnership with Andrew Ward that had no professional history behind it, is the clearest evidence of a competitor who never actually stopped believing he belonged there.
Interesting Facts
- VonAhn grew up in Sac City, Iowa, a state with almost no rodeo tradition, and taught himself the sport largely from instructional videos.
- He won the College National Finals Rodeo heeling title in 2005 while at Southeastern Oklahoma State University.
- His first world title in 2009 came alongside header Nick Sartain of Yukon, Oklahoma.
- He rode a horse named Hock to multiple major wins, despite having practiced on him only a handful of times beforehand.
- A barbed-wire accident on July 4, 2013, cost him his top horse mid-season and pushed him onto an unproven mare named Hali.
- He married WPRA barrel racer Angie Meadors in October 2013.
- His 2015 world title came in a rare "split" outcome, where his header Luke Brown missed the header's gold buckle by just $3,000.
- He won back-to-back-adjacent Cheyenne Frontier Days titles in 2015 and 2017.
- Between 2016 and 2022, he stepped back from full-time competition to focus on family and horse-trading business.
- His 2024 NFR qualification came with Andrew Ward, a lifelong friend he had never professionally competed alongside before that season.
- In 2026, he is developing a young sale horse, AR Metallic Man, in partnership with Missouri roper Chris Pomeroy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What sport does Kollin VonAhn compete in?
Kollin VonAhn is a professional rodeo athlete who competes in team roping as a heeler, the partner responsible for roping a steer's hind legs.
How many world titles has Kollin VonAhn won?
He has won two PRCA World Championships, in 2009 with header Nick Sartain and in 2015 with header Luke Brown.
How many times has Kollin VonAhn qualified for the NFR?
He has qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo six times: 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2024.
Where is Kollin VonAhn from?
He was born in Sac City, Iowa, and now lives in Blanchard, Oklahoma, the state where he built his professional roping career.
Who is Kollin VonAhn married to?
He is married to Angie Meadors, a WPRA barrel racer; the couple has a son named Steele Lynn.
Why did Kollin VonAhn take a break from full-time competition?
Between 2016 and 2022, he scaled back his PRCA schedule to prioritize family and his horse-trading business, returning to full-time competition around 2023.
Is Kollin VonAhn still competing in 2026?
Yes. He remains active on the PRCA and ARHFA circuits in 2026, competing and developing young rope horses including AR Metallic Man.
The Final Verdict
Kollin VonAhn's story isn't really about two gold buckles — plenty of ropers have those. It's about what happened in between and after them: a near-decade off the sport's biggest stage, a deliberate choice to put family first, and then a comeback at forty-one that most competitors never get the chance to attempt, let alone pull off. That's the part of his career worth remembering.
If you've roped against Kollin VonAhn, watched him compete at Cheyenne or the NFR, or know a detail about his Iowa-to-Oklahoma journey that belongs here, share it in the comments below — firsthand memories and corrections are always welcome. What's your favorite VonAhn run?