MORRISTOWN — Union Local High School freshman Eme Martin performed at Southern Extreme Bull Riding Association National Finals in Lexington, Virginia, where she was named the 2025 SEBRA Specialty Act of the Year through a vote of her peers.

Contestants are required to have a SEBRA card in order to be eligible to perform at a sanctioned event.

Martin was also required to have at least three SEBRA rodeos under her belt this season to be eligible for the award. She ended up having nine total.

Her schedule for 2025 saw her travel to 18 different states as well as performing in numerous community events throughout the year.

“She has worked very hard for the last eight years” Martin’s mother Sarah Martin said. “A lot of people have told her she would never make it big or that the horses she used weren’t worth anything. But here she is at 15 years old being voted number one by her peers. She has truly earned it.”

Eme’s parents Sarah and Brian Martin have both worked in the rodeo business since she was a baby, so she grew up around the lifestyle.

Martin was trained by Shadow Montag, a professional trick rider alongside his sister Dallas Montag.

“When I turned 7, Shadow decided to have me over for practice, and just kind of threw me on one of his horses and told me to hang upside down. And then that practice turned into 15 shows that year,” Eme said.

Sarah Martin said that the Martins and Montags are very close and joked that Shadow is stuck with her family now.

Eme’s brother Briar also performs in the rodeo community and competes in the junior bull riding circuit.

Eme said her favorite part of performing is getting to meet the children who are excited to see her after she performs.

“The paychecks aren’t bad either,” Eme said.

She added that she competes against people from ages 15 to 50 years old.

“It’s cool that everybody voted for me, because I’m up against some of the best of the best. And all these people are older than me by at least five years,” Eme said. “I’m pretty close with everybody, but there’s just a lot of competition. Everybody’s very good at what they do.”

Sarah said that, during the opening ceremony, Eme was performing with her horse Blitz and the spotlights spooked the horse, which made it come to an abrupt stop. Eme was thrown forward and injured her foot. Doctors informed her that she had a possible hairline fracture.

As soon as she left the doctor she went straight back to the ceremony and performed with an injured foot and continued to perform the following day.

This marks Martin’s first time winning Specialty Act of the Year. She said that it was an honor to win, especially since she was the youngest person competing.

After completing the 2025 SEBRA season, Martin will continue to compete monthly throughout the country for different rodeo organizations throughout the country.