Carol Young was born in Long Beach, California. She moved to Mackay, Idaho at the age of 7 and lived there through her high school years.
She was born with a love for horses and riding and dreamed of being a cowgirl from a very young age. She was the Mackay, Idaho Rodeo Queen in 1957, and was the Senior Pro Rodeo Queen at Mackay many years later!
When Carol was young, her hero was Sammie Thurman and it was while she lived with Sammie that she started running barrels.