The most successful active driver in the world today, Kurt has won four World Championships, four Calgary Stampede Cowboys Rangeland Derby Championships, three Calgary Stampede Aggregate Titles, two Ponoka Stampede Championships to go with his multiple victories and awards. His first appearance in the COWBOYS Rangeland Derby final in 2011 marked the first time that three generations of the same family had qualified for the COWBOYS Rangeland Derby’s winner–take–all final joining his father Buddy Bensmiller and grandfather’s Allen Smith and Alan Bensmiller who were all multi–time finalists.
The 2023 season saw Kurt won the Richard Cosgrave Memorial Trophy for the fourth time in his career, and had a horse named to the Calgary Stampede’s Equine Athlete of Excellence. He posted 32 top ten runs, including 20 runs that also cracked the top five, and qualified for two championship final heats at the Grande Prairie Stompede and the Calgary Stampede.
In 2017 Kurt became chuckwagon racing’s first modern day “Grand Slam Winner” when he captured the Ponoka Stampede, the Calgary Stampede Aggregate Title, the Calgary Stampede COWBOYS Rangeland Derby and the World Chuckwagon Championship.
A two-sport athlete, Kurt was part of the Bentley Generals that won the 2009 Allan Cup – symbolic of Canada’s senior hockey champions. Kurt and his wife Ashly have three daughters – Harlee, Hayze and Vahn, and make their home in Dewberry, Alberta.
