Rett Syndrome is defined as a condition that only affects girls and it is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is classified as an autism spectrum disorder. You may have never heard of the condition but Jennifer Dyer has to think about it every day. Her 16-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, developed the condition as a very young child and since then Dyer has been her caregiver as well as her mother. Dyer also has a 7-year-old son, Jayden, and is recently single. Mothers are often defined by the responsibilities they contend with as opposed to being individuals, but in many cases, that’s just how a mother defines herself too.

Dyer obviously has huge responsibilities, so taking this time to follow a dream is no small feat for her, or for her children or her parents and friends. And it’s her parents and friends that make this all possible for her (in addition to all her hard work of course). Her dad, John Dyer, and her stepmom, Sandra Eatherly, have literally made it possible for Dyer to be both a mom and a dream follower. And really, isn’t that what great parents are for?

Packing for this rodeo (any large rodeo) involves a checklist about two pages long for Dyer: medications, diapers, clothes for hot and cold weather, her daughter’s wheel chair (which only fits in certain areas of the trailer) and food, food, food (apparently Jayden is always hungry). For Reno, Dyer’s parents came with her and while she rode Fritz they watched her children. At rodeos or jackpots closer to home Dyer gets a ton of help, she says, from her friends who step up all the time to help her watch her kids.

“My parents support me completely and help me a lot with my children, I couldn’t do this without them,” Dyer said. Since her daughter’s condition requires medication Dyer has a mental list of what could go wrong. “One of my biggest concerns on the road is running  out of medication for Jocelyn.”

Anyone who has ever been out of town and suddenly had a sick child knows that sinking feeling in your stomach when you realize you don’t know where the hospital is, you don’t know where a pharmacy is and you aren’t sure just how bad your child will get – Dyer plans and plans and plans again to make sure that she has what she needs to get through her time away from home.

Dreams are often in our peripheral vision but seldom are they actively gone after. Dyer is actively seeking to follow this dream wherever it may lead. So, she entered the biggest rodeo of her life: Reno, Nevada.

Getting there was fun, Dyer says. When she first arrived she was going to keep her horse at the college in town but her friend and traveling partner Sheena Robbins (NFR qualifier) suggested that she keep him on the rodeo grounds instead. Fritz, while doing exceptionally well for Dyer, had not been around a rodeo of this magnitude and he would do well to spend at least a night getting used to the sights, smells and sounds.

“Sheena knows I’m such a rookie, so I took her advice and it worked out perfect,” Dyer said. “They had bull riding Thursday  night and fireworks and my horse has never seen such a things. He was very nervous but he handled it well, better than I expected.”

Dyer’s first run was Friday morning in the slack. It was okay, she said, but he didn’t clock like she knows he can and the ground was a little deep for him as he prefers harder ground. They stayed all week through, instead of going home and returning to the rodeo, and by the end of the week Fritz could care less about waving flags, announcers, horse-drawn wagons and little kids screaming and crying while being pushed in strollers.

Dyer’s next run was the cherry on the sundae: Thursday night performance.

“I thought I was going to throw up,” Dyer said. “I spent a lot of time with Fritz at the stall getting ready and in the warm up pen. I tried to act like it was just another barrel race (as my friends would say). But it was such a loud rodeo and I have not run in too many perfs. The arena was lit up like a fish bowl and it was so dark outside of it. It even sprinkled on us as we warmed up.”

Dyer was almost last in the draw, bottom of the ground, and she says, “I rode in there like I knew what I was doing.”

That-a-girl.

“Fritz did great at the first but got faster and faster heading to the second. He turned it great and headed to the third,” Dyer said. “I think Fritz was just thinking ‘where the heck is the gate.’ We missed our third by a few strides.”

Dyer couldn’t be happier with the way Fritz handled the whole rodeo, from the noise, to the ground, to the roar of the crowd that Dyer said was just overwhelmingly loud.

In between rodeo performances Dyer, ever the barrel racer, managed to hit two jackpots while in Reno and left with $660 for two runs. She didn’t win any money in the Reno Rodeo, but she ran against Lindsay Sears, Brittany Pozzi and Sherry Cervi. And, together with her parents and children, she spent a week at one of the biggest rodeos in the nation and heard them call her name.

She rode Fritz like a champion, putting aside any doubts and fears she may have harbored before the rodeo.

“Fritz is very honest and gives me the best run possible every time. The crowd was so darn loud I could barely hear myself think,” Dyer said. “I could hear the announcer telling them to cheer me on. Fritz handled everything so well. The best part of the Reno Rodeo to me was actually entering into the arena during the performance and telling myself, I know I belong here – now ride like I do. This has built my confidence up so much. I am ready for the next one. It is like a drug and I just do not want to stop.”

Jennifer and her horse Dandy Doo in 1980. The photo is clearly out of focus, but it’s a fun shot!

Jennifer is entered up at: Lancaster on July 11; Salinas I am up in slack all three days –  July 15- 17; Nampa, Idaho, on July 19; Ogden, Utah, Salt lake City, Utah and Spanish Fork, Utah July 20 – 23.

Star Plaudit holds a very unique record in the world of professional rodeo, one that is not likely to ever be duplicated.  The bay gelding won two GRA World Championships in rodeo in a single year and contributed to a third.  Red, as he was affectionately known, carried his owner Sherry Johnson to the world title in the barrel racing and close family friend Tom Nesmith to the RCA world title in the steer wrestling and helped the Oklahoman also claim the RCA All Around championship, all in 1962.

“He was one of those once in a lifetime horses.”

While this is often said by those ladies who have won the WPRA world championship, when Johnson says it, it carries a bit more weight.

After all, Johnson has trained six horses that have made an appearance at the NFR.  She is a twelve-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier, the first coming in 1959 at the first GRA Finals and the last in 1991 under the bright lights of Las Vegas, a span of four decades.  She was named the WPRA’s Coca Cola Woman of the Year in 1997 and in 2005 she was inducted into the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum’s Rodeo Hall of Fame.

Johnson first came to know Red when her husband at the time, Benny Combs bought the horse in partnership with his brother Willard.  Red was a bull dogging’ horse and the brothers competed on him for a time before Benny and Sherry bought Willard out.  Red was eight at the time and Johnson was in need of a horse to run barrels.

“I was afoot,” Johnson remembers. “We brought him home in the fall and I put six weeks of barrel training on him and took him to Denver.”  Barrel racing seemed to come easy to the gelding and the pair placed second or better each round at the Stock Show until a tipped barrel in the short go cost them the championship.

“He was just one of those runaway freaks,” Johnson says of her horse’s style and quick understanding of the barrels. “It was one wild ride.”

Johnson credits the steer wrestling with teaching Red how to run hard through the pattern.  Mistakes like going by the first barrel did not cost the horse time in his run like it might other horses.

“He ran as hard as he could,” Johnson says, “and never was bad to slip or stumble.”

Red was very independent, according to Johnson, strictly business and not at all interested in attention from people. “He tolerated me, I could brush him all day long and he liked that,” Johnson says, “but he didn’t like hugs or being petted.”

In fact Johnson was the only human that Red seemed to like. No one else could catch the gelding when he was out in the pasture; Benny used to just send Johnson, saying “you go get him.”  Johnson remembers a time during the Fort Worth rodeo when she sent her sister Florence (Youree) out to the rodeo grounds to feed Red.

“He booted her out of the stall,” she says.  Luckily, she wasn’t hurt but she definitely got the message. As for Johnson, she says she could have crawled between his legs and he wouldn’t do a thing.

Red was good inside and out – “he didn’t like Sidney, Iowa, but we could place, and Burwell” – but everything else was okay with the tough gelding.

Red won almost all of the big rodeos at the time with the notable exception of Denver, where something weird always seemed to happen. One year, Johnson remembers losing her reins at the second barrel.  They flipped over Red’s head and were dangling from an ear, swinging near the ground, dangerously.

“I just thought, I’m dead,” Johnson laughs. The pair somehow finished the run and won second in the go round. “It wasn’t as dramatic as Charmayne’s run at the Finals but I guess Red was pretty automatic.”

“We won Houston one year and $650,” she laughs, “if that tells you how much times have changed.”

Red spent his earliest years competing in both the barrels and steer wrestling at most of the rodeos.

“We would always ask that I be put to the bottom of the ground,” Johnson remembers. “The bull dogging was usually right before the barrels so if I was last, it gave Red a chance to catch his breath.  I’m not sure they would let you do that now,” she adds, laughing.

Johnson recalls making the short round at Cheyenne, Wyo., one year.

“They put the barrels between the sections of bull dogging. The barrels ran from the opposite end. So, they ran steers on him in the first section and then I loped him to the other end to run barrels,” Johnson shakes her head. “Obviously, he was out of air and didn’t do as good as we hoped. After his run, we loped back down to the bull dogging end and Jim Painter won second in the average on him.”

Johnson said they didn’t limit the steer wrestling runs because Red made so much money, especially at the big rodeos. Johnson remembers getting a $1,000 bill from a bull dogger in Denver after he won big aboard Red.

Despite running at a disadvantage everywhere, Johnson and Red were able to make the GRA Finals in Scottsdale, Ariz., in 1960 and again at Santa Maria, Calif., in 1961. That year, Johnson won the GRA All Around World Championship. Red was her mount for the barrels and her mare that she had run at the first GRA Finals in Clayton, N.M., in 1959 was her ride for the roping and flag race.

In 1962 Johnson and Benny, who was already a RCA World champion having won the steer wrestling title in 1955, decided that the time was right for Johnson to make a run at the world title in the barrels. They hit the trail – hard. Johnson again qualified for the GRA Finals, that year to be held in Dallas, Texas. Red was 12.

Johnson recalls that Red was rarely in need of correcting but if he ever did make a mistake, the horse would pretty much correct himself. At the Finals in 1962, Red made one of his few mistakes.

“On the first barrel, he turned right back through himself, and ended up on the same side,” Johnson remembers. “Needless to say we didn’t place in the average.”

In typical fashion, Red came back and won some go round money to finish out the Finals. Her year-end total was enough to take the world title by about $800 more than Wanda Bush. They won $7,899 for the year.

Meanwhile, several guys rode Red to the RCA’s National Finals Rodeo, including Nesmith. He won $17,000 en route to his title.

“We never tried for a world title again,” Johnson says. But she rode Red to five more Finals qualifications, including the first year that the GRA was included with the NFR at Oklahoma City in 1967.

“I just thought that was the biggest deal in the world, another of my goals accomplished,” Johnson states. “Growing up we used to go to the rodeo at Fort Worth. As a kid, all I wanted was to one day get to ride in the grand entry,” Johnson remembers. “Then the first year I ran barrels there . . . the was no greater thrill than running down that long alley to the first barrel – it was a blind alley like so many others back then – knowing that your horse was going to turn.”

When Johnson and Combs divorced, Red became strictly a barrel racing horse. He was retired at age 18.

“He was still sound and I didn’t want to cripple him,” Johnson says. Her young daughter Becky rode the horse some in his retirement. “She kinda balanced on the reins and didn’t hit as many barrels as I did!”

After several years in her pasture, Johnson sent Red to a family friend whose young daughter rode the horse. They kept him in the front yard.

“I loved being able to look out the kitchen window and see how the day was going for him,” Johnson says. Sending Red away was a tough decision and she asked the new owners not to tell her when the aging horse passed away.

“Of course, I cried when they finally told me,” she admits. “You know, I think a barrel racer gets to know her horse almost better than her husband. You know their feelings so well.”

No horse in the history of professional rodeo can lay claim to the accomplishments that Red achieved. Two world Championships in two separate events in the same year. Not to mention a hand in two all-around titles in both the GRA and RCA.

“He was just awesome.” Johnson knows better than anyone.

Spring loaded Tilt-Tie swings out from your trailer wall. It’s an attractive functional trailer accessory that attaches with two bolts and swings back out of the way when you are done.  Seven ft. off the ground like a highline, but you don’t have to look for trees to tie to. Your horse can move around, lay down, graze and not be nervous about being tied short to a trailer. The teenager in my horses comes out when they are tied close to my trailers. They  like to paw the tire valve stems and fender clearance lights. Quick release snaps in the included leads make it easier to free your horse if a problem occurs. Good for longer tie ups.

The Tilt-Tie base and swivel which attaches to your trailer wall post is aluminum. The spring housing and rod are stainless steel. So there is no painting, no maintenance and it’s corrosion free. Quick pins go through the base to lock the lead rod in place away from the trailer or against the trailer for traveling.

This was an easy install, everything but the drill is included. I drilled the top bolt from the inside to line up square with the frame post. You do want to attach the Tilt-Tie to the wall framing not just to the sheet metal.

Next I inserted the top bolt in the wall bracket and used the bracket bottom as a guide for the bottom bolt hole. Tilt-Tie uses two nylon bushings to swing the tie arm out 90 degrees from the trailer wall. Locking pins are included for transport. Aluminum base and post

Spring loaded arm, the spring is hidden in the flex post. You won’t get pinched by it.

Looks like a pro installed it, only took 30 minutes but 1/2 of that was taking pictures. The rod fits well against the side of the trailer. Quick release snaps on the leads add to the safety of Tilt-Tie.

The adjustable nylon flat strap lets you adjust to 2 to 3 inches off the ground. Quick release and bull snaps on both leads. New stainless steel rod is stronger

Nylon bushings in the swivel, make it swing easy and quietly which you’ll appreciate if you sleep in your trailer when your horses are using Tilt-Tie.

There are hooks, lead ropes and halters available that allow horses to pull back when you are teaching horses to yield to pressure. If your horses handle slack in a lead rope well or a high tie, they should do well using Tilt-Tie.

Jennifer Dyer grew up in cowboy country. It’s in the middle of California and it is arguably one of the best places to live: ever. To the West is the Pacific Ocean where ranches dot the landscape along Highway 101; to the East are small towns like Paso Robles, Atascadero and San Luis Obispo; and even though the land is disappearing at an alarming rate, just like it is everywhere, it’s still full of horses to the North and the South grazing on golden hills with huge Oak trees.

Dyer grew up in Atascadero and at 37 she still lives in the same house she was raised in South of town. Her horses are there with her as well as her two children, who are 16 and 7. She enjoyed the regular activities that most horse kids enjoy, such as gymkhanas and riding through the Salinas River Bed, and she developed a love of good horses and roping. Her main mount, Fritzy Chex, is a 10-year-old Strawberry Roan gelding that is not going to win any vertical contests at just 14.2 hands.

“He has more personality than any living thing on this earth,” Dyer said. “I’ve owned him since he was three and bought him from my brother-in-law Lance Johnston who trains and shows snaffle bit horses.”

Fritz, thankfully, was a reject and Dyer was talked into buying him. “He’s a wiry little thing and I tried selling him for a year before I finally gave up,” Dyer said. “I started him on the barrels when he was five and I’ve done all the training myself. He started running the barrels so good I put down my rope.”

That was about 2005. “It was a whole new world to me,” Dyer said. No matter if it was a challenge or not, she kept on working at it. Challenges were nothing new to Dyer who has a daughter who needs 24 hour care, but who is her light and joy. She knows what real challenges are.

Her personality plus horse is by Pep Bar Deck by Peppys Bartender by Mr San Peppy out of Chexs Me Out who is by Docs Star Barred by Doc Bar and Dyer says he loves his job. “He started placing at a lot of rodeos and it makes me feel like I really belong here.”Dyer filled her permit last year, so this is her rookie year. She hasn’t changed much to get there either.

“My horse only runs in aluminum shoes,” she said. “He does not clock well with steel ones on. My saddle is an older Crates round skirt that I purchased for $200 and I have ran him in the same bit for years which is a half wonder. Nothing special.”

The moral: don’t wait on a $4,000 saddle and a $50,000 horse to get started. Work with what you have and move on.

Dyer is as rookie as rookies can come and travels always with her daughter, Jocelyn, who has Rett Syndrome, which is a neurological disorder. Often her son Jayden comes along when he isn’t in school and staying with her good friends the Raines: Dyer has a lot on her plate.

And she’s recently single.

No pressure at all. So what does Dyer decide to do? She enters up at Reno!

Good for her.

But wow.

“To enter Reno was a huge decision for me. I have some really great friends and family that stand behind me 100 percent,” Dyer said. “My horse is more seasoned now and I have a much better chance at some of the money.”

Dyer is an example to anyone who thinks that they can’t do something or that the day will never come when dreams come true. “I honestly did not really know until I went to my first rodeo on him in the fall of 2009 that I could fulfill my childhood dream of being a rodeo girl and actually be competitive against some of the best out there,” she said. “I do not know how long I can keep up all the traveling with my kids but I will keep going as long as everyone is healthy and happy. This is my time and it took me 37-years to get there, but I am here, and I am not going anywhere for a while. “

Dyer is up in Reno, Nev., tonight and we will continue the story with her after the rodeo to see if it was everything she thought it would be and then some! Go Jennifer!

Feel confident about horseback riding fast! 

Amaze your friends by quickly learning how to:

• Ride your horse skillfully
• Handle your horse safely
• Catch a horse in the field that won’t let anyone else bring him in (Horse owners will love you for it!)
• Sound truly knowledgeable about horses

Sounds great, doesn’t it? Man, who wouldn’t want to be a master horseman… the skills and education learned over the years, from working side by side with your equine partners. The subtle signals you read like a billboard- the slight flick of an ear, the feel of the animal underneath you moving perfectly collected, responding to your seat and leg pressure to achieve perfection in your performance.

Cue goosebumps: I read on.

Your friends will immediately see your renewed passion for life and how much less stressed you are. And all because you’re having such fun with your horse! You’ll shed those excess pounds you may have been wanting to get rid of, become fit and have a toned body – especially your legs.

AND you can make me skinny?! Sign me up! I immediately run to my room, pack my bag, move the dresser over to find the stash of credit cards I keep hidden for things just like this (I won’t tell everyone about the eBay Incident of 2008, but it was ugly. Someone from Mastercard is sending their kid to college off me.) I hope it’s someplace mild, maybe by the ocean, or by a lake in the mountains…! Excited, I sit down in front of the screen to find the info to sign up and get my butt there to be edumacated in all things equine…

Hold that thought.

Here’s the problem I discover: 

It’s a book. 

You know… paper with words written on it. Occasionally pictures. 

A book? 

Not a master horseman offering to teach you with real life experience and stories of long hours spent horseback. There is no ranch tucked in the mountains, away from the city and Starbucks, where the equine reigns the plains. Maybe it’s a book written by a master horseman…?

Confused, I keep reading. By now, I’ve turned my volume off, as the excruciatingly annoying music from a video clip near the bottom of the page ends and replays within 5 seconds. Over and over.

The book promises to teach me everything I need to know. It promises me that I will be taught skill and confidence. As I read on I realize it’s not a master horseman. It’s a freakin’ NH cult member. And there’s that word again…

SKILL.

I remember as a kid on the softball team back in Oklahoma going to practice a few times a week, and doing things like throwing a ball at another kid, over and over and over, until A) I’d manage to get the ball close enough for the other to catch and B) the other player managed to catch it with a glove and not their face

Occasionally those crazy coaches would give us a long stick to protect ourselves when the other kid would throw the ball at our head. Sometimes the stick would hit the ball and we’d run as hard as we can towards a spot on the field and try not to fall, trip, hyperventilate, or get distracted by something shiny and wander in that direction.

Suddenly I’m really bummed. All that time I wasted in the heat, sweating my huevos off, braving the bugs, radiation from the sun, holes in the ozone layer… and I could have been a master ball player if there was a book like this when I was a kid.

I read on, my excitement and bummer growing. I’ve wasted my life actually doing stuff to learn how to do it!

 In summary, here’s what you get with this incredible horse riding manual 

This ebook is written in a way that will get you mounted and riding safely in the shortest possible length of time. It contains valuable information about horses and horseback riding: even experienced horse people will discover things they didn’t know about horse training in this quality book.

Shortest length of time? Sign me up… I’ll be at the NFR by next Tuesday!

Skills are acquired from hands-on, down and dirty, sweaty, bloody, teeth-grinding, cussing, I-peed-my-pants experiences.

You cannot gain skills by reading a book. Period.

Sewing.

Shaving.

Basketweaving.

Flying a plane.

Brain surgery.

To promise anyone skill and confidence when it comes to something as dangerous as handling horses is irresponsible and in my opinion, stupid.

But, good for me, because I need something to write about occasionally, so I use my powers for good rather than evil.

My conspiracy theory is that there is a secret, underground organization (of course, run by Bush and the oil industry) of people who have a stake in the crutch and wheelchair industry. It’s perfect… nobody would ever suspect them. Put talking head Natural Horsemanship people with cool haircuts and neato mustachioed faces in touch with a marketing evil genius, jump a picnic table on horseback, and wham!

You can sell a $200 stick with a catchy veggie name by the dozen. Appeal to the modern crowd with an entire DVD series on how to wiggle lead ropes and teach your horse how to play Pony Soccer. Who needs a Golden Retriever  to give “paw” when your horse can give “head injury?” The pompous NH attitude is a bonus.

Well, it’s been nice talking to you, but I have to get busy watching DVDs and reading my books. Vegas is coming up quick and I have a busy rodeo schedule of sitting inside watching TV, eating bon bons, and reading the internet. Someone may want to tell Pozzi, Cervi and Sears to just stay home –  with the DVDs, veggie stick, picnic table and e-books I’ve just ordered, I wouldn’t want to embarrass them. 

Disclaimer: the editor LOVES books about horse training! And DVDs :)

Move Your Emotions in a Targeted Direction With Songs

by Barbra Schulte Want to ride your horse at his or her best and your best any time, anywhere?

You can as you learn the skill of how to call up positive emotions on demand, no matter how your really feel.

To be a consistent rider, the goal is to feel calm, confident, cool, energized, focused, and enjoying yourself – all simultaneously. This applies to a practice session, a show, or a trail ride.

Did you know that you can use music as a fun and powerful tool to do just that for you, automatically?

How do you feel when you listen to this song?

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhTRhAX_QBA

When I hear this song I feel energy. I’m instantly transported into a rockin’ athletic stadium with a crowd that’s getting REALLY wound-up.

Now, what comes up when you listen to this?

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhB_nvYOK4k

In general, Jack Johnson’s music mellows me out. I can instantly go from feeling overwhelmed or frantic, to feeling relaxed and peaceful.

Check-out this musical slide show created by my friend and extraordinary photographer, Robin Corey. It’s about cowgirls and utilizes black and white photographs.

YouTube Link: http://www.slide.com/r/gr6svDBM1z_0U3wsWpHTUQI5LoLdHBUx?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original

For many women, this slide show might evoke an inner passion for riding. If you are a guy watching this, you might like it, or you might feel removed from the subject matter. In all cases, the music and visuals evoke some kind of emotion.

The idea is to condition yourself to feel good, cool, and focused no matter what’s going on inside or outside of yourself at any given moment. This skill is super important to be able to be consistent in your riding … and to live happily … and to achieve your dreams.

There is a powerful way you can deliberately use music to condition feelings. It is a daily visualization exercise. This simple, fun exercise will help you improve your technical riding too. Use the steps below to design your own routine

1.  Practice is best done when you are deeply relaxed. Imaging has the most powerful effects if done during slow brain wave frequencies called the theta state. It is the dream-like state that happens just before sleep. When you are relaxed, your brain is more open and receptive to ideas you might normally reject. Music can be a great help in achieving a theta state.

2.  Start out by allowing yourself to listen to five minutes of relaxing music to slow your brain activity. Non-lyrical music is best for this. During this time, you are not thinking about anything special. You are just relaxing.

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wLXsUP5ONY

3. Then begin to think about your riding in a relaxed way for a few minutes. Be easy here. Ride as if you have a magic wand. No pressure.

4. During the last five minutes visualize your ride with empowering music. Ride with passion. Let the music help you go for it with strong, positive feelings and images. Have fun! Again, non-lyrical music is best. Often movie themes work well.

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygNuRpwZqRU

When you use music to help condition positive emotions, choose pieces that are meaningful to you. It’s extremely personal. What matters is that the music moves you to the emotional state you desire, like relaxation or intensity.

Have fun as you use the power of music to improve your ability to call up powerful emotions as you ride your horse … as well as your technical skills.

About the Author

Barbra Schulte is a personal performance coach for all riders, a cutting horse trainer, author, speaker, and clinician. Visit her Blog and signup to receive her FREE monthly email newsletter, “News From Barbra”.  You will also receive the high performance secrets of great riders, inspiration, cutting strategies, news, and much more.  In addition, you will also receive via email Barbra’s special FREE report: “Five of the Most Important Skills of Riding”.  Go now to http://BarbraSchulte.com

Sarcasm from the saddle: Vanessa style

by Vanessa

Take the %$#@^%! Compliment!

“Wow!! GREAT RUN!!” I said to a good friend of mine who just landed herself in the 1D after her gelding had some time off and needed some tuning up.

“Nah, it wasn’t that great, he quit me on the third and my timing was off, and what’s up with this ground?”

So . . .  at this point, my smart-aleck brain short circuits – what to do, what to do — it’s like flipping a mental coin and going with the proverbial high road, or . . . well . . . what I usually do.

“You’re right. Your horse rode like a donkey on crack. My grandma could have had a better run, and oh, yeah, your butt looked like a beached whale from my angle. You want a cookie?”

There. I agreed with you. Ya feel better now?

I get “the look” as she opens her mouth to say something, and then realizes what I just did . . . and then she gets a huge grin and says “You know what? You’re right! I have some things to work on but he felt great and who knows, maybe I’ll win a check!”

I am the self-proclaimed 4D Queen. I’ve been barrel racing all of three years now and I’m very proud, thanks to my trainer’s and my fantastic district director’s guidance, to have an NBHA State Champion buckle, a trophy saddle, qualification for two world finals, and a butt-load of cool prizes.  Since I lost my mare to colic and had to try to learn to ride a horse again, I’ve found myself landing all over the board. I won the 2D on Thursday, won the 3D on Saturday, placed in the 4D on Sunday and then landed back in the 15D the next week (read: frustrated).

I have discovered since I began barrel racing and hanging out with barrel racers this wonderful thing called “excuses.”

Excuses are AWESOME. We blame the dirt. The weather. The farrier. Other riders. The bit. The feed. I’ve even witnessed a lady saying her horse was afraid of the color purple and that was why he ducked second. (There was a lady sitting in the stands behind the second barrel wearing a purple shirt.) Man, we come up with some GOOD ones.

For example, I had to borrow a horse for the BBR World Finals. He’s a 1200+ lb thick, free running racebred butthead who would prefer I stay home sipping a mixed drink while he did the pattern his way. I’m used to my mare – 900 lbs of cowbred evil who let me call the shots and never so much as threatened to crow hop with me.

So, here I am, at my first BBR World Finals, ready to puke, on the back of The Brown Butthead when my name is called, the gate swings open, I point him towards the alley, say a couple Hail Mary’s and get ready to lean forward and hang on for dear life . . .

and my confidence gets blown in three seconds.

“Hold up! Hold up!!!” The gate man is waving the Clipboard O’Doom at us,  The Brown Butthead is pulled up and decides he’s going to punish me for such insolence by seeing if my knee could leave any dents on the gate,  as I try not to pass out and fall out of the saddle.

What the heck, man?!?!

A fricken’ PIGEON is in the arena.  You know - a flying rat.

Those of you that were watching the webcast, yeah, that was ME on top of the ticked off gelding in the alley as the poor BBR crew chased the little rat around the pattern and then finally somewhere into the stands.

So, back to those “excuse” things…

I lose my mind, Brown Butthead says “Wheeee! I are RUNNIN! Hang onto your backside, loser!” I suddenly forget my rate points and we over run the first by eleventybillion strides, I get us turned around somewhere near Japan, and thanks to perfect second and third barrel we run somewhere in the 20D. Of course, only *I* can make a legitimate 1D/2D horse look so awful. On live webcast. With half of BHW watching from across the nation.

So, next time you get a compliment about a run you’ve just made, before you open that trap and start with the excuses, think of the little people . . . think of the 4D Queen at the biggest race in her young life so far, strapped to The Brown Butthead, running a craptastic pattern and the only thing anyone remembered was the huge grin on her face in every single photo the photographer snapped. And you know what? Everyone that saw them said how pretty and happy we looked.  Even the one where we blew the first barrel and I was saying, “Heck yeah! Thank you! I didn’t fall off! I’ll be back next year!”

And to that pigeon . . . next year you’re mine, sucker. Oh, wait. I mean that first barrel. Next year, that first barrel won’t know what hit it. Wait. That’s not right either. Heck. Just look out for me on the Brown Butthead. I bought the big jerk.

I am Cindy Hamilton of Shawnee, Okla. I know you’ve heard the saying, “barrel racing is not who you are…it’s what you do”. That’s true for me too. Selling trailers, playing poker, and barrel racing are all things I do, but who I really am lies in my desire to learn everything I can about helping our equine partners be the best they can be both physically and mentally.

I’ve always loved new ideas and it was no different in 1985 when I was introduced to Tom Ivers and his equine sports medicine methods of training and nutrition. Tom’s ideas were based on pure science, and he was light years ahead of his colleagues in the racing industry. Tom went on to become the #1 authority in the world on the subject, and I became one of his “warriors . . . an affectionate name he had for those who learned from him and promoted his message. There are two more of Tom’s early warriors on the Barrel Horse World board that I know of. I mention Tom because that set the stage for an introduction in 1986 to the protégé of another warrior of sorts, Jack Meagher, the legendary “father” of equine sports massage.

I was riding a mare at the time who was stiff to the left and so tense she would grind her teeth. I watched in awe as he worked on horses at the reining futurity in Oklahoma City and I brought my mare to him to be worked on too. I asked if I could video him at work and ask questions and he patiently accommodated me. I rode my mare after he finished and she moved like glass and had a more relaxed look in her eyes. It was like a door had been unlocked . . . and I had the key right in my hands. He told me about his teacher, Jack Meagher and his book explaining the method he used to locate and release muscle spasms to give a horse back his full range of motion.

The name of his book is Beating Muscle Injuries in Horses. When he got back home to New Jersey he mailed me an autographed copy as a gift, which I studied over and over. I practiced on my own horses for years before finally going to school to get formally certified in equine sports massage therapy, which led to several more schools in different modalities, such as The Equine Touch (more of an energy therapy, which I love), hydrotherapy, equine conditioning and nutrition, and the McLaren method of diagnosis and photonic torch therapy.

Everyone can learn basic equine anatomy and basic equine sports massage. There are 25 specific areas that can become strained and spasm, causing your horse’s muscles to shorten in motion and affect his performance. Once your hands are educated enough to feel these spasms, you can release them and give your horse his full range of motion back, which will restore him to his previous performance level. Have you ever felt like your horse was just “off” – his performance steadily declining, problems with leads, cold backed, pinning ears, or feeling short strided and stiff in a body part?

These, as well as other symptoms can signal a spasm has developed, especially if your vet has ruled out other causes. The most important thing to remember is that once a spasm develops, it never goes away on its own. Rest never fixes it, only pressure that brings blood to the area will soften the spasm enough to allow you to separate the muscle fibers with back and forth friction. A spasm forms when the muscle is stretched or strained beyond it’s limit in an unusual circumstance, or during normal use in high performance events that demand speed and strength. As your horse slows down after a run or hard workout, the muscle starts dispersing fluid easily through the middle of the muscle, but not at the end where it attaches to the bone because the muscle is not extending full length anymore. This fluid hardens into a nodule, gluing the muscle fibers together over time, forming a spasm. This destroys full range of motion and causes that “off” feel.

Your horse will start to compensate for this shortened motion in the area of the spasm by moving his body a different way, causing soreness. It’s like when you hurt your foot, you move your hip different to compensate for the pain in your foot, and if you walk different long enough, your hip starts hurting too. One of the most dangerous areas to let your horse develop a spasm is in the shoulder, and it’s the #1 area of spasms in barrel horses.

Since muscles work as a whole, when the shoulder loses full range of motion, the muscle below picks up the slack, and the tendons are working overtime trying to take on the lack of motion in the shoulder. Keeping the shoulder moving freely is something you should stay on top of to prevent lower leg injury. By the time your horse feels off, the spasm is already there, but you can prevent them from ever forming with regular massage therapy and proper stretching. Horses have muscle memory, so after the massage session, your horse will need to be correctly stretched or ridden to send the signal to his brain that his muscles are free to move the full length of their range again. This is a simple explanation for a complex process, but it gives you an idea that some problems can be alleviated with sports massage.

A great companion to sports massage is the photonic torch. Used prior to a massage session, it can loosen and prepare the muscles for the softening and release of spasms. I was already deeply immersed in sports massage therapy when I met Dr. Brian McLaren, an Australian DVM, and the inventor of the photonic torch. I learned how the light stimulated acupuncture points and triggered the release of neuro-chemicals that caused the body to heal. Dr. McLaren’s method of using acupuncture points to find problems is nothing short of amazing, and once problem areas are discovered, they can be treated with the torch. The photonic torch used in conjunction with sports massage can give you a competitive edge. Done properly, sports massage is very hard work and time consuming, but your horse will thank you, and you will reap the benefits of faster times and fewer injuries.

Here is one last easy tip for gelding owners. A lot of geldings can’t feel their rear-end properly because after being gelded, scar tissue formed where the cut was made. You can tell if your gelding is affected by feeling the gelding scar, and if it’s cold or clammy, it means that he has less blood supply and the scar tissue needs to be released, so normal feeling is restored to the area. It’s very easy to do . . . hold the scar in your hand and let the weight of your hand pull it gently downward until you feel it stretch a little and hold it for a few minutes. Your hand will warm the area as the stretch releases the scar tissue. Some horses need this done daily until it is completely released and stays warm all the time. It’s better to do this before you ride so you can long trot him. I wish every one of you the very best and if this helps put one horse back on the path to moving better and being pain free, then I have accomplished what I set out to do.

1970 Winning First Barrel Racing World Title and National Finals Rodeo

by Joyce Loomis Kernek

A horse will never reach his potential if he does not solidly understand each of the steps up to the competition level. It can also be said that a horse will never reach consistency in his performance without this understanding.

Young, green horses will sometimes come along so fast that you will think they are naturals, or understanding everything. Then they are taken faster. Many times, they are speeded up beyond their understanding, but will perform successfully for a time and even win. You may never know what step was skipped in your program until the horse begins to blow that step. We are seeing this more and more in horses reaching 5-6 years of age that were campaigned as futurity horses in their fourth year.

When a barrel horse is sent to me for training or comes to me for lessons, the first thing I do is go back to basic steps to see what is missing, misunderstood or undone. It is much easier to get the steps solid before the horse has made lots of competitive runs. I say this because a horse is easier to teach and correct in a slow stage than he is once he has learned to do something wrong going fast.

To troubleshoot on the barrels, sometimes we have to analyze the problem until we identify exactly what is costing us time. The second step is then re-doing or correcting that step. If the problem is coming from a missing step, we must teach that step. If it is coming from a step that is misunderstood at speed, then we teach that step at speed. (Sometimes your horse may understand a step at one speed, but not at the next level.) If it is coming from a step that is undone, we have to re-do that step.

We can talk for a long time about the possibilities I just mentioned. They can involve health problems, (teeth, soreness, etc.), tack problems, rider problems or any number of other possibilities. The focus of this article, however, is to point out some signs that your horse gives to say that he is ready to speed up.

 When you are working your horse at home and taking him through the pattern consistently, here are some of the signs that you can look for when approaching the first barrel.

1. Look at his ears. Are they working or pinning back, telling you that he is interested in the barrel in front of him?

2. Is your horse gathering? When you go to the spot where you have taught him to gather, there will come a time when he will gather for you on his own. This is a sign that he has thoroughly understood that he must gather to turn. I never speed a horse up until he has begun gathering on his own and I always go back a step when I see them run by their gathering spot.

3. Is your horse positioning his shoulder correctly? When training is consistent, he will begin to position his shoulder from the straight (coming to the barrel) to the round (turning the barrel). When the horse begins to position his body and hold it around the turn without throwing his head in and out, or up and down, he is getting the correct position down. A key sign to look for is when he will get his shoulder out of the way at the barrel and hold it out of the way until he completes his turn. If he does not understand that, you will always be adjusting the shoulder in your turns when you speed him up. He will become shifty shouldered and you will have a hard time being consistent in your performance.

If your horse is not interested, not looking for the first barrel, or if he is running through his gather, or shouldering coming into his turn (or in the turn,) you can sometimes trace these problems back to your basic training. I find an interesting thing at clinics and lessons. Ninety-nine percent of the horses I see are doing exactly what the rider is asking. Put that same rider on some other horses, and they will be doing the same thing. The sad thing is that sometimes the horse gets punished for doing exactly what the rider has asked.

When having problems in your run, it is so important to troubleshoot and then be honest with yourself about what is causing the problem. Make sure that you have not speeded up your horse before he was ready.

Name: Laura Lambert

Give us a brief background on where you grew up and how long you’ve been racing?We lived around Brighton, Colo., until I was about 9-years-old and then my family bought a small ranch in the Wiggins, Colo., area. My husband and I just recently returned to the area to be closer to our parents and keep the kids close to their grandparents. I grew up on a horse, no doubt. I can remember using a bucket to saddle my horse and climbing up on him like a monkey. So, I’ve been a barrel racer for as long as I can remember. I guess I’ve been competing for about 30 years.

Tell us what is keeping you busy right now?Currently, I have a lot of things that keep me busy, I am the general manager for Great West Trailer and Truck in Fort Morgan, Colo.; I am a freelance writer for Barrel Horse News and the Rodeo Insider; I ride barrel horses both for myself and for clients; and my biggest and most important job of being a mom and wife. My two boys keep me busy all the time.

Why did you decide to run for a position with the WPRA?The WPRA is in an important time of change. I am thankful for all the WPRA has done for me over the years. I can’t say that I really had full intentions of running for the director. There were a lot of people calling me asking me to run and I guess over the course of time I realized that I wanted to give back.

What is that like?I’m not going to lie . . . being a director is a lot more than I expected. There have been a lot of trying times and there are going to be many more challenging struggles ahead. I enjoy what I am doing and I really try to make the right decisions. I think the members really need to educate themselves on what it means to be the director and what our duties really include. There are a lot of misconceptions out there as to what the director can and should do.
 

What do you do as a Mountain States Director?

I’m not sure I could list all the things a director does as I’m sure I would leave some things out but just to give a small example: the director approves all of the rodeo submittals including the slack times; contacts the committees to work out slacks, setting the pattern, and answers any questions they may have; answers contestants questions regarding rules, Procom, entries, etc.; sets the patterns at major rodeos, and for that matter any rodeo where the committee requests your help; attends all board meetings; deals with the business of the association (this is the one that I know most contestants have no idea what it entails); serves on multiple committees; etc, etc, etc. Like I said, this is just a sampling. There is so much more. It truly is a huge commitment.

What is the best part of it?

The best part of being the director for me is continuing to make relationships. I am the judging liaison and I really enjoy that. I get to meet a lot of great people and I enjoy building friendships and moving our sport forward for the betterment of everyone involved.

What is the hardest part of it?

The hardest part would be two things for me: one of the hardest things for me is that I really take pride in what I do and when you get “crucified” by contestants when they don’t understand your role or all of the things that you have done behind the scenes, it is pretty hard sometimes. One thing that I have learned through serving as a director is that as a contestant, you really need to take a step back and look at all the factors before you criticize what someone is doing. In the heat of the moment sometimes that’s really hard because you can only see what has just happened to you, but it’s pretty important because most of the time the director, the judge, the tractor man, whoever it is, has been giving their all. It doesn’t mean that I’m not going to make mistakes and I hope that I learn from each situation, but I know that the directors have the best intentions. The second thing is the time commitment. There are many days that all I do is work on the WPRA issues. The phone time is incredible. Many times, I feel like all I do is answer the phone regarding the WPRA. I know the choice I made and I know what I promised to do, so I’m doing it the best way I can.

Tell us about your writing experience and how you ended up with BHN?

I truly enjoy writing. Through many life experiences, I learned that you really need to love what you do every day. I set out with the intention to set my life up so that I could enjoy every day. There are so many people out there that don’t enjoy their work. I am a truly blessed to be able to say that I love what I do. I love to write, I love to ride barrel horses and when you can combine the two—who wouldn’t be thrilled?

Tell us about your own racing, how long, big wins, etc.?

I have been competing for about 30 years now. I started out in 4-H, Little Britches and High School Rodeo. I am, what I call an “old timer” because back when I decided to buy my permit in the WPRA, you couldn’t go to amateur rodeos if you had your card. So, I chose to just keep buying my permit so that I could go to all of the rodeos. I was really blessed to have a great horse Estee when I bought my permit. Every year I filled all three permits and had to quit going (that was the rule back then). I’ve qualified for the Mountain States Circuit Finals 12 or 13 times. I’ve been to the Dodge National Circuit Finals once and I’m headed back there again in April. I was certainly blessed to become the Mountain States Circuit Champion in 2009. I won the Colorado Professional Rodeo Association in 2007 along with winning the average at the finals. There have been a lot of wins that are special to me over the years but I would say winning the short round at Cheyenne Frontier Days this year would be one of the highlights. That is my biggest career win as far as the most money won at one rodeo.

Who is your main mount right now?

Frenchmans Easy Snip is the main guy right now. I have a few others that help him along the way but he is the one I can count on every single time. He is a joy to own.

How many horses are you working with (outside or your own)?

I have five horses that are rodeo ready. Then I always have a few colts. I don’t ever take more than two outside horses in the winter and then I decide every summer how many I’ll take depending on the rodeo schedule I intend to keep. It’s important to me that I do what I say I’m going to do so I try not to overload the riding schedule because I’m the kind that I’ll give up sleep in order to get everything done and then I end up making myself sick. So, I try to keep a balance. I am sure I take on too much sometimes, but in the end I feel like I make sure I “do right” by people. That includes the horses that I sell.

Where do your kids compete, if applicable?

My son Brayden doesn’t have the passion for horses like we do so he doesn’t compete with the horses. He plays football and is getting ready to start basketball. He likes computers and probably knows more about them than I do. Boedy isn’t old enough yet, but I can already tell he is going to be a competitor. He loves the horses and goes non-stop. I keep telling my husband that he better get ready because Boedy is going to need a horse and he is going to be one of those “full-time” competitors.

Where does your husband compete, if applicable?

Ricky is a calf roper and he competes in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), Colorado Professional Rodeo Association (CPRA), United States Calf Roping Association (USCRA), Nebraska State Rodeo Association (NSRA), and at jackpots. He also team ropes, but his love is certainly calf roping. He trains some incredible horses and always has some for sale. (I’m tired just reading that!)

Where do you compete?

I compete in the WPRA, CPRA, NSRA, Mile Hi Barrel Horse Association, some futurities, and lots of jackpots.

What are you goals for rodeo/racing?

I guess I would have to say right now that my goals are to continue to have nice horses and enjoy what I do, wherever that may be. I also enjoying selling and training horses and seeing others go on and do great on my horses or horses that I have helped them with. That’s where I’m starting to focus a lot of my time and energy.

Favorite rodeo?

I enjoy Cheyenne and Casper, Wyo. But, there are so many it’s hard to pick a favorite.

Favorite movie?

We just watched The Hangover and it was hilarious but my favorite movie would be Tombstone.

Traveling with rodeo dogs?

We have a Maltese, Haylee, and she is with us most of the time. She’s sort of a prissy rodeo dog because she is pure white and I’m pretty protective of her. She’s so little that I don’t let her around the horses much. I guess it wasn’t the best choice of “rodeo” dogs. We also have two border collies here at the house, but they don’t travel with us.

Hardest rodeo you’ve ever competed at?

Each and every rodeo is tough in its own way.

Most fun rodeo you’ve ever competed at?

Cheyenne, Wyo.

Thanks Laura!