Reflecting on my 2019 in the horse world as a rider and a coach because it was quite the year! It was full of fun, friends, family, horses, and a little heartache.
2019 marked four years at LoneStar Riding Academy, seven years for SL Barrel Horses, and one full year of competing on Snick. I had some new students join the program, and a few moved on. SLBH helped a client sell a horse, guide him through the purchase of a new horse, and I found myself consistently in the show pen again.
My Journey with Snick
Snick and I competed at TCR gymkhanas and consistently clocked in several events while struggling in others (okay, mostly I struggled). I ran my first and so far, only clocked Figure 8 Flags with a 16-second run, ran a 19-second barrel run at Firecracker Frenzy, and finished that weekend 10th in our division.
My Students
I continued to coach Abby both on Scarlet and her mom’s horse, Buddy. She had a fantastic 2018-2019 show season finishing the year in 4th place overall in FC 11 & under after finishing 14th the season before. Abby finally has a new horse; I can’t wait to coach her and Chance in 2020.
Riley had some struggles with his mare Toni, but we (as a team) finally decided to go for it and start entering Toni in gymkhanas for 2020. He also purchased a new gelding, Rip, and has him in training with a cow-horse trainer, planning to return to barrels and gymkhana with Rip in the future.
Chyanne joined our team in September. I hauled her to the October show, where she competed on my red gelding, Chatty, for the first time. Chy and Chatty attended the November show together as well. When the weather cooperates with us, Chy continues to build her confidence on Chatty, and we are hoping to trail ride some in 2020.
My Show Season
Snick and I finally put in a full gymkhana season together as well as competed at the Gilroy Rodeo kick-off race, hosted by Triple Seven Barrel Racing Association. Our gymkhana season was a blast. There were ups and downs, as well as a few struggles on my part (flags and speedball have given me issues).
At Firecracker Frenzy, Snick laid down a 19.997 on barrels because I rode her without thinking about not hitting barrels. We ended our Frenzy in 10th place. Our barrel run at the rodeo kick-off race was rough, but we showed up and left all the barrels up. In September, we decided to join some of our TCR family in Watsonville, at another club’s gymkhana. We had a blast and finished 7th in the 3D (I think). Our runs were all over the place, and I ended up losing my reins, trying to save my last pole during poles 2. I missed them so bad, they flipped over Snick’s head, and I used her bridle to bring to get her stopped.
So, December comes along, and it’s time for TCR’s year-end award banquet for TCR. The last time we had seen points was back in early May with 3 shows left to run. The season runs August to June, with Firecracker Frenzy being the last points qualifying show.
We were sitting 4th among some outstanding competition in the AA division. I had no idea where Snick and I would end up, and I was completely okay if we didn’t finish in the Top 5. Well, guess what? Snick and I help our 4th place spot.
I had a blast in 2019!!
Did everything go as planned?
Nope, some things were better, and somethings didn’t go as planned at all.
My 2019 Take-Away
Just go out and have fun! Let life happen as it may and roll with the punches. Live life like there is no tomorrow because tomorrow is never promised.
As my dad always used to say, when I would tell him good night, and I would see him in the morning, “If God willin’ and the creek don’t rise!”
Now head to SL Barrel Horses and drop a comment to tell me how your 2019 went. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook. We are planning a 2020 goal setting session for February.
