I'm back!

I'm back from Japan and South Korea, and that was an adventure. I didn't see one horse while I was there, a first for me in international travel. 

Meanwhile, I have been networking with some excellent equine athletes and professionals, and in the coming months we will have some great content. Keep reading and enjoying, and please, if you'd like to see anything at all, feel free to shoot me an email at toy9207@gmail.com. 

Did I Mention I Travel a Lot?

As I've just finished up my finals for my junior year at Ohio University, I am getting ready to head to Japan and South Korea for the next to weeks. I won a national reporting competition, and the prize is an all-expenses-paid trip to the East. So, I will be updating my blog as much as possible from there, but I can't promise my regular content.

So, everybody, have a great first few weeks of the summer rodeo season. I will be missing the rodeo trail like crazy, so enjoy! Please keep me up-to-date on your results by emailing me at toy9207@gmail.com!

This Week's Barrel Racing Report

Check out this week's edition of The Barrel Racing Report. It's got updated PRCA standings, with Mary Burger just ahead of Brittany Pharr and Lindsey Sears. 

Cowgirl's Dinner

After a long haul to a rodeo, a rough night at a rodeo and very little to eat, Waffle House looks great. And our horses don't mind the stop over, either. 

Weekend Review - Fox Hollow Rodeo, Waynesville, Ohio

What: A bulls and barrels, part of Fox Hollow's Summer Buckle Series 

Who: Mainly locals. Fox Hollow Stock.

Time: There seemed to be a good deal of confusion on when things were starting, but the rodeo actually started around 6:30 with the Jackpot Bulls, followed by the Jackpot Barrels. 

Fees: $7 admission and $18 entry. 

Added Money: $100

The Ground: What Ground? At the beginning of the show, the ring crew watered the arena and then drug it with the same piece of equipment used to drag a baseball field with. 

In this photo, you can see the rut around the first barrel that made the ground difficult to manage. 

The ground was made up of some light sand, and WOW was it slick. Plus, quite the hole was created at the first barrel. 

A view of the light, sandy ground. 

Overall:  It wasn't a bad little barrel race. There seemed to be over 20 girls, and some pretty good cowgirls and horses pulled in before it was all said and done. One of my hauling partner's horses slipped on the third barrel pretty bad, and for some reason they chose to use plastic barrels, so there were a TON of knock downs. Also, they just ran an outgate but no alleyway. The gate was nestled between two sets of bleachers, so pedestrians were a huge hazard running out. The timer was set DIRECTLY at the out gate, so you had to run the whole way out the gate or risk losing time. TIMER + OUTGATE + PEDESTRIANS ON CELL PHONES/KIDS = BAD NEWS!

Results: Brooke Vaughn won the barrels with a 14.91, and I followed with a 15.14. It paid $177 to win it, and $107 to be second.

A picture of my barrel horse turning the second barrel. 

Save the Cowboys Fund

Some friends of mine began a fund for injured cowboys, and they have some really unique merchandise. Called Save the Cowboys and started by two bull riders themselves, this fund looks to help pay the medical bills of injured cowboys. It also it helping to feed their families while they can't work or ride. 

They're selling car magnets like the one above, t-shirts and patches.  All proceeds go back into the fund. To donate, click here. They will be selling merchandise at many BullRideMania events this year. 

New Ariat Boots - Courtesy of HauteCowgirl.com

So, if you're out there making money on the rodeo trail, maybe you can afford these great new RodeoBaby boots by Ariat. They look greatttt. 

The Barrel Racing Report - What's Up Out West

Check out this week's issue of the Barrel Racing Report. This features mainly big-time content about what's happening out west, but it has some great ads for some top studs. It's nice to know what's going on in the futurity world and what big names are winning. These folks at the Barrel Racing Report do a great job of pulling together weekly results. 

Transitioning from a Rope Horse to a Barrel Horse

The Reason for the Switch

Sometimes, we don't have time to start a colt from the ground up, wait through its futurity years and slowly adjust the horse to life up and down the rodeo road. Finding a cheaper, finished rope horse is a great option for somebody who can't afford to splurge on a finished barrel horse but doesn't have the time to start a baby.

The Perks

Most ropers demand a calm, quiet horse who can stand in the box, stand tied for hours at a time and doesn't spook. Rope horses are used to cattle, so running down a rodeo alleyway as bulls fuss in the back pens won't bother them. They already know how to tuck their butts underneath them and move quickly, so all that's left to teach them is to turn a barrel. Usually, as our experts will tell you in this video, teaching a rope horse to turn a barrel doesn't take long. 

Barrel Races or Rodeos?

Every weekend my traveling partner and I debate where to go - do we take the chance on that rodeo with the rough ground or do we head to the clean, well drug arena to an NBHA or IBRA barrel race?

As anybody who knows me will tell you, I'm usually the one advocating for the always-risky rodeo ground. I just love to spend only a few hours at a rodeo, running against only 30 or so girls for a chance at a $1000 paycheck than sitting all day at a horse show for a chance at splitting $500 with the 300 other barrel racers that showed up. 

But, then again, that's probably why my old horse has 4 broken legs. She's never actually hurt herself at a rodeo, it's always been at a big, great pen like Jackson, Miss., or Jackson, Ohio. The wear and tear on her joints inevitably, though, came from running on tracks like Canton, Ohio, and Dayton, Penn. 

Some of the best barrel racers can flip-flop between both styles of running, but normally they have more than one horse that can perform at any arena. Mesa Leavitt, the three-time IPRA World Champion and Josey Junior World Champion has proven to be tough in both arenas, like her mentor, Martha Josey herself. 

So, the question is...Where would you rather go? A rodeo or a barrel race?

Please comment!