|
Little girls team with ‘Crazy Cowgirls’
Mac Olsen
for South Peace News
Two little girls had their moment in the limelight, straddling horses with the Crazy Cowgirls during the Elks Pro Rodeo Aug. 4
Six-year-old Taylor Oliver-Guerin rode with Shelby Cummings and four-year-old Natalie Pratt rode with Cassie Horner to perform a stunt known as the hippodrome and the crowd cheered as they made their way around the arena. It was the culmination of a couple of hours of practice. Neither was nervous and both children would like to perform with the Crazy Cowgirls again.
Cummings and Horner always tell children to dream big and reach their goals.
“Never quit trying and although some things don’t come easy, if you try your best, you can usually achieve your goal,” says Horner.
Cummings hopes the girls will always remember the time they spent with them.
Oliver’s Safety Services sponsored Oliver-Guerin and Pratt Ranches sponsored Pratt to participate with the Crazy Cowgirls. The event is a fundraiser for the Cowgirls, with the proceeds going to the Children’s Wish Foundation.
There is a certain allure of trick riding for Cummings and Horner.
“It’s the adrenaline and doing all the stunts and having people watch you,” says Cummings. “It’s not just being in the rodeo. It’s being an entertainer, the costumes and the saddle.”
She also likes meeting new people, but it’s performing in front of a crowd which really appeals to her.
Horner comes from a rodeo family and she grew up on a ranch. She began her career in barrel racing and has been trick riding for seven years.
“It was just another fun thing to do, a new and exciting way to ride a horse,” says Horner.
She did not start trick riding until she was 20, but would not be a professional rider had she not learned from some of the best people in the field and put in the practice. Both horse and rider must know each other very well, for the rider’s life depends on it during the performance.
“With the nature of the sport, we’re hanging in some pretty dangerous positions, so you have to trust that horse with your life and have a bond like no other,” says Horner.
Videos of Cummings and Horner performing their trick rides are at www.youtube.com.
< Previous
Home
Next >
|
