LAKESIDE — At the end of seven arduous days of rodeo queen competition at the International Professional Rodeo Association Finals in Oklahoma City, Elisa Swenson stood in the arena, awaiting announcement of the 2014 queen. Whether her name or someone else’s was called didn’t matter. She felt like a winner.

“I’d never done anything like that — a whole week of competition,” says Swenson, whose pageant days began at 4:30 a.m. and ended when her head hit the hotel pillow about midnight. “By the end of the week, you are so proud of yourself that you did this and completed it — whether or not you get the crown. I felt like I was a winner.”

POMONA — Nicolas Barthelemy and five other top reined cow horse riders treated the Horse Expo Pomona crowd at Fairplex to world-class competition in the first Toyota California Classic held on Friday night, Feb. 8.

Barthelemy, riding Sheri Jamieson’s Jans Rey Cuatro, shined in all three phases of the event — herd work, reining and cow work — en route to winning the $6,350 first-place prize. His 435 composite score outdualed Marjie Robinson on MH Its Only Boon, owned by husband Ted Robinson, who totaled 430.5 after an exciting cow work performance that brought down the house and moved her into second past Tucker Robinson and Gunna B Lucky, owned by Michael and Debra Brautovich. Marjie earned $3,810 for reserve, and Tucker, who scored 426, collected $2,540.

POMONA — Charles Wilhelm’s Ultimate Super Horse Challenge, a series of events designed to showcase the rider’s control and the horse’s relaxed lightness and responsiveness, attracted good crowds at three days of Horse Expo Pomona Feb. 7-9, and Robin Bond of San Marcos outmatched the field with her 6-year-old Quarter Horse mare, Ka Choo. Deanna Williams was reserve champion in the judged event, followed by Don Moore, Paula Bellesi and Krista Koenig.

NORCO, CA — Drive down the 15 Freeway in the Inland Empire, just between the 91 and 60
Freeways, and you’ll see recessed images of horses along the road’s concrete wall. Above the roadway loom business signs that also feature horses and riders and other Western themes. If you’re paying attention, it won’t take long for you to realize you are passing through a very special place. It’s the amazing town of Norco.

CHINO HILLS, CA — Trot your horse down English Road in Chino Hills and you just might think you’ve gone back in time. Large parcels of property and famous ranches line the street. Except for an occasional car, the road looks much like all of California did decades ago.

61st in a series
Last issue, Les wrapped up collected stops. Now we’ll move into exercises Number 3 & Number 4. Here’s an overview before we move into more details in our March 6 issue.

Being able to control the horse’s whole body is critical to your training. In particular there are times when you’ll need to position or move the horse’s body without the shoulders leading the way or getting in the way. Here are a few:

Norco is called “Horsetown USA” for good reason (see article on page 40), and when this community puts on a casino night, it’s a horseman’s “don’t miss” event. The Norco Horsemen’s Association will help celebrate Norco’s 50th Birthday with its 18th Annual Casino Night on Saturday, March 15, at Nellie Weaver Hall. This fun event features blackjack, roulette, craps – and new for this year –faro! There will also be hourly “Pot of Gold” drawings, a prize wheel and a $500 Grand Prize. Enjoy great music and take advantage of the Western Saloon and Chuck Wagon. All proceeds will go to support the Norco High School FFA Scholarship Fund and other community events. Get your pre-sale tickets for $20 each, which will include a limited edition coin that commemorates Norco’s 50th Anniversary. See ad on page 45, and visit www.nha-norco.org for details!

THERMAL — The seven-week HITS Desert Circuit took a mid-point break last week, and along with the hiatus came recognition for Mid-circuit Champions.