A growing number of equestrians are taking up arms, as shooting on horseback continues to attract new competitors to its ranks.
Lured by the challenge and the camaraderie, memberships are swelling in the Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association — especially in California and the birthplace of CMSA, Arizona, where the Arizona Mounted Shooters Association has three January events to start 2016.

With names like Roy Rogers Rangers and the Tombstone Ghost Riders, how can anyone resist a peek at this fast-action sport that requires horsemanship — and a special horse.

After last weekend’s New Year’s Shoot put on by the Tombstone Ghost Riders at Livery Stable in Tombstone, AMSA events will include a Jan. 15 competition at the American Quarter Horse Association Sun Circuit in Westworld, and a three-way Border Wars comeptition Jan. 22-24 at the beautiful Horseshoe Park facility in Queen Queek. Last year, the ACMSA conducted 19 shoots. Five California-based, CMSA-sanctioned clubs are gearing up, too, including the Nuevo-based Roy Rogers Rangers and the Norco-based SoCal CMSA.

Arizona Cowboy Mounted Shooting Assn.
www.acmsa.com
ACMSA is the oldest mounted shooting club and first affiliate to our parent organization CMSA (CMSA.com). The club is dedicated to growing the sport of mounted shooting, and its members helped to develop the Royce Anderson Family Arena, the world’s first Mounted Shooting Center at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Ariz.

This past season the ACMSA organized and held 19 shoots, including big events such as AQHA’s Sun Circuit at West World, Southwest Regional Championships and Arizona State Championships at Horseshoe Park in Queen Creek, as well as at the Arizona Game and Fish Expo at the Ben Avery venue. The group also showcased mounted shooting at Banner Ironwood Medical Center’s Roots n’ Boots event at Horseshoe Park, and at the Flagstaff Pro Rodeo.

Antonya Moeller photo

RIVERSIDE — Six-year-old Katherine King may not have much experience in the saddle, but you can bet she’ll lead the nation in ribbons won this year.

The youngster from Placentia, known in her circles as “Katherine The Brave”, is battling a rare terminal illness, and her village of supporters has grown to include trainer Heather Spies and clients at HS Performance Horses in Riverside. After devoting themselves to give Katherine a special day with a unicorn via the Make A Wish Foundation on Nov. 28, the barn has dedicated itself to the youngster and her family.

“No National Championship moment, no Regional Championship or any ribbon will ever compare to that day,” said Spies, whose former horse, a retired Arabian now owned by Lori Chiodini, made the perfect unicorn.

Katherine has diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPG), a rare illness with highly aggressive and difficult to treat brain tumors found at the base of the brain. Nationally, about 300 children are diagnosed with DIPG each year, usually between the ages of five and nine. Last year, she was given a window of less than a year to survive.

In less than a month, turnstiles at the Fairplex in Pomona will be spinning with attendees at the 2016 Horse Expo Pomona, eager to experience what looks to be the best line-up of clinicians yet to the L.A. County venue. Here’s the line-up:

Clinton Anderson, Pat Parelli, Richard Winters, Eitan Beth-Halchmy, Jonathan Field, Craig Cameron, Charles Wilhelm and Brandi Lyons. The non-headliner favorites will include Gary Lane, Bonnie Davis, Robert Eversole, Mary Kitzmiller, Laura Batts, Nancy Loving, DVM, and Heidi McLaughlin. The updated list of clinicians and also vendors is on horseexpoevents.com, and you can make your own “Don’t Miss List!” already using the cool mobile/web feature provided by horsetrader.com! The 2016 Horse Expo Pomona will take place Feb. 5-7. See ad on page 33!

Last issue, Les covered the “nuts and bolts” of vertical flexion. Now, let’s take an overview.

It’s important not to ask for too much from your horse at once. You don’t have to get the total result from your horse right from the start, but you do want the thought—the gesture—that he is willing to think about giving his nose to the pressure on the rein. When you first ask, your horse could give you a real negative gesture by lifting his neck when he feels the rein—let’s hope not! But a positive gesture would be him thinking, just thinking, about dropping his nose and rounding his neck when he feels you pick up. Always give him a big “atta boy” for positive gestures.