BURBANK — Under a cloudless sky, the Reiner Shine horse show at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center on June 8-10 brought together some of Southern California’s best reining horses and riders.

The event, put on by the California Reining Horse Association, marked the second opportunity for competitors to qualify for the National Reining Horse Association Futurity later this year in Oklahoma.

Riding her Gunna Juice You, Marilyn Scheffers marked a 72.5 and swept the NRHA Non Pro and Intermediate Non Pro classes in a Saturday highlight. Close on her heels with a 72 was Allison Williams riding her RickyCacInHollywood. Williams placed second behind Scheffers in the NRHA Non Pro.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — More than 60 junior and amateur riders took to The Oaks International Grand Prix Field for the Second Annual American Tradition of Excellence Equitation Challenge, presented by Whitethorne.

Home after her freshman year in college, 20-year-old Nina Vogel, aboard Pam Stewart’s Durango, rode beautifully both days to earn a big title.

The class took place over three phases, with the first day featuring a jumping phase over a 3’3″ equitation-type track, as well as an educational presentation and “question-and-answer” phase with all riders, trainers, and judges that evening. In Day Two, competitors took what they learned from Day One and applied it to their ride in Phase 3, followed by a work-off of the top six scoring riders.

Georgey Maskrey-Segesman, of Whitethorne, LLC, founder and title sponsor of the event, explained this class is about education, and that winning is only a small part of the big picture.

RENO, Nev. — A retired NFL tight end and a cattle contractor – both recreational team ropers – raked in $95,220 with their ropes on Tuesday at the 22nd edition of the #11 Reno Million.

Californians Bear Pascoe of Morro Bay and Steve Simons of Sanger roped four steers in 34.21 seconds to win the event and $47,610 total per man. They needed only a 10-second run to clinch the win, but finished in 8.8 seconds.

“I was just trying to not break out and go get him caught,” said Pascoe. “I knew Steve would rope him on the first or second jump.”

His partner did just that, motivating himself by thinking of a couple of things his wife could use with the money. Simons, formerly in the construction business, provides steers for ropings across California. He and Bear’s dad Sean Pascoe had roped for years together and he and Bear, originally from Porterville, are close friends.

SACRAMENTO — Cal Expo came to life June 8-10 for the 20th Annual Western States Horse Expo, bringing together education, shopping, entertainment and fun for horsepeople like no one else.

One of the weekend’s highlights was the return of the Magnificent Seven All Around Stock Horse Championship. Phillip Ralls took Estelle Roitblat’s Call Me Mitch to the title, thrilling the crowd and earning $8,372.

We all love our horses. We invest time and money into their care and upkeep. I think it is natural for us to want to protect the emotional and financial investment we have in our horses. This month I am going to discuss the various forms of identifying our horses.

Registration Paperwork
Each breed registry has its own method for identifying the animal for which they produce papers for. Pictures, written descriptions, and drawings are found on these different documents. They usually also include the parentage of the registered horse.

I had purchased a Paint gelding when he was four years old. At the time, I was living in Durango and I just wanted a good-minded gelding to ride in the mountains of Colorado.

When I did ride him in an arena setting, I noticed getting him on his right lead was incredibly difficult. He was used in roping primarily, and when horses come out of the box, they are on their left lead in order to be in position on the cow. The more I tried, the more animated his refusals became.  He showed his frustration first by crow-hopping, which eventually progressed into bucking.

Having control of the horse’s hip is critical for accurate lope departures and lead changes, in addition to helping you maintain proper alignment. If you see a horse missing leads or dropping a lead in back (when a horse changes leads with his front legs but not his back), it’s a pretty good indication that the horse needs more work on hip control. You should have established basic hip control a while back when you did exercise number four on the fence. This session’s exercises will require much more control but shouldn’t be overly difficult if your foundation is strong. If at any time you don’t feel like you’re getting the movement you need from the horse’s hip, go back to the fence to reinforce your point. And remember, make sure the horse is soft in the poll as you ask for any of these movements.

A number of factors can increase your horse’s risk for colic commonly occurring with travel. These factors include sudden changes in activity level, lack of turnout or increased stall time, changes in hay and/or grain, and dehydration. Fortunately, there are ways you can help your horse cope with these common stresses. Along with management strategies, daily support from a digestive supplement, like SmartDigest® Ultra, may help support a healthy and balanced hindgut.

When you’re traveling with your horse, there’s more to do than simply hitch up the trailer and hit the road. Whether heading to a show or moving your horse to another barn, traveling with your horse comes with a variety of challenges so it’s important to be prepared. SmartPak is here with the helpful tips you need for a successful road trip with your horse to make it to your destination safe and sound.