She may only be 14, but Hanna Olaussen loves to soar. You could see it when she competed in gymnastics and now you see it when she steps into the show pen. Born in Stavanger, Norway, the teen has yet to complete more than two years of school in the same district. “I have attended […]
For amateur competitor Jackie Pohlman, of Huntersville, North Carolina, there is nothing like the 3- Year-Old Hunter Under Saddle competition. She loves watching it and even more, she loves showing in it. “This class always features the up-and-coming stars,” she explained. “They are all usually fresh and happy to go around the pen.” It doesn’t […]
Hayley Riddle, of Gainsville, Texas, will tell you right up front…she’s pretty blessed to be able to ride the calibre of horses she has. And it’s been that way all her life. At just few days old Hayley was colicky and her mom, Nikki had tried everything to settle her new baby. That’s when she […]
Julie Majernik used to insist she never wanted to be a horse trainer. “Yet all I have done most of my life is train horses whether they be my own or me helping someone with theirs,” said the Ohio native. “I always got asked to help or teach people to ride so that was another […]
For Angela Finegan, there is no bigger thrill than showing a yearling in a Longe Line class. “I get an adrenaline rush showing a young horse on 30 feet of rope knowing at any moment it could all go wrong and you have no control,” she said. “It can either be the quickest 90 seconds […]
During the last year of competition, at shows across the United States, 18-year-old Grace Oyer, of Fort Myers, Florida, says she has learned a lot, most courtesy of her trainer, Stephanie Armellini. “Stephanie has helped me to figure out how to use my feet and hands more at the same time then one more than […]
As the daughter of two highly successful horse trainers Whitney Wilson, of Findlay, Ohio, grew up in the saddle. When she was 7 years old she won the Quarter Horse Congress Small Fry Horsemanship aboard a bay roan gelding named Iron It Out. But one thing a lot of people don’t know about Whitney is […]
Make no mistake, Shelbyville, Kentucky trainer Rusty Rea likes to win. But it’s not his whole life. What’s more important to him is the success of his clients. “My favorite part is watching customers find moments of success with their horses whether it is in the show arena or at the farm,” he explained. “It […]
She’s only 18 years old but American Quarter Horse Association youth competitor Cassidy Jensen is wise beyond her years. The past few years have been a bit of a struggle for the Saginaw, Michigan native as she battled a diagnosis of dyslexia, changing high schools three times before finding a program best suited to her […]
Sarah Rosciti, of North Scituate, Rhode Island, wants to win that big prize as much as the next guy. But the Maine native says she gets just as much satisfaction when a foal she and her family bred and raised is successful for their new owners. Sarah is married to Henry Rosciti. He, Sarah […]
She’s only been training professionally for two years but it seems like a lifetime when you are the daughter of professional trainers and it’s what you imagined you would always be doing. “My parents are horse trainers so I grew up around them,” she said. “I first started competing around the age of 6 […]
It takes a very special team to make the transition from competition in American Paint Horse Association classes to showing at American Quarter Horse events. Nineteen-year-old Kimmy Shidler, of Crystal River, Florida and her 2008 gelding BMQ The Jig Is Up not only managed it but they did it with ease. BMQ The Jig Is […]