(Kayla Nieman is a Pikes Peak Community College student planning on studying radiology or photography next year, while still competing in weekend rodeos and furthering her riding.)
Many people go to rodeos and tell me how easy barrel racing looks, but they would think differently if they were on the back of such a powerful animal. It takes countless hours of time and training for the 1200-pound horse and rider to accomplish running around three barrels and back “home.” Horses have minds of their own, and they don’t know what the rider wants until they are properly trained. I have to take many factors into account when my horse and I compete at a barrel race.
The conformation (muscle structure) and movement of the horse affect how they perform and how a saddle will fit. There are many different conformations of a barrel horse. My quarter horse, Kamali, is 14.3 hands tall, which is short for barrel racing horses. That said, the benefit of her being short is that she is able to turn the barrels quickly and doesn’t have to contend with her center of gravity being higher during the turn.
Also, the condition of her hooves can impact the way she is able to move. In fact, many horses need shoes to perform their best. My horse is trimmed and shod by my dad, who is a farrier. The way he applies the shoes helps her to slide in the back end but with more grip in the front to drive out of the barrels. Also, horses are shaped differently and not all saddles fit the same. I ride Kamali with a 1993 trophy saddle that sits evenly on her back and allows room for her withers. If there is any pinching or sore spots, the horse will buck or run differently, affecting our run.
These are the basics of what a barrel horse is like, but the rider needs to be skilled and knowledgeable about barrel racing. I have been riding since I was four and competing since I was eleven years old. Some of the riding skill comes from experience, and the other part comes from lessons. Even at my current level of riding, I take lessons every other week and learn something new every time. Rider knowledge isn’t a process that is ever fully complete. Riding takes a lot of practice, time and bonding between horse and rider.
Even when a rider has the knowledge and skill for training a barrel horse, it takes time to train a horse from scratch. When I started training Kamali, I bought her from a place that used her to work cows and roping. She knew the basics, meaning I could get on and not get bucked off. When she didn’t know what I was asking, she would either blow me off and do her own thing or would try but not understand. We practiced and practiced. We have worked on proper leg cues and how to move off pressure. Still, training isn’t all about barrel racing and practice. We do many other things to sharpen her mind; we will work cows when we can, go on trail rides, and do almost anything besides barrel racing when it is not rodeo season. This time off from barrels and working on the fundamentals helps us in the arena. Kamali and I have made progress in the three years that we have been a team.
Even when everything seems to be going well with the horse and rider, there still can be issues in a new arena or with training. The footing of an arena is a big deal in barrel racing. Kamali runs best when the arena is a little deep and wet but not muddy. The wet dirt gives her a little more ability to slide further. A horse could also have a gate issue, either not entering an arena or not stopping at the arena gate while running back. Once, a girl’s horse didn’t see the gate, and she couldn’t pull him up, so the horse slammed into the gate. The girl was thrown onto the gate over her horse’s head. The lady who opens and closes the gate flew five feet back from the force of the crash. The list goes on and on of what could go wrong.
From an outsider’s view, it all looks easy and fast, but there is so much more that goes into barrel racing. It takes time, training and the love of the sport for what may seem like a 15-19 second run from the stands. You never know what could happen, but you just push to have the best run that you can make.
Running up the alley full speed and smelling the fresh arena dirt makes me feel superior. Coming into that first barrel seems like it is coming closer and closer, but then I sit down deep in my seat to prepare Kamali to round the barrel. I use my inside leg to keep her off the barrel so she doesn’t knock it over, or else it will result in a “No time.” The whole time she is at that barrel, she is driving herself around to keep the momentum flowing, but I feel as if I am in slow motion. She spins around when I squeeze her side with a little outside leg, and she pushes out of the barrel with her powerful hind end.
I can hear everybody yelling as we race across the arena to the second barrel, trying our all because the timer is still running. We always hug the second barrel all the way around, and I have to keeping kicking so she doesn’t drop her shoulder and knock it over. After she comes out of second there is one more barrel then the home stretch.
Kamali and I do this for the love of the sport and the occasional prize of money, buckles, or a trophy saddle.
