Every summer, the Big Sandy Saddle Club organizes two months of O-mok-see, an Indian word meaning Big Dance. The next Big Dance is July 14th. I couldn't help but think of four girls who love their horses. Let me introduce you to them: Holli, Katie, Maddie, and Liz Williams. They all work and train their own horses.
It's taken so long to sit down with them, between my schedule and theirs and the road conditions because of the rain, but finally, over a cup of coffee with creamer, we sat around their dining room table. We were going to get a picture of them on their horses, they had brought them up to the house, but it started pouring again. What a great bunch of horse-loving ladies!
A friend dropped off the first horse. LeeAnn Williams, the girl's mother, said, "We had a friend that had an old gal, and they were like, you got little girls, and they need a horse. So they showed up at our house one day with a horse, left him in the front yard, and said, "Here you go!' What are we supposed to do with that? You can't just have one horse. Not when you've got four girls! It just keeps growing more and more. And then the next thing you know, you've got seven."
Hollie is a senior this year and knows she wants to work with horses in the future. She spends a lot of time working with horses, both her own and others that belong to individuals who want her to train them. She's very good at developing a rapport with the horses.
Katie lost her first horse, Sparks, in an accident. The horse had to have shoes. The horse at the time had a crack in her hoof, and they were trying to get her hoof repaired. It couldn't be repaired because the hard ground would make it crack, so she needed special shoes to wear to let it repair. It was wet, and there was a morning dew. It was like tennis shoes on wet grass. The horse slipped and broke its neck. The loss was difficult, but she now rides and trains someone else's horse and finds she still loves the animal until she can find her own horse.
Liz and Katie like to compete against each other horses; the horses can feel that competition between them, which excites them. They want to compete with each other as well. Katie said, "When we sit in the waiting arena, they're all laid back and chilled. But, as soon as you walk through the little gate, all of a sudden everybody's antsy and ready to get moving."
LeeAnn said, "It depends on what your bond is with them. It all depends on the personality of the person. The horse can tell if they like him or not. Or if you're scared. They can totally feel it."
Liz told me she loves her horses' sassiness. I laughed and asked her if her horse fit her own personality, and she said yes. Her horse is a Dunn, a grayish-brownish horse with a stripe down its back like a skunk. It can also get stripes on its legs, almost like a zebra.
"When their aunt purchased the horse, Gypsy, she was green-broke. She'd only have about 10 rides altogether. So when she came, she was nervous. They all worked with her, just put time into her, walked her, and all that kind of stuff. It's just putting in a lot of time. Maddie's horse is Gypsy. Maddie's first horse was an old palomino mare, but after she got comfortable with the old mare, she moved to the Gypsy. Liz tried to ride Gypsy, but it didn't mesh well, and riding wasn't fun. But Maddie and Gypsy mesh well. They both like each other. "
The girls kind of talked over each other, but although I can't remember who said this, I loved the story: "My first horse, she didn't know how to trot. There was one time I was riding her, and she would grab at your leg where the stirrup was, and she would try to rip you off. One time, she did rip me off. She started dragging me, and she was just walking to the bottom. I was screaming, and she was trying to go faster."
The girls have had injuries. Katie broke her wrist a while back after falling off her horse. The horse slipped on the wet grass, and Katie corrected herself, but Katie lost her balance. Liz broke her shoulder.
Holli likes the Western jump at the O-mok-see. She prefers the jump like the older kids there do, but younger kids don't like it because you get ponies that don't want to jump or get old horses. Liz's horse, for the longest time, wouldn't jump it; he would walk up to it, step over it, weave, and then come back and step over it again. Now he's better.
LeeAnn said, " The girls have listened and learned a lot about horses from lots of people in the community and saddle club. A young man who worked for the IX was formerly an Amish. He shared a lot with Holli on how the Amish train their horses. Samantha, their Aunt, Lindsay Boyce, and Shane Cox also helped. They are surrounded by so many wonderful people willing to help and teach them. Lindsay had them ride bareback and learn to hang on with their knees before learning to ride with a saddle."
All four girls will compete at the O-Mok-see, the Big Dance July 14th. They'd love to have you there to support the action.
