Jennifer New Writes & Reads

This is the third part of a series on the Barrel Racing competition at the Wilson County Fairground we came upon this past October. If you did not read the first article, Running the Barrels Part I – Getting Ready, please click here, and if you missed the second article Running the Barrels Part II – The People, click here.

But first a quick shout out to the people who made this event all possible, the Volunteer State Pinto Association.  Please check out their website.  If you like seeing the photos, trust me it was so much more exciting to be there in person.  We can only imagine what it would be like to participate in such an event! 

This third part focuses on those beautiful horses that run those barrels so fast.  That show such grace and strength when the riders are on their backs. The horses that are so majestic to see, and you can tell love the opportunity to race!

There was practice for those who wanted to check out the course and let their horses get some dirt under their hooves.  The competition was scheduled to begin in the early afternoon.  Thankfully for us, there were more people signing up to compete, which meant the practice time took a little longer so we could enjoy seeing everyone in action.

We loved that this group was made up of all different skill levels and ages.  Running the barrels is an event that allowed everyone to enjoy their horses and the time working on getting faster.

On the outside of the pavillion was an area setup for those to rest their horses and take the time to groom and care.  There was not many horses in this area, so we took our time and tried not to bother them anymore than needed.

Many of the horses were either getting warmed up, or getting ready to practice. 

Don’t the hoof prints look nice, picture yourself in a western movie tracking an outlaw. Can you tell which way they were headed?

Some of the horses were a little more concerned about us than we wanted, so we backed off as we should.

Now you know they are not only man’s best friend, but good friends of the horses also (lol). It was neat to see the relationship between the dogs, horses and people as they all took care of each other.

You cannot tell from a still picture, but this chestnut beauty was stomping his front right hoof telling me to move on.

This wonderful horse made the trip from Montana.

Such gentle giants, enjoying their time getting attention and running around.

This completes the third part of our four part series on this incredible event.  Coming next is the final part where we did our best to capture them running around the barrels competing.  It wasn’t easy as some of these horses and riders are very experienced!!  Stay tuned, we hope you are enjoying the series as much as we did!

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