You’re wearing your lucky socks... and your lucky shirt. The quarter you just found was heads up. So you must be ready, right? Wrong.
We’ve all seen that person who gets lucky and wins after not riding their horse since the last barrel race. But, who really wants to be that person? I want to be consistent.
To be a real winner for more than a day, you need lots of desire. Desire to work very hard at your barrel horsemanship. Desire to work very hard at taking care of your horse’s needs before your own. You also have to forgo socializing before running at the barrel race. These are just some of the sacrifices.
If your horse is not happy, he is not ready, and I bet you aren’t ready either. Being ready takes far more than just the practice pen or being warmed up. You have to take care of your horse. No matter how many runs you have made in practice, if he is not taken care of, he is not ready to race. If your horse is not taken care of, he cannot take care of you.
Being ready for race day begins long before race day. It is an everyday thing. It takes passion. Passion is a burning desire for something. You have to have extreme passion and discipline and constantly think of your horse first, to be a winning barrel racer.
Exercise your horse daily and spend quality time as a team Not a rushed date. You must be very disciplined to do everything necessary every day. You must have the passion for barrel racing to think that your horse comes first.
Daily exercise. Regular veterinary checks for soreness. Chiropractic and dentistry are necessary. Taking care of your horse’s living area, trailer, clean water etc., are all part of it. I trot my horses on a hard dirt road, on the end of their lead rope, to watch for any lameness, monthly. I also invest in boots, back on tack blankets and ice boots to keep them feeling well. Mostly Bar F products. I feed Renew Gold and use Select The Best products to help us win. If your horse is not eating well, he cannot perform well. I use Hawthorne Products for horse care also.
Before you really get started you need to decide what kind of barrel racer you want to be. You need to set goals. A goal is an aim, an ambition, a target, a purpose. You need to figure out at what level you want to compete. Their are lots of different types of associations out there for a barrel racer to belong to. Do your research. But, no matter what your goals are, or the level you want to compete at, you must still be willing to work for it. You cannot be a winner without being disciplined. Being a winning barrel racer is a full time job. There are no days off.
Barrel racing is supposed to be fun. However, it is not supposed to be the social hour. Socializing with your friends is great. But, don’t be talking up until the next drag before your run. You and your horse will not be prepared. It is easy for time to fly by, but don’t let that happen before your run. Be ready. You need to concentrate.
Before your run, spend time with your horse. Also, check out the arena. Where is the gate? Where am I going to line up and go from? Where is the eye? How close are the barrels to the fence? These are just some of the things you should know before heading to that first barrel. Make your run in your mind. Visualize your run but be ready to make adjustments if needed.
After your run, take care of your horse first. Good run or bad, he still comes first. Loosen his cinch, take his boots off and cool him out. Run cold water on his legs and I use Lame Away products at this time also.
I hope that your passion is in full bloom and your goals are set. With a hard work ethic, and lots of care for your horse, you should be able to aspire to be the barrel racer you want to be.