4-H Team Knows Horses Inside And Out
The first time Katie Holte stood in the arena with her clipboard, she froze in terror.
“I was beyond lost,” she says, giggling at the memory with her girlfriends. “I didn’t know how to do anything.”
She timidly eyed the four animals before her and wrote “Pretty horse” next to No. 1 on her blank paper. It wasn’t the conclusion the more experienced judges reached.
Four years of study and practice have passed since that day. Katie is a Coeur d’Alene High School sophomore now and such a sharp judge of horses that she’s qualified for a national competition this summer with two 4-H teammates from Lake City High.
“Now, we look at the muscles, the angles of the bones, how deep-chested the horse is, the spread of the eyes,” Katie says.
“Our friends have no clue about what we do,” says her teammate, Molly Hearn.
As little girls, Katie, Molly and their teammate, Lily Vaughn, longed for horses. After their parents granted their wishes, the girls joined 4-H.
Four-H requires kids to know their animals from the inside out, either from preparing oral reports, competing in a Jeopardy-style horse bowl or judging horses.
“I took judging because it’s the funnest. It’s out with the horses,” says Lily, who’s filled a book with her detailed sketches of horses.
The girls had to learn every muscle, bone and breed, as well as proportions and markings. They had to judge appearance, temperament and performance. They had to stand in an arena, study the horses before them and write their judgments on blank paper that offered no hints on what to look for.
The closer the girls’ judgments matched those of professional judges, the higher the girls scored. Steady improvements encouraged them until horse judging absorbed their free time. They crammed so much that fetlocks and pasterns filled their dreams.
It paid off last year when Molly, Katie and Lily placed high enough at the state level to qualify for nationals in Fort Worth, Texas. The three girls - the Idaho Emeralds - are the first North Idaho 4-H team to achieve such an honor in 15 years.
“Sometimes we wonder why we’re doing this,” Lily says. Her friends nod in serious agreement, then blurt out one reason after another. For college, future judging jobs, an edge in horse-buying.
And, for the thrill of success.
The Idaho Emeralds need to raise $2,500 to represent North Idaho in Fort Worth in July. They’ll hold a yard sale May 24 on the corner of Fifth Street and Coeur d’Alene Avenue in Coeur d’Alene.
Hard-riding women
The sun’s out so it’s bike season and Skurtzendirt time. Skurtzendirt is a one-day workshop at Farragut State Park on June 21 to help women get comfortable crashing along a narrow dirt trail on a mountain bike.
Former racer and expert rider Nancy Brown will head up an all-star cast ready to coach all levels of riders over rocks and roots. The $30 fee includes clinics, a T-shirt, insurance and lunch. Only the first 50 who pay get to play. Call 664-0654 for the gritty details.
Good friends
Rathdrum’s Scott Lewis smashed into a tree and broke some important parts while he was skiing last month. He has no insurance, unless you count his friends. They pulled together a benefit featuring world renowned Spokane alpinist John Roskelley giving a slide show on his 1995 expedition to Tierra del Fuego’s Mount Sarmiento.
They’ll also raffle off a snowboard and a day of sno-cat skiing and give away tons of outdoor gear. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. in North Idaho College’s Schuler Auditorium on May 29. Call 765-1145 with questions.
What great things have your friends done for you? Tweak the heartstrings of Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene 83814; fax to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo