Natalie Kostenko patted her horse 鈥淒ash鈥� on the nose as she led him over to a water hose at the 91原创 Riders Society (LRS) grounds.
鈥淗e鈥檚 an old fellow,鈥� she said, smiling.
At 14, the even-tempered horse had actually retired, to a life on a farm, until Kostenko began riding Dash to learn the sport of horse cutting, where riders and their mount separate cattle from a herd in a timed competition.
As it turned out, Dash鈥檚 retirement was short-lived.
On Sunday (July 14), at the LRS arena in Brookswood, the veteran and the rookie were among the many entrants in the first outdoor show of the season, put on by the (BCRCHA).
Kostenko, from Abbotsford, didn鈥檛 place that high, but she was grinning almost every moment of the two minutes and 30 seconds 鈥渞un鈥� she and Dash were allowed to cut cattle from a herd in the corral and keep them from returning.
READ MORE: VIDEO: Cutting horse champ from 91原创
Another competitor was making his first appearance after a serious competition accident and several broken bones forced him to take a break.
Ken Thiessen, an Aldergrove resident, was described as a 鈥渙ne-handed rider鈥� by Kathryn Dolphin, BCRCHA secretary, meaning he doesn鈥檛 need to have both hands on the reins.
Thiessen鈥檚 return went well, riding 鈥淐hics Little Colonel鈥� to a win in his category.
Dolphin, also from Aldergrove, won her class at the event, too.
She explained that she began riding 鈥淓nglish鈥� as a jumper, then got hooked when she gave cutting a try.
Known as the 鈥淪ummer Sizzler鈥� Cutting show, the event was one of seven leading up to the association awards banquet in November.
According to the online , cutting 鈥渄ates back to a time when ranchers in the American West hired cowboys to work and sort through herds of cattle out on the open range, separating those in need of branding or doctoring.鈥�
From those humble origins, cutting has grown into an international sport with sanctioned events, some offering substantial prizes.
The BC Ranch Cutting Horse Association is a grass roots club, founded in 1969, dedicated to promoting the sport of cutting
Based in the Fraser Valley, the BCRCHA 鈥渉as been instrumental to the success of many cutters in their beginning and schooling stages,鈥� Dolphin noted.
People are always welcome to watch the events, and the association is always looking for sponsors, she added.
.
_________________________________
Is there more to this story?
Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
Like us on or follow us on
_________________________________
