The Bates County 4-H Horse Judging Team conquered state contest securing a championship team title and boasting the top individual performance during the 2012 competition in March. Team members Reba Colin ,Taylor Fischer, Daisy Miller and Wylie Miller will represent Missouri at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup in Louisville, KY, November 2-4, at the national contest.
Taylor Fisher, an 8th grade student from Appleton City, took top honors as the high scoring individual out of 56 contestants. The champion horse judger is the daughter of Jerral and Jill Fischer. Taylor and is also the reining Butler Saddle Club Princess and an A honor roll student. This is only Taylor's fourth year enrolled in horsemanship. She is a member of the Missouri Kansas Rodeo Association and the Hudson Hustlers 4-H Club.
Reba Colin, also just 14 years of age, contributes to the team experience beyond her years, having exhibited nearly every species of livestock as 4-H projects, including the 2011 Missouri State Fair Grand Champion Carcass Steer. She has achieved her own royal status as the current Missouri Angus Princess. Reba is an Academic Star student at Hudson R9 and the daughter of Brad and Myra Colin of Butler. She serves the Hudson Hustlers 4-H Club as President and the Bates County 4-H Council as Vice President. She is also Treasurer for the Bates County Junior Cattlemen and the regional director for the Missouri Junior Angus Association.
Rounding out the 4-man championship squad are brother and sister Wylie and Daisy Miller, the children of Tim and Charla Miller. Daisy is a Sophomore at Pleasanton High School where she participates on the track team. She is involved in FFA, Art Club, and Fellowship of Christian Athletes and is on the Honor Roll. This year, Daisy plans to show horses through American Paint Horse Association (APHA) and the Missouri Paint Horse Club (MPHC).
Her big brother, Wylie, is a Senior at Hume High School. Upon graduation, Wylie plans to attend Central Methodist University in Fayette, MO. He'll be playing on the baseball team and working towards a degree in Civil Engineering. As a busy senior, Wylie is on the Honor Roll, National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society and participates in Skills USA. He also stars on the baseball, basketball and football teams at HHS. He played fall baseball on the collegiate Showcase team out of Kansas City and was part of the Bates County 4-H Trap Shooting Team that took 2nd place in state this past fall.
The trio of young ladies on the team ranked #1, 13 and 21 in the field of contenders in only their third year of competing in horse judging. This year marks Taylor's and Reba's first year in the senior division and Wylie's first year ever to judge!
“We had a great coach!” says Taylor. “Honestly, without him we wouldn't be where we are at all.” Taylor is speaking of a former Bates County 4-Her who helped the team prepare for victory. Cody Franklin was on the Missouri State Team in 2009, and is now the volunteer coach for the 2012 team.
“I wanted to give back something to the community that gave so much to me,” says the 21 year old who's been working with the team for two years.
Cody is a Junior at Pittsburg State University dual majoring in Math and Geography and will continue his education towards a Masters in Math with hopes to teach at the collegiate level. Cody is combining his love for teaching with his interest in horses to take the horse judgers all the way.
“After I went to nationals, I told myself if I ever coached a team, we were going to do something big,” he says. “I think it's possible with this team. These kids, even though they are young, and this group of parents, are just awesome and so willing to do what it will take. We have a great shot because they are willing to give 100%”
Cody brings a thorough understanding of both horse flesh and competition jitters having contended for years in the show ring with horses at halter and under saddle. Cody amassed countless horsemanship honors in 4-H and stays active competitively today in the APHA with memberships in both the Missouri Paint Horse Club and the Nebraska Paint Horse Club. He also maintains a competitive edge by participating in intramural sports at PSU. He hopes to transfer some of that drive to the team and take them to as many big events as possible in the next few months so by the time they get to the big dance, “it's just natural.”
Though the celebration is barely in the history books, this young and aggressive team is already mapping out a work schedule to prepare for the national challenge ahead. They'll be traveling out of state for top level judging contests to gird up their experience, in addition to attending the K-State Advanced Horse Judging Camp this summer.
“We have a long road and a lot of work ahead of us, but if we work hard, I think we can be just as good as any of the older, more experienced teams we'll face in Kentucky,” says Taylor. “We're going to do a lot of camps and clinics and make sure we are well practiced and get all the nerves out before we go.”
Missouri's team will need to get used to the pressure as they anticipate the daunting slate of classes in Kentucky in the fall where they'll judge potentially six halter and six performance classes representing multiple breeds from ponies to Quarter Horses to gaited. Without notes, they'll face a panel of judges and present oral reasons on four of those elements. These equine enthusiasts will need to know both Western and English disciplines and understand reining patterns.
To conquer the contest, Taylor says “You got to be having fun, doing your best and go back to the basics and do what you know how to do.”
Coach Cody tells the kids: “Don't second guess yourself and I always push reasons really hard.”
On top of that, they'll need funds for their big adventure. Training in advance and the expense of the national contest includes entry fees, fuel, lodging, meals and more. The journey to the big event may be nearly as much of a challenge as the national contest itself, but team members and coach are ready to face it with Bates County grit and a whole lot of horse sense.
To help support the Missouri 4-H Horse Judging Team, contact Bates County 4-H through the Missouri University Extension for more information.
Also noted:
The Bates County 4-H Junior Horse Judging Team finished 6th place overall in their division. Team members included James Fischer, Kirstyn Eckhoff, Clay Cumpton and Clinton Cumpton. James is the younger brother to Taylor and he also was the top scorer on his team and ranked 13th high in the junior contest.
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| HEADED TO NATIONALS - L to R: Reba Colin, Daisy Miller, Wylie Miller, Taylor Fischer and Cody Franklin photo submitted |
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