TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Charity All About The Bucks

ADVERTISEMENT

By YVETTE C. HAMMETT, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 6, 2007

PALM RIVER - You could almost read the horse's mind as it glanced at the wooden bridge lying flat on the dirt arena. 'Why go over it when I could just walk around?

'And do I really want to stick my head in the middle of those colorful pool noodles? What are those things, anyway?'

'This just isn't his thing,' Gary Goodwin of Zephyrhills said after taking his horse, Gunner, through one of the outdoor obstacle courses at the Crosstown Arena on Sunday. Let's just say it wasn't the horse's glory day.

The crowd applauded when Gunner finished the course.

'I think they were just happy to see him finish,' Goodwin said, laughing.

Gunner's just a trail rider, not too keen on walking over hay bales or crossing faux bridges.

'But, it's all for a good cause,' Goodwin said. 'That's why we're here.'

Sixty riders from Ocala to Naples trailered their horses, drove to the arena off U.S. 301 and forked over $50 each to participate in the second annual Cowboy Challenge - a competition with two obstacle courses designed to test cooperation between rider and steed.

Money from the event, coordinated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Posse, pays for medals for participants in Florida Special Olympics and helps fund the Florida Sheriff's Youth Ranches, which operate residential programs for at-risk youth, and the Bakas Equestrian Center in Tampa, a riding academy for people with disabilities.

In the end, a mule took top billing among pintos, quarter horses, Friesians and the like.

The courses were set up to mimic some of the things a horse might encounter on a trail, said Bess Wall of Bunnell, atop the prize-winning mule, Grace.

Grace breezed through the courses like an old pro, winning Wall a gold and silver custom-made belt buckle from a Montana silversmith, a custom-made leather halter from Texas for Grace and, most importantly, bragging rights.

'The buzz all day was, 'the mule won,'' event organizer Karl Boger said. 'Even the cops were saying the mule won.'

Trophies and gift certificates went to second- through sixth-place winners.

'I've had her for two and a half years, bought her when she was still very green,' Wall said of the mule. 'I work her all the time. Wherever we are, I'll find a job for her. She just happens to be a very good animal.'

Grace's victory was a bit of an irony. Wall said the mule had a reputation as being stubborn as a, well, mule.

'It's all about the teamwork, how we can work together,' Wall said.

Breaker's Delight, a pinto from Mims, wasn't excited about walking through the pool noodles but didn't hesitate to push a giant beach ball with its nose.

'This is our second time here,' said Breaker's owner, Pamela Kennedy.

Kennedy said getting her horse to walk through the faux pond might have been her biggest challenge.

There were cowboy and cowgirl competitors with every skill level, including some from various sheriff's posses up and down Florida's west coast. Some showed up in their cowboy best, wearing fancy, colorful cowboy hats and stylish chaps; others donned riding helmets or old, worn-out straw hats.

Some came not just for the competition, but for enjoyment and the camaraderie.

Debbie Martin of Wimauma played a dual role as spectator and competitor. She brought her horse, Kiara, to the Cowboy Challenge, not to compete but to socialize.

'She's 3 years old, a Friesian cross, and I've had her since she was born,' Martin said.

She said the horse is just learning to be ridden, so getting her used to being around a lot of other horses and riders is crucial. She brought another horse to ride in the competition.

Boger, a member of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Posse and the main organizer of the event, said most of those competing Sunday were leisure riders whose horses are most familiar with trail rides.

'A lot of the things we incorporate in the obstacle courses are things they would come across when they're out on a trail,' Boger said.

There were two exceptions, though: the pool noodles and a blow-up alligator sitting next to a 'fishing pond' where competitors were required to fish a metal ring out of the water.

'This year, we're lucky to have not only a lot of riders, but a lot of spectators,' Boger said, noting that entry fees and proceeds from food sold during the challenge go to the posse charities. Organizers set a goal of $5,000, Boger said, but fell just short of that figure.

In addition to the annual Cowboy Challenge, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Posse sponsors barrel races at the arena during the cooler months, with those profits also going to charity.

COMPETITION WINNERS

FIRST PLACE: Bess Wall of Bunnell

SECOND PLACE: Rex Shevitski of Alva

THIRD PLACE: Tim Pasley of Plant City

FOURTH PLACE: Beverly Hartly of Bartow

FIFTH PLACE: Mindi Redditt of Christmas

SIXTH PLACE: Laurie Ramsey of Land O' Lakes

Reporter Yvette C. Hammett can be reached at (813) 657-4532 or at yhammett@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT