Ridin', Reinin' and Writin'

I always watch the television show, "America's Got Talent". There's always a variety of acts and maybe, if I'm lucky, a one-in-a-million talent will be revealed. That's what is happening this year. Jackie Evancho, a ten year old from Pennsylvania, stunned - yes, stunned! - the world when she voiced the first note of her first appearance on the show. She must have deeply impressed the judges before that - when they listened to her audition on YouTube, because it was from the YouTube entries that Jackie Evancho joined others (who had already been through a screening process) in a hunt for the number one talent for 2010. Jackie's voice defies description. It does not seem real. It's difficult to wrap my mind around the fact that that voice is coming from that wisp os a girl - a little shy, a little giggly - but when she sings, it is with the voice of an angel and the maturity of a diva.

My mind wandered after I watched Jackie's last performance. I started thinking about where a talent like that comes from, and of course there is only one answer - they are born with it! There are people who are born with a gift, whether for singing, dancing, writing, drawing . . . or horsemanship! Although there are many vocalists, dancers, writers, artists, horsemen and horsewomen, there are a handful who stand above the rest - and it is because they are born to be . . . great!

Most of us work hard all our lives to achieve some level of expertise in our chosen field. Certainly I did. I am in awe of those born with the gift for I shall never quite achieve what they do with so apparent ease. I quite understand that, as hard as I try, I will always be missing that extra magic of a super-gifted horseperson, a person born with an innate sense of the horse, of feel, of timing. Although I know several people who almost have that, one name rises above the rest - Guy Gauthier.

Guy, a native of Quebec, stormed the reining world the moment he entered the reining pen. He stunned the competition with win after win., tapping into the best of each horse, delivering time and time again. He was unstoppable . . . until he and his wife were killed in a car crash in the late 80s. Guy's name is still 52nd on NRHA list of top money earners and he has been gone for over 20 years. (Keep in mind that reining competitions did not pay as much then either.)

A few years before that fateful day, I had a wonderful opportunity to take a clinic from Guy. I was living in northern Saskatachewan at the time, the clinic was to be held in Beechy, 300 miles away, and it was winter, but my neighbour and I hauled together. I took a 3 year old mare belonging to a client. Below is a photo of Guy with me, the mare and the owner of the mare.

This photo is of all clinic participants. BAck row: Jack Wartman, Chris Larsen (my neighbour), Jake Braun (owner of the facility), myself, Steve Braun, Brenda Gael; Middle row: Marg Perrin, Vicki Braun, Brian Braun, Doug Jones, Dale Montgomery, Eric Lawrence, Guy Gauthier; Kneeling in front: Dennis Perrin and Keith Taylor.

And here I am perfecting a spin on Bobby. (All photos by Verna Allinson)

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