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Youth Rodeo

9/24/17 Competition is bitter sweet for Jayden. Being on top of her game has never been easy for her. Some kids seem to be on top all the time. It seems if there is any luck at all, it is always in the other persons favor. I can go back years when Jayden started riding horses, started youth rodeos, and started barrel racing and riding in fun shows as a little bitty girl. She was always trying for that first place ribbon, trying to beat the competition, but never rarely getting there. I can remember the first time she won money on Jessie at a rodeo. It was all of $25, but it felt like a gold buckle to her. Many years of county fair seeing other girls win trophy after trophy and wanting just one. It took several years before she won her first trophy and it meant something! Last years rodeo season was exciting with some checks and wins. She got a piece of the action and enjoyed the ride. She was so close to the top, just within reach of the big prize (Rookie of The Year Buckle), but then it slipped away. Jayden has been there time and time again. We never wanted to go out and buy the top dollar champion horse, we wanted her to work at it. Sometimes though, you wonder why it is so hard and it is so easy for others. I know these are life lessons, God has a plan and purpose. He is preparing her and teaching her , she is learning perseverance, patience, drive and grit.  Jayden is a good kid, she doesn't let loss get her down long. She never cries, she never pouts, she never sulks. She is too driven and it just makes her try harder.  
This weekend was the youth rodeo in Dayton. A week ago I asked Jayden if she wanted to participate. She hasn’t been to many rodeos this summer and thought it might be good practice runs for Ace . I t was close, low pressure, and we didn't really have anything else going on. Little did I know in the senior division of the rodeo, it would be only Jayden and her old friend who quit talking to her over a year ago. There are a lot of hard feelings between the girls and families. The weekend was uncomfortable and awkward. There was a trophy buckle at stake too. Jayden wasn’t entered in all the classes that the other girl was so it wasn’t possible for her to win the buckle anyhow. Ace had a cut on his foot and with bandaging, we only wanted to run him in barrels so had to use Tex for the rest.  Day one was rough, Jayden took second place in all her classes. She ran barrels, poles, flags, and goat tying. Frankie had Jayden run in a different bit with Ace and the result was a knocked barrel. Poles were run on Tex and he did great, breezing through and covering a ton of ground. Tex is big and long strided. He covers a lot of ground without running hard. You have to really work when running the poles because he would rather bulldoze right through them. Flags were a miss and a no time. Jayden used Tex to goat tie and had a 16 second time. She didn’t run too fast down and dismounted at a stop. She tied good and fast.  The rodeo started at 1, we got there at 11 and left by 3;30. They definitely didn’t have the number of contestants they used too. It was also very sunny and hot!! The entire month of August never got to 90, but this weekend the heat and humidity were back. It was 91 Saturday, 89 Sunday and I got sunburned.
It would have been easy to stay home on Sunday.  Neither one of us wanted to return on Sunday. However, we weren't going to be sore losers, bad sports, and let others get us down. We went with a good attitude and Jayden did her best. Sunday we rushed to the arena to make Cowboy church at 9AM and the rodeo started at 11. Some people stayed in campers a few feet from the bleachers ans till didn't get to cowboy church.  Jayden ran an excellent run. Ace went in the arena nice, all three barrels were tight and fast ,and he ran all the way to the fence. She ran a 17.8 and took first. Tex knocked a pole, but ran a fast flag run. Jayden also had a good time in goats. We didn't stay around when she was done and headed home to relax the rest of the day. Mark was running all weekend in the field. A local photographer took these awesome photos over the weekend.






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