Hello my name is Caulina, I am a 21 year old. I am new to this site and still learning how the barrel horse forum works? I do have some questions though, I have been Barrel racing ever since I was 3 years old and and I am trying to further my career but as anyone else funds are tight and I keep looking at all my options what to do? I work as much as I can and I am looking for my next good barrel horse ,as mine have pushed me as far as I am now but I know it's time to go to my next big step and get me another horse but everything is so cost effective and I just can't afford those prices. So what I am asking is what did you guys do to help get you further or what can I do to help myself make it with the big dogs? Thanks in advance I appreciate it. 

Welcome to BHW!!  I'm sure you'll get some good advice and opinions from the knowledgeable folks on here!

I started from nothing.

I bought Fixer-Uppers and  rode horses and sold em  to make more money for the next one. I bought couple of really nice off the track quarter horses and trained them myself... listening to as many wise people as I could.

I ended up going to the Turquoise circuit finals in 2000 on a horse that I bought for 3,000 and trained myself.. off the track. and... I  won the New Mexico Rodeo Association finals and average in 2017 and  the incentive saddle and buckles this year after on Brother Dave, a big wonderful horse I bought here on this site..

You have to be patient, and you have to put the time into them it will happen.

You picked a tough, expensive sport to love...the very best advice I can give you is this: STUDY and LEARN. You can always marry a wealthy man, that never hurts  but aside from that, study every single dvd, forum, website, clinic that you can There"s tons of free info out there. I would go to a clinic that specializes in however far you along you are as a barrel racer. I highly suggest you begin NOW how to learn to train an off the track horse, as that is probably your quickest n cheapest way to a nice horse. Be prepared to spend 5 years (at LEAST) going through one or several horses, along your journey to getting a nice top 2D horse. Consider 5-7 years as your "college" time...you have to STUDY the sport. Start learning bloodlines. Ask questions on here about which bloodlines train up quickly, for example. I would highly suggest buying 2 things: Clinton Anderson training dvd's (ebay), and a set of Dena Kirkpatrick Training dvd's. You can get a high quality horse off the track for about $3500....but it will only be track broke, you'll have to train it. If you can afford to pay someone to put 90 days on it, thats for SURE what I would do! AGAIN, do NOT settle for some jake leg "trainer" that lives near you n charges $600/mo. You get what you pay for. DO YOUR HOMEWORK, ask a thousand successful racers who put the first 90 days on their horse. Be prepared to pay roughly 850-1000/mo. Get at least 60 days, if you can. Save now, get a good paying job, save some more. Ask, ask, ask for help. Good luck, young lady, I have said a prayer for you!!

Education first....clinics, videos, articles, all of it. Your riding/horsemanship skills have to come first. I video every run I make on any horse and I bet you I've watched & studied every video at least 50 times. I go to a variety of clinics when I can, especially when I'm on an unfinished horse. Don't ever be afraid to as someone for help. if you see someone doing something that interest you and you want to know why, try asking them. I ask people things all the time. I personally like to buy just good broke prospects and take them to the pattern myself. I for whatever reason enjoy doing that more than the actual running. You might have to go through multiple horses to find THE ONE. 

But I definitely agree with above posters, find a good prospect and either do it yourself or pay someone else. Its a hell of a lot cheaper than buying the finished product. Research bloodlines and turning styles of the bloodlines. Like for me I can spot Streak of Fling and Bully Bullion bred horses just by how they turn, they're very distinct. Make sure that fits what you can ride. There's turning styles I can't ride, every Bully Bullion I know is a leaper & the Streak of Flings we have local will whip you like a ragdoll. Get a horse that fits YOU!

If you go the trainer route find a trainer that comes well recommended, but also one that is going to be something YOU can adapt to easily. Someone who is going to let you be  part of the process, who won't mind you coming out for a lesson so they can explain to you how to go on from what they're doing. Thats the biggest thing I receommend witha  trainer, one that will work with you as a team.

As far as money, ramen noodles a lot lol. Pay cash for everyday purchases and stash your $5s. I only use the $5s for horse stuff, like entries or vet bills. Kind of the extra stuff. Try saving up your $5s as your new horse fund or training fund or whatever. I was shocked how fast they added up after starting. The ugly reality is its finacially draining on pretty much all of us and for most people its not profitable at all. I went from having my best year ever in 2017 and the last 2 years have been totally dry years, which has never happened. Horse is running just fine still, just the luck of the draw. My horses come first fiancially, so whatever they may need they get. I found a way to feed myself on a $20 a week budget so they can have things they need, like shoes and chiro. I can't even remember the last time I was able to go to the chiro, but my horses get done regularly lol. A lot of us probably sacrifice a lot of personal wants & needs for our horses. 

Make sure you have all quality tack that is going to last, its expensive to constantly replace tack.  I've been running in the same saddle for I don't even know how long. My CSI pad has been my trusted partner for 7 years now. I also have been running in the same sport boots for that long. I have all neutral things, no trend changes with me. I have a set of white boots and polos I pull out if there's a photographer taking pro shots, otherwise my old faithful boots go on. You wouldn't believe how much money I quit spending when I quit buying the latest trends, like the new prints of boots that come out every year. 

Basically live and breathe it, all of it, the good bad and ugly lol. Consistency & discipline in all that you do with it. I'm by no means a big dog or running with big dogs, I'm in IL which isn't the most barrel racing friendly area. But I can bet you a lot of what I just said, those top dogs would agree with. You have to do the things that the others aren't willing to do. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard...or at least I think thats the saying. Good luck with your endeavors!! 

Go J and Bro Dave

I'd first like to say thank you to everyone that has given me so much advise and I honesty can't thank you guys enough! It really opened my eyes to so new ideas and some good out look on what i can do to help me further my steps into my career and finding my next step! So thank you everyone sooo very much!

I paid $350 for my horse Shotgun when he was a 6-month-old .... actually technically my mom bought him because I couldn't make it to the sale but I told her which ones to choose from to bid on, haha. So I guess he cost me nothing.

He was 8 years old this last summer and started consistently pulling 1D checks at large local races (70 entered) and he also qualified for the AQHA world show in ranch riding in our first year of doing AQHA. Talk about return on investment! He's one of a kind. And to top it off, he's safe for my young children to ride.

I hope he is the one that I will be able to buy my profesionall permit for the first time and have a shot at Rookie in our circuit -- maybe, maybe not. I'm going to hit the amateur rodeos this summer and see what he can do and go from there.

The "cheap" ones are out there, but be prepared to put in the HOURS. Yeah, money too. But lots of time. Granted, he had two years off in there, but I've spent 8 years pretty much just waiting and hoping he would figure it out, and he did.

Now I need to find some backups to get going ...

When there's a will, there's a way. Keep working hard. Keep putting in the hours.

I'm super curious about where one would go to find an off the track horse, certain sales or ?? 

Here in IL you can just go to the tracks & ask around, make a contact. Can usually pick one up $500-1000 but it most likely will come as grade bc it's been reported to insurance as euthanized. I don't know if thats the case at tracks elsewhere, but very common here. There's also some facebook pages with them & there's usually quite a few on pages like Fast Horses For Sale. Those are usually more expensive than just grabbing one right from the track and better odds of a papered one 

I get that funds are tight right now, not only with covid but also the economy and gas prices. Heres my suggestion for your consideration: go to a reputable breeder in your area (I live in canada so it will probably be different for you), purchase a well bred horse with good conformation and a good mind, and train it to barrel race. If you dont have experience with colts, breaking horses or starting one on the pattern, this can be challenging, especially with high end horses. Just a suggestion:)

• I get that funds are tight right now, not only with covid but also the economy and gas prices. Heres my suggestion for your consideration: go to a reputable breeder in your area (I live in canada so it will probably be different for you), purchase a well bred horse with good conformation and a good mind, and train it to barrel race. If you dont have experience with colts, breaking horses or starting one on the pattern, this can be challenging, especially with high end horses. Just a suggestion:) if you want to turn pro, I'd make friends with someone who has been in your shoes. Getting a good travelling partner might help ease costs.