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 Expert
Posts: 1631
   
Location: Somewhere around here | TheDutchMan01 - 2016-02-08 10:45 AM
If you have the attitude of "if I'm not winning or making money I should not do it" you should just quit now. You can't make it in this sport with an attitude like that. There are going to be times when your going to have lows, but your love for the sport is what has to keep you trying. There are too many other people out there with better horses and the will to win and the love for the sport. They won't give up and they are gonna out run you because your a sore looser. Barrel racing isn't just about winning or making money (for sakes we all know we are in above necks deep in debt when it comes to horses) it's about doing your best and having fun. If you can't have fun and win 2nd or 3rd or even the 4D...you don't truly have passion for the sport. It doesn't matter what speed or division your running in that horse is going to teach you something. I think it's good to sometimes have those lows because it teaches you some valuable lessons and makes you stronger. It makes you a better rider. Not to mention its a lot harder to come back when you've quit so long.
I don't mean to sound harsh or say your actually a sore looser. That's just kind of the implication your post gave off.
Thank you, I really needed to hear this. When I was younger my dad would say that I can go to jackpot unless I won money so I kind of been molded to where I feel like I have to win money to keep on barrel racing. My husband told me the same thing a few years ago but that's when our money was tighter. I guess I just haven't really thought of doing barrels for fun for quite a while, it always was "I need to make money off of this otherwise I can't do it" but when I think about doing it for fun it feels like a big relief. Maybe I should just change my mindset and not let it bother me if I don't win money or if I'm just going to a playday!
Thank you again for being real with me, sometimes I really need someone to talk to me like that lol!
Oh and I've never really rodeoed but it's always been a dream of mine (to the girl who asked)
Edited by cecollins0811 2016-02-15 5:36 AM
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 The Bling Princess
Posts: 3411
Location: North Dakota | I didn't compete for almost three years. Between a lame horse, a psychotic horse, new job, and family members falling ill, I had ZERO desire to go. The very thing that was suppose to make me happy and stress free actually did the opposite. The thought of having to ride/train daily, haul on the weekends and compete was just too much with everything I had going on in my life. So I backed off for my own sanity. However, after that three year hiatus I missed spending weekends at the jackpots, spending time with my friends with horses, etc, so I started slow. Did fun non competitive things with my horse. Pushed cattle, chased steers for the guys roping, hauled the psychotic horse and exhibitioned him, just enjoyed being around my horses again. Now that desire is back in full force and I can't wait to haul my butt off this year.
I don't understand the "if your not winning your not going to do it" mentality. Anyone that has ever trained and competed KNOWS you are NOT going to win all the time and at any given point in time you can go from winning to sucking hind tit. If that truly is the reason then I suggest stepping away and figuring "things" out.
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Industrial Srength Barrel Racer
Posts: 7264
| Vickie - 2016-02-08 2:27 PM
The day you hear something you were planning to go to has been canceled, and you are relieved.
This was how I was and there are several reasons. I am just too busy to go and spend 8.0 hours at a local race to make one run - our races here drag on FOREVER because they don't set a start time, they are "the open will not start before xx:xx, and I get it, they make a LOT of money off the exhibitions so they want to get in as many as possible. Another reason is that my dad had to go to a nursing home 130 miles away and I go visit him every other weekend, so that only leaves me every other weekend to clean, get groceries, do any farm-type projects or whatever. I haven't hauled in over a year and I do plan to start again this spring but I really have mixed feelings about it.
I can't IMAGINE selling everything - I only have 1 horse, but my saddles, tack, truck - for one thing, it would cost a fortune to buy it all back. I do have my living quarters trailer for sale - no point in having that mega thing parked in the drive if I'm not hauling but I have plans to buy a smaller one.
Edited by Griz 2016-02-09 5:39 AM
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 669
Location: Central Texas | I really needed to read this thread! Thanks everyone, great perspectives and got me ready to run! |
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 Expert
Posts: 1857
| Depends on how you look at this.. Maybe selling out and focusing on yourself for a little while could be a great reset. Save the money you get from selling, save for a few more years, and then come back and buy a jam up 1D competitive horse that you know can take you far and restart. It takes lots of sacrifices to make it, in anything. It could be a small moment of sacrifice to get you where you ultimately want to be.....
I have been contemplating the same thing. I've got some nice horses; rope horses, ranch horses, prospect, but no finished barrel horse that can go out and win a big race(locally 1D all day). I've thought of selling out, taking that money and buying myself a really nice, proven winner but haven't been able to make myself do it. I'm afraid I'll sell out and then never regroup.... |
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 Three in a Bikini
Posts: 2035
| *Side note...
It can take a LONG time to come back after a break. I stopped riding when high school ended to focus on college. I waited 7 years before I got back into it and it has been an uphill struggle ever since. Trust me, if you don't use it you lose it. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1032
Location: IL | Sometimes taking a break, planned or not planned, recharges you.
2012 was the last year that I ran competively. Many of our shows in early 2013 got cancelled due to rain and then about summer of that year my horse was injured. Spent 2014 rehabbing her from suspensory injury/getting her feet right. I have my OTTB mare that I've training and patterning slowly too. I had hoped that 2015 would be my year to start hauling my mare again and seasoning my OTTB. But then come Spring, my mare starting urinating blood after being ridden. Turned out she had a bladder stone. Found a vet and had that removed but she fell on concrete and tore a hamstring muscle while there. So she was out for the whole season. We also had SO MUCH RAIN this spring that 3/4s of our shows were cancelled again and then when the rain finally stopped, come summer, we were too busy building our barn on weekends. And 2016 doesnt look promising either. I don't have my own rig to haul to shows and my usual ride to shows is not an option anymore, so I'm crossing my fingers I'll be able to get back to it in a year or two once I have my own rig.
It's frustrating because I thought I'd be hauling and have my OTTB seasoned by now but life has gotten in the way and plans have gone awry. So odds are I will be seasoning a 9-10 year old horse by the time I'm hauling again. lol Not at all what I planned but such is life. Having such a long hiatus from running has really made me want to go more tho. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 883
Location: Southern Indiana | cecollins0811 - 2016-02-08 4:31 PM
TheDutchMan01 - 2016-02-08 10:45 AM
If you have the attitude of "if I'm not winning or making money I should not do it" you should just quit now. You can't make it in this sport with an attitude like that. There are going to be times when your going to have lows, but your love for the sport is what has to keep you trying. There are too many other people out there with better horses and the will to win and the love for the sport. They won't give up and they are gonna out run you because your a sore looser. Barrel racing isn't just about winning or making money (for sakes we all know we are in above necks deep in debt when it comes to horses) it's about doing your best and having fun. If you can't have fun and win 2nd or 3rd or even the 4D...you don't truly have passion for the sport. It doesn't matter what speed or division your running in that horse is going to teach you something. I think it's good to sometimes have those lows because it teaches you some valuable lessons and makes you stronger. It makes you a better rider. Not to mention its a lot harder to come back when you've quit so long.
I don't mean to sound harsh or say your actually a sore looser. That's just kind of the implication your post gave off.
Thank you, I really needed to hear this. When I was younger my dad would say that I can go to jackpot unless I won money so I kind of been molded to where I feel like I have to win money to keep on barrel racing. They told me the same thing a few years ago but that's when our money was tighter. I guess I just haven't really thought of doing barrels for fun for quite a while, it always was "I need to make money off of this otherwise I can't do it" but when I think about doing it for fun it feels like a big relief. Maybe I should just change my mindset and not let it bother me if I don't win money or if I'm just going to a playday!
Thank you again for being real with me, sometimes I really need someone to talk to me like that lol!
Oh and I've never really rodeoed but it's always been a dream of mine (to the girl who asked )
Welcome! :) I'm always pretty honest, but I try to be nice about it lol I totally understand if money is tight, but if you can afford to go, go and have fun. Just do your best. Sometimes your best is winning and other times it just means you tried but didn't get there. There's always another. You can't win them all and sometimes your horse is just going to have an off day and another horse is going to have a really great one. Unless your riding for someone else or selling horses, it's really hard to make money at barrel racing, but either way you do it because you enjoy it. You shouldn't let a set back keep you from that. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 634
| I quit running barrels through college after my good horse got hurt to save some money and I was miserable. I missed my friends! Barrel racing is about the culture, camaraderie, and having fun. Even though I kept my other horses and still worked them at home, it was tough not going on the weekends to hang out with my friends like I had done for pretty much my whole life. For a while, I would take a young one or two and do trainers but it just wasn't the same. After a while, I quit going all together because I didn't want to go if I wasn't actually running. I fell out of touch with a bunch of the friends I had grown up with.
Now that I'm back running and seeing everyone every weekend, I do think that I appreciate being in the sport even more now than ever before even thought I am not on the same caliber of horse I once was. I think it's easy to get yourself spoiled when you have a nice horse you don't really have to worry about riding and are almost guaranteed (if there is such a thing, haha) a check every weekend, then you start back and go months on a new or young horse and go months without a run you're completely happy with. The key is to pick things you are happy about with your 4D run and maybe some things you can improve on. No matter what division you are in, it's still not EASY to run barrels and you aren't going to win every time.
If you are only worried about a paycheck, you are in the wrong sport. Very few people make money barrel racing as a hobby. You just have to decide if you are willing to sacrifice now to save some money for a nice horse later, or just keep running what you've got and maybe try to improve your runs to where you are placing a little higher. Good luck!  |
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| rodeoveteran - 2016-02-08 2:35 PM mruggles - 2016-02-08 11:12 AM I will stop when im dead....m ^^^this^^^
Yup...afraid i'm right there as well. good answer.
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 Twin Sister to Queen Boobie
Posts: 13315
Location: East Tennessee but who knows?! | I have a step daughter that's been in a poly trauma unit for 2 years, is on a feeding tube, with a severe anoxic brain injury. I'm sure she'd love to just be able to pet a horse, let alone ride or run barrels again.
That puts it into perspective for me real quick. I just want to ride any horse in anything, period. There are many who love it just as much as I do that will never get to do that through no fault of their own. Think about that.
Edited by Fairweather 2016-02-09 8:46 PM
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 Total Germophobe
Posts: 6437
Location: Montana | I'm currently on a break, and I miss it very, very much! The last time I raced was in 2014; 2015 just sucked...I was working with a colt, remodeling a house, more responsibility at work, and one of our series didn't have any races (and that series I could make, the other one I couldn't) so I didn't get to go at all. I so badly want to go out and barrel race, but my mare has been a good one and she is 15 this year so I'm semi-retiring her to a mama/trail horse and get some nice babies from her. I don't know if I'll pull her out of semi-retirement to run again (she is semi-retiring sound) or if I'll wait until her babies are big enough to barrel race. I was going to buy another horse to run this year, but had some circumstances change where it isn't the best idea anymore. So, I'm on an unintended break, but one just the same. If I could go out this very weekend and barrel race, I would in a heart beat, no questions asked, and I wouldn't care if I won a check or not, I would be so happy to be there. I've never won more than a 3D check, so I'm one that competes against myself to get better, and am, and I have fun. So if I go expecting to win, I'm going to be really disappointed, LOL. Some day I'll be in the 1D/2D and maybe hit some rodeos, but I barrel race because I love it! Even a slow horse feels fast when you are on the pattern. :) But I love horses, and just being around them (barrel racing or not) makes me happy. But I see a lot of people I know at barrel races and it gives me a little time off (especially on the week night barrel races)...to me it is me relaxation time, my me time.
Edited by mtcanchazer 2016-02-09 11:07 PM
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 499
Location: ARKANSAS | My last barrel race was in september of 2014, i picked up a hay bale and shattered a disk in my back and in 2015 consisted of one back back surgery after another..i ended up having 3 back surgeries altogether, the last one being december 14th of 2015..the dr released me in January 6 weeksafter surgery and said i could go back to riding..BUT after being off for SO LONG and not being able to do anything physical my muscles are in NO shape to ride at all right now.. My horses have not been ridden in over 6 months either...(my daughter rode them last). It is really hard for me to get in the mindset now of wanting to do anything...simply because i have been down for so long..i will be 59 this year, and i hope when the weather gets warmer i will have the desire to want to get out and start getting them out and getting them in shape again. I know i just cant throw a saddle on them and ride off, umm its been to long..so its gonna take a lot of work to get them where i had them before i got down, so i am putting it off...even dreading it in a way cause i know its gonna be a lot of work..maybe warmer weather will give me the incentive i need to push me out the door to get busy,,lol |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 490
| Im struggling with that right now. I have 3 mares at the moment. One is my retired mare, one finished and the last is finished but needs to be seasoned. I just took a leap of faith and a paycut and am starting a new job the 22nd. I am miserable at my current job. This one came up out of the blue so I am saying a prayer and trusting that everything will work out. Ive been spoiled the past 2 years with having the money to be able to haul 2-3 times a week. Thats about to come to an end and I am debating selling my finished mare. I dont see where its fair for her to sit and not be used. Nothings set in stone, but the new job is going to be time consuming. And so much fun. I am excited.
I think when you head to a show going I HAVE to win money, or its just not fun anymore, then its time to take a step back.
Good luck! |
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"Heck's Coming With Me"
Posts: 10794
Location: Kansas | When I spent long days at barrel races waiting to run one horse while barrel racers with trailerloads rolled in and got to carefully pick their positions "because" they had a trailerload, it was time to quit. They would usually have their horses bathed, cooled, and be headed home while I was still waiting. The rodeo days were fun. The 4D days not so much. |
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 Own It and Move On
Location: The edge of no where | Frodo - 2016-02-10 10:52 AM When I spent long days at barrel races waiting to run one horse while barrel racers with trailerloads rolled in and got to carefully pick their positions "because" they had a trailerload, it was time to quit. They would usually have their horses bathed, cooled, and be headed home while I was still waiting. The rodeo days were fun. The 4D days not so much.
You might find it far different now. Many of the little weekend jackpots allow the option to pre-enter online (including exhibitions). It's great for those of us that have no desire or time to spend all day at a barrel race. I've always shown up and run at the end...and exhibitioned after the class if I needed to work on something. I can't hang out for 3+ hours to exhibition and run 1-2 head. I LOVE being able to pre-enter online and plan my wknd accordingly. My goal is to spend as little time at the jackpot as possible. LOL |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 434
Location: Northwest Florida | I'll never quit. I'm not in it for the money. If I never stood a chance to win a dime I'd still be out there. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | When I realized I don't really care that much about going fast and mounted shooting is way more fun....
(Yes I know mounted shooting is also a speed event...but I am starting from the bottom and don't really care about being the fastest.) |
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Member
Posts: 43
Location: Central ND | I ended up basically drop dead quitting when my (ex) husband decided to start trying to keep me from going. It worked. I was young and very dumb. He was a cowboy but little by little became less of a horseman every time he rode....lazy and impatient will ruin a horse pretty fast.... When I pulled the first check I'd ever pulled in my life, I was so excited and called him....and he did nothing but yell at me and hang up. It was MY money and MY time that was being used, not his... After that he started telling me I couldn't take the trailer I paid for, or use my own pickup to go anywhere, not only barrel races. It seriously messed me up big time. Needless to say, this is one reason he's no longer in my life (there's many others, but try to take anything horse related away from me is a big no no!!) Since he's been gone, I've been to a few races, but it seems like it's taking a lot of time for me to get myself back into it. The first one I went to after everything was said and done, I honestly felt like I was going to be "in trouble" when I got home, even though he was gone (and I had a blast, even on a horse that hadn't been run on barrels in 3 years!) It took going to quite a few other horse events for that feeling to finally go away. I feel like it just takes time to get back into it like I used to be after being "out of the loop" for so long. |
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"Heck's Coming With Me"
Posts: 10794
Location: Kansas | cavyrunsbarrels - 2016-02-12 4:02 PM When I realized I don't really care that much about going fast and mounted shooting is way more fun....
(Yes I know mounted shooting is also a speed event...but I am starting from the bottom and don't really care about being the fastest. )
I found casinos to be much more fun in my older years and sadly no more costly than barrel racing if you don't go crazy.
Doesn't hurt that they built one four miles from my house.
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