Riders from Nakusp and the surrounding areas came to Nakusp Creek Quarter Horses on Gensick Road for a two-day gymkhana at the home of Doug and Janet Brown.
A gymkhana is a day event comprising races and other competitions between horse riders or car drivers. Eight riders showed up for the event, which took place at the outdoor arena. The gymkhana was made up of four events: barrel racing, pole bending, speed barrels, and scudda ho. Scudda ho is a combination of pole bending and barrel racing. Each rider is allowed two runs in each section of the event. If they feel they did well on the first try, they can forgo doing their second run.
The Browns have been hosting gymkhana and play days at their home since 2002 when they built the arena. Determining which events is easy.
“Barrels and poles are always standard because those are the mainstay events at most places if you’re going into rodeos,” said Janet. “A lot of times I’ll ask the girls what they want to run next, or we’ll draw it out of a hat.”
The first event was barrel racing. Three barrels are placed in the arena and each rider must maneuver around the barrels as quickly as they can. Five seconds gets added to their time if a barrel is knocked over.
Halfway through the barrel racing a huge peal of thunder was heard, and echoed across the mountains, and continued as the race went on. Shortly after the barrel racing was finished, the skies opened up and the rain came down, prompting the other events to be moved to the indoor arena. Despite the bad weather on the first day, riders taking part had a lot of fun and appreciated the amount of people who came out.
“I think it was a pretty good turnout,” said Haley Pedersen. “It was nice to see people coming from other communities.”
She thinks having the events at Nakusp Creek Quarter Horses is important for the community.
“It’s something fun to come watch, and if people want to get their kids involved, they can bring them here and they can get lessons, and they can do it too,” she said. “It’s another thing people could be doing as a sport or activity in the community.”
The Browns are hoping to host another gymkhana sometime in August.