TEXARKANA MAGAZINE
Jennifer Cassell
Cindy Simmons
Richard Hampton’s last show ride. He is riding Jennifer Cassel’s horse, Jay (registered name UWRF Tag You’re It) at a horse show in Tulsa last summer. This is the horse that, “Drug her to meet Richard.”
rider makes. The riders shift their weight ever so slightly in the saddle, and the horse knows to change leads to go another direction. The rider attempts to move the reins as little as possible to guide while still being in control, which is a difficult balance to strike. The horses are aware of the patterns they have been trained to run in the arena, but they rely on their riders to be in ultimate control. In fact, the reining rule book states, “To rein a horse is not only to guide him but also to control his every movement. The best reined horse should be willingly guided.” To succeed in reining, many hours of training are required as well as an ongoing bond between horse and rider. The Texarkana team practices every Sunday afternoon at an arena built by Linda and Mike Lilly. Mike is tirelessly working to get the consistency of the dirt just right and is always there to drag the arena to smooth it out for the group. Everybody has a job on this reining team and is proud of it. It takes effort from trainers, riders, spouses, and horses to make what was once a hobby become a show this group loves to take on the road. The Four States Reining Association members lost their beloved trainer in October 2022. Richard is a tremendous loss to the group
as they are trying to move forward without his natural skill and expertise. They have found a new trainer in Ty Pole, who travels from his home in Gainesville, Texas, to work with the group every couple of months. They are so thankful for Pole’s expert coaching abilities and the time he can spare to work with them. But they all echo that Richard is never far from their minds. Richard taught them so much about the details of the sport, but he also left them with a genuine love for one another. As for the horses, Robert Redford said it best in the movie The Horse Whisperer when he was asked if he helped people with horse problems. The movie legend humbly responded, “I help horses with people problems.” That will be the legacy of Richard Hampton, and his team will forever be indebted to him for it. And so, the Texarkana chapter of the Four States Reining Horse Association continues to rein for the sheer love of the sport and competition but also for the memory of the man that seemed to know that they all needed each other… horses included.
For more information visit Four States Reining Horse Association on Facebook, or call Joe Hensley at 903-924-0428.
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SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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