Shelby Robbins from Killam was just looking for a new horse to pursue barrel racing when she purchased a young three-year old horse at the Top Gun Sale in 2018, never dreaming that two years later, she’d be taking home a cheque for $43,753 as the Canadian Barrel Horse Incentive (CBHI) Futurity Super Stakes Winner.

Robbins was nine when she started barrel racing, and says, “I’ve been riding since before I could walk.”

Growing up on the farm, and being around her father, Duane Robbins, who is a team roper, she says she grew up rodeoing and competing. “My first barrel racing jackpot on my dad’s old rope horse had me hooked instantly.”

Robbins attended Lakeland College and competed in rodeos in the summers, but when her horse got hurt in 2017, she found herself at the 2018 Top Gun Sale.

“I looked at a lot of younger horses, but I didn’t have a big budget. I knew that I’d have to go younger than I wanted.” She didn’t think she’d come away with a three-year-old, but she did, ending up buying “Mr. Golden Jess,” aka “Roo.”

“I’d never ridden one that young before. My parents always had a great horse under me, whether it be an old rope horse or a fully trained barrel horse.”

She said she felt a little overwhelmed owning a horse that only had 90 days of rides under his belt. “But I believe things happen for a reason. There was a reason all those other horses I wanted to buy sold for too much. It led me to Roo.”

Robbins says Roo has quite a strong personality. “He’s very bossy, and very pushy, but also a total pet. He’s always looking for cookies or attention.”

She says he also seemed very lazy; “There were times I wondered if he would even go fast, because he’s so laid back.”

There were moments, though, where she’d see a spark, leading her to believe Roo had more run than he let on. “He’s so strong he can pop me forward going into a barrel and almost send me flying out the back of the saddle when he leaves the barrel.”

Robbins says Roo is a large horse, another thing she really didn’t think she wanted. “I was looking for a smaller size, but I have to say now, after owning Roo, I have a newfound love for the bigger horses.” She says riding Roo when he’s running is more like floating because of his long stride.

Roo was raised by Dave and Barb Poulsen.

Robbins says she couldn’t enter Roo in a jackpot or competition until after Nov. 15, 2019, and so they didn’t enter their first jackpot until mid-December that year.

She says she was a little “chicken” to actually take him off the farm into a strange place, but looking back, says Roo handled everything very well. “I don’t know what I was so scared of.”

After that first jackpot ride, they didn’t get back to another until February and March, entering into eight total before COVID-19 shut everything down.

“Since he was the first futurity horse I ever owned, or ran, I didn’t expect much of this year, because he really hadn’t been run off the farm very much.”

Futurities are events for five-year-old horses and younger that haven’t yet competed in a futurity. “I had a friend tell me this summer that he was running really well; and also reminded me of the amounts that top futurity horses can win.” So she entered her first futurity in August, at Winfield.

Robbins says they didn’t do much there, but that’s when she realized that while Roo was able and willing to go, she was nervous, and had made some mistakes. “I was a wreck.

“I realized that I needed to work more on my confidence.”

Robbins credits her personal growth partially from watching Fallon Taylor on her YouTube channel. Taylor is a professional barrel racer who became a world champion in 2014, qualifying for the National Finals Rodeo seven times.

“The knowledge that she shares is a great gift! She talks a lot about mental preparation for events, not just riding and practice prep.”

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Leslie Cholowsky
Editor