聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 Teenage trick riders Kylee Dixon of Arcola and Ciera Romanow of Corning are still in high school, but the pair are fast becoming entertainment mainstays at area rodeos. As trick riders, the pair perform specialized stunts on horseback, as a pair and individually.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Although trick riding is a popular and much-anticipated event at many rodeos, it's almost never a competitive event 鈥� simply because the sport is viewed as - potentially - too dangerous.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 As a specialty act, trick riding stunts vary from those which riders can perform solo, as well as synchronized stunts which can be performed by two or more riders.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Tricks include the 鈥渉ippodrome鈥� -聽 where a rider stands upright on a horse - to more complex moves such as the 鈥渟pin the horn vault.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淭he hippodrome is actually easier than than the other tricks,鈥� explains Dixon.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淎nd it's a real crowd-pleaser,鈥� adds Romanow.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淏ut my favourite is spin the horn vault,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淵ou spin around the (saddle) horn, until your back's facing the horse's head. Then you turn and your feet hit the ground and you stand back up. It's pretty hard.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The girls' dedication and commitment to the sport means juggling school with trick riding as well as sacrificing participation in other activities so they can commit to an intense training regime聽 which requires both physical and mental discipline.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Along with physical strength and agility, trick riders and their horses perform accompanied by loud music for appreciative but noisy audiences, which can be a challenge. Rider and horse work together, because the girls are strapped to their horses.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淵ou and your horse really have to have trust and be a team,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淎nd we always have to remember to smile and after every trick, you can't forget to wave.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚t was definitely scary at the beginning, but as you learn and do more and more, it gets easier,鈥� she adds.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Fifteen-year-old Romanow - who attends high school in Kipling and lives with her family on an acreage near Corning - says: 鈥淚've been doing rodeo since grade five or six and this is my third year trick riding and my second year performing. When I perform by myself, it's fun. You only worry about yourself, but all of the attention - and the pressure - is on you. Everybody's there watching you and no one else. With a partner, it's more relaxing.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 do (rodeo events) barrel-racing, pole-racing, goat-tying, team roping and breakaway roping,鈥� she adds. 鈥淲hen I started doing rodeos, I never sat in my saddle right, so I started doing trick riding more and more.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 used to do gymnastics and dance,鈥� adds Romanow. 鈥淏ut not anymore -聽 now I do full-time trick riding and rodeo.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Dixon - who lives on an Arcola area farm - dropped volleyball and gymnastics to devote herself to trick riding.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚've been riding my whole life,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 just did my own thing, but I watched trick riding at a rodeo and I just really loved the idea of doing it. I went to a trick riding clinic and Ciera was there.
We'd met each other before, but we got together at that clinic.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 knew right away I wanted to do it,鈥� adds Dixon. 鈥淚t was pretty automatic.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 started off riding for pleasure,鈥� says Romanow. 鈥淏ut then I wanted to something more. We've both had Niki Flungara as an instructor at a clinic. She's ridden at the Calgary Stampede. With rodeos, I was never in my saddle right,鈥� adds Romanow. 鈥淭rick riding became more and more popular and the saddles are completely different. I still do both, but trick riding was something I really wanted to try and now I ride with Kylee and on my own.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Both girls emphasize the importance of the right horse for the right sport.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 have two horses,鈥� says Romanow. 鈥淵ankee is my trick riding horse and T-Bone is my rodeo horse. They're like brothers, but they're two different horses for two different events.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淵our (trick riding) horse needs to be 100 per cent bomb-proof,鈥� says Dixon, who rides Penny. 鈥淭hey can't be spooked by anything and they need to have a smooth lope and be able to run fast.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The riders' horses are also outfitted with saddles that have a high, thin saddle horn, as well as specialized stirrups and straps. And unlike other rodeo participants, the girls don't wear cowboy hats or cowboy boots.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淒efinitely no cowboy boots,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淲e wear wrestling shoes. They have thin soles and they allow us to get our feet in and out of the straps easily. And we usually wear headbands to match our outfits - which are usually a full-body one-piece made out a a stretch material. For performances, we add fringe and glitter and all that stuff.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淭he outfits are a really fun part of trick riding, but they're also designed so we can ride and perform,鈥� she explains.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e go to rodeos,鈥� says Romanow. 鈥淎nd we're basically the half-time show. We have over 10 different tricks and we wear very fancy, blingy costumes, big hair and full makeup.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚've done rodeos twice in Saskatoon and once each in Kennedy, Stoughton, Creelman and Glenavon and I'll be in Arcola this year,鈥� ads Romanow. 鈥淭ogether, Kylee and I were both recently in Brandon and it was great.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e perform to fast, upbeat songs, which my mom picks. We make sure the songs flow smoothly together. Our performances are usually about 10 minutes long for a performance with more than two riders and when I'm by myself, it's less than two minutes.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淢y first performance was last year in Saskatoon,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淚t was very nerve-wracking, but the second time 鈥� which was this year in Brandon -聽 not as much.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淭he music and choreography is really upbeat and of course, everything's really loud, so the crowd gets going.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 do get a bit nervous right before I go in the arena and then seeing the crowd,鈥� continues Dixon. 鈥淏ut once I'm in there, that goes away. Trick riding is perfect for me and once you practice the tricks as much as we do, you're not worried about messing up.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e each do about four or five tricks each and we finish with the hippodrome, because the crowds love it,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淭hey're all definitely really hard to learn, but the feeling you get once you work hard and master a trick is a great feeling.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚 love the adrenaline rush,鈥� says Romanow. 鈥淚 love getting dressed up and going to the music. It's like being onstage, except you're in an arena on a horse.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淎nd it's really nice to have a partner,鈥� says Dixon.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淲e're a good team.鈥�
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