Do you have an interest in barrel racing and want to start your barrel racing journey? Then you have come to the right place! I got help from Breanna Brown, the Redmond Equine Barrel Racing Trainer to share her expertise and tips on how you can get started barrel racing.
Let me first introduce you to Breanna and how she got into the barrel racing world. Breanna is a barrel racing coach and trainer that is ready to help you accomplish your riding and competing goals.
Breanna strives to explain things in an easy way that everyone can understand. Helping a horse and rider connect is one of the most important things to Breanna as a trainer. Breanna knows that success follows what is accomplished.
In her barrel racing career, Breanna has had many accomplishments. These include multiple jackpot and rodeo winnings, 2-year Rocky Mountain Professional Rodeo Association Card Holder, and being an assistant trainer for the Young Living Jousting horse team for 1 1/2 years. Breanna has been competing for 9 years and has been training barrel racers for 6 years.
Breanna shares her expertise by traveling across the USA hosting barrel racing clinics as well as doing virtual barrel racing coaching. Breanna has an enormous passion for barrel racing, and teaching others. She has a passion for teaching others in ways they can understand to help them be able to accomplish any goal they would like.
Without further ado, let's look at some tips from Breanna.
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How to get into barrel racing
If you do not have a horse, Breanna advises that you take lessons and work your way up to a high level of horsemanship. After a few years of taking lessons and working on your horsemanship skills, you then can take lessons from a barrel racing trainer. When you feel that you are ready for your own horse and know how to care for it, you can start the process at looking for a barrel horse of your own.
Finding the right horse
When looking for a barrel horse, you need to look for qualities such as close to perfect confirmation, a willing mind, athletic ability, speed, a large stride, and no physical issues. If you are purchasing a horse that is already trained, make sure they are already placing where you wish to be competitive at.
There are many places you can find a barrel horse. Breanna recommends you look at barrelhorseworld.com, ask around on Facebook, and talk to trainers in your area (it's all about the connections).
There are some important questions you should ask when looking for a barrel horse. How tall is the horse? Why are they selling this horse? Do they have papers for the horse? What kind of maintenance does the horse need? Does the horse get sore, ulcers, or ever colicked? You also need to ask the health history and age of the horse. You can ask around and get an idea of the reputation for who is selling the horse.
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Tack and Gear
Once you have found the right horse, then you can purchase the correct tack and gear. You will need a barrel saddle and some barrels to use in practice.
Training
After you have your horse and gear, it's time to start training! Your entry fees can easily add up if you aren't winning, and just winging it. When you find a barrel racing trainer that knows what they are doing, this can decrease your chance of throwing money away and help you start earning money.
If you are in the stage of learning, check out Breanna's clinics here. Breanna recommends that you practice what your trainer has taught you 5-6 days a week. When you can comfortably breeze through the barrel pattern, you can start entering races.
Finding Barrel Races to Enter
If you are having difficulties finding barrel races to enter, Breanna highly recommends that you join Facebook groups that are about horses and the state you want to compete in. You can even make a post and ask about what is happening in the area. You can also ask your trainer or friends that compete in the area to see if they have any ideas. Sometimes you may just have to get association names to see where all the races are.
When entering a race, it's important to see if the race will allow you to enter the day of the race or pre-enter. Pre-entering a race usually involves a form and sending money in before a certain date.
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Barrel Racing Divisions
Barrel racing is made up of divisions- 1D, 2D, 3D, 4D, and 5D. When you enter a barrel race, you will not be entering any of the divisions, you will only be entering the race. Once you make your run, that will determine what division (D) you are in. There is usually a 1/2 second split at a race. The fastest time will be 1st in the 1D. From there, that time will add on 1/2 second and place them in the top of the next division.
There will usually be 3-5 spots under each division that will place in the money. From there, the times will fit into their slots, and you will fall into a division based on the time you ran at that race.
I thank Breanna for giving some tips and advice on how to start your barrel racing journey. Breanna has many resources such as online coaching, in-person lessons, clinics, and how-to videos on her social media. To learn more or contact Breanna, you can follow her on Instagram or check out her website here.
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