When Wendy Cooney was a girl growing up in Port Alberni, she always thought she had the ability to be a first-rate quarter horse rider. However, because of the expense of the sport, she had to wait 20 years to find out just how good she could be.
This year, she found out, when the B.C. Quarter Horse Association awarded her the trophy for best all-around amateur for 2005.
The award is the accumulation of a lot of hard work and some luck. "I cried when I got it," she shares.
Along the way there were other tears and many laughs. In addition to her passion for riding and love for her horses, Cooney has a great sense of humour and a terrific work ethic.
Her climb to the top of the amateur quarter horse field started six years ago when she had just turned 40.
Shortly before, she had informed her husband Rick, "We're buying a farm." And so they did. Along with daughters Brooke and Taylor, the Cooneys share their home with assorted chickens, bunnies, a pony and their beautiful quarter horses, A Bit of Dynamic, affectionately known as Beasley, and Amazing Harlequin, also known as Maisey.
Beasley, the horse Wendy rode to her award, is a hunk of the horse world. A chestnut gelding, he stands 16 hands high.
Right from the start, Cooney knew she had a winner in Beasley. The second show she rode him in, they won the circuit high point award in Papco, Wash. And at Vancouver Island and Langley shows, he continued to dominate. Then tragedy struck two years ago in Munroe, Wash. when Cooney's beloved horse colicked.
An emergency trip to an unknown veterinarian gave Cooney the bad news. The horse needed immediate surgery and only after the vet had him opened up would they know the extent of the harm to the horse's intestines.
"I was in the U.S. with a vet I didn't know with a horse that was dying. They gave me a quote for surgery of $4,000, if the intestine was displaced not twisted," she said.
Alone and sick at heart, the only thing she could do was watch through a window as the vet operated on her valuable horse.
"They told me thumbs up would mean displacement, thumbs down would mean they were coming out to talk."
Fortunately the sign was thumbs up. Still Cooney had to leave the horse for a week while she went home and back to work.
"He had sutures a foot and a half on his abdomen where his intestine had been taken out, laid on a table and examined over every inch.
After a three-month recovery, the horse was ready to ride again.
"Everyone thought he was done for. The first show last year it was 'Here's the colic horse coming to Langley.' He went out and won first place," Cooney said.
After that it was "Beasley's back, the king is back," his delighted owner said.
Quarter horses are workhorses. They have to perform a number of different manoeuvres and steps as dictated by the quarter horse association. The horse must have his head even with his withers, and the rider must have the horse perform with the noticeable use of the reins.
To watch Cooney and her horse is astounding. Using only her heels and knees, Cooney manages to have her horse change stride, walk backwards and stop on a dime.
Beasley is seven, a good age for a horse to show.
While a horse as young as two may be shown, they're too young in Cooney's estimation for competition. "It's time to be a kid," she said. "It's too stressful for a horse to compete when they're not physically capable."
Along with Cooney, there are approximately 10 other quarter horse competitors on the Sunshine Coast. According to Cooney, two young women, Lisa Kitigawa and Yelaina May, also have special talent. The three of them are a triple threat on the quarter horse circuit as they pretty well take all the B.C. trophies.
Cooney works at Advantage Dental in Gibsons as a dental hygienist. Her boss has made it possible for her to compete by allowing for time off when needed.
While Cooney is a passionate, focused rider, she also has fun at all the competitions she enters. She encourages others to go after their dreams.
"Don't make beating a person your goal, beat yourself." She never checks her totals until after the event. Once she did and the resulting nerves caused her to lose first place by a squeaker.
Overall Cooney considers the Sunshine Coast a great place to be a quarter horse rider.
"This is a healing place. This is where all my dreams came true through the support of my husband and my employer and a lot of hard work."
