Heather Welch Saddles Up For Success

Arick Ames

Opinion Editor

At Waverly, people are all very different. Some take pride in their art they create, others play sports and participate in clubs.

There are also hobbies that are outside of school.

Senior Heather Welch also falls under the category of astounding people with her love of horses. Welch shows horses on a national level and one of her biggest awards was qualifying for the World Show where she competed in Team Roping. The World Show was held in Oklahoma city, at Oklahoma State Fair Park, through the AQHA (American Quarter Horse Association). Welch was also qualified for last year’s World Show event with her horse Patrõn, but he became lame. Lame, in the horse world, is another way of basically saying he was injured and was not able to compete.

Not only has she committed time and energy to try and qualify each year, she has her continuous involvement as president in her 4-H group "Denim and Dust." Welch and the rest of the group all take part in the annual County Fair competitions at the Lancaster Event Center in what they call Halter and Showmanship. A pretty way of saying that they make their horse go out into an arena to stand there and look good so judges can score them.

Not to mention she is involved with team roping, Western Pleasure and English Pleasure.

Horses have been a part of Welch's life for as long as she can remember.

"The earliest age I started riding horses was at five years old," Welch said. “My mom got me into it, so I grew fond of them through her.”

Throughout her childhood until now, she has owned eight horses. Her current horses include Jett, Prince, and Hotshot.

These are the horses she has used the most in her recent winnings.

Her first horse she had at the age of five was Geno. Since she was new to riding horses, Geno was strictly used for trail riding and practice. Going down chronologically, her next horse at the age of seven, was Prince. He is the first horse that Welch used in her very first showing in English Pleasure. The next three horses were all bought when she was at the age of 12. Gus who was used for English and Western Pleasure. Cherokee, who she used to achieve the best Keyhole and Pole Bending record at county fair, which she still holds and Dudley which helped her master Western Pleasure.

Patrõn and Jett were both bought when she was 15. Jett contributes mostly to Halter at County Fair and she used Patrõn to practice her roping skills. Now, since Patrõn is no longer being used for Welch's needs, she uses her newest member of the family, Hotshot, to rope.

Her biggest contributor to all of her success, besides the support from family and friends and current horses, is her late and favorite horse, Dudley, who passed away this last year. Standing at 16 hands, and coming from a strong and famous family tree, he was worth a total of $40,000.

Dudley came from a family bloodline called the Impulsions breed. So, his family bloodline is very well known and highly respected. Meaning he was destined to do well since day one. His superior breeding, combined with his training, made him an outstanding horse.

Not only did she have the advantage of having such a fantastic breed of horse, she was willing to count on herself to have the dedication, hard-working skills and passion to stick to it as long as she has.

This hobby means so much to her and she takes pride in what she does by making it a top priority in her everyday life.

"Being with my horses and seeing not only myself, but them succeeding as well when I place or win awards, is what really pays off," Welch said. "Besides the fact that I'm a competitive person and I enjoy winning at events, my emotional bond with my animals is why I love it so much. They mean a lot to me."

Welch will sustain interest in this hobby into the future. With so many college offers and money awards that could support her, sticking to what she is good at could pay off in the long run more than it already has. A few scholarships that Welch has looked into include a general High School Rodeo scholarship and the AQHYA (American Quarter Horse Youth Association) scholarship. She also plans to be apart of the college rodeo team after graduating.

Welch is one of many examples of what it means to truly reach for the stars. With her perseverance, experience and interest in such a tedious hobby, her unique talents is what sets her a part from her peers.