Featured Article (December 2005)

Every Little Girl's Dream: Cowgirl for a Day

Article and Photographs by Bill Weisenburger

"Mamas ... don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys ... make them be nurses and agents and techno-geeks and such."

It would be very difficult to categorize the women who participated in Oakleaf Stables Fall Women's Camp. They came from all walks of life to learn cowboy skills. The youngest of the wannabe cowgirls was a mere 18 and an aspiring teacher. The other riders ranged in age from 34 to 51. They included real estate agents, white collar office personnel, a nurse, a retired FBI agent, and an IT professional. The most common denominator was motherhood. Eight of the nine women were mothers with Ester and Jackie Walker making up a mother/daughter team!

The women enrolled in the camp with a variety of goals. Michelle Battista, 42, Shenandoah Conservatory of Music graduate and full-time mother of five just competed in her first Western Pleasure show. Her two thirds and one fourth place ribbon have encouraged her to improve her riding skills and go for the gold in the future. While some of the women had showing in mind others like retired FBI Agent and law school graduate, Kim Crawford, 51 just wants to be a better rider and wants to ride with her daughters. Virtually all of the riders noted that the camp offered a unique experience and camaraderie with their riding peers. Ester and Jackie saw it as a wonderful opportunity for mother and daughter to do something together before Jackie inevitably left the nest to start her own career.

Jim Barrett, the owner of Oakleaf Stables and the leader of this merry band of cow hands had very specific goals and reasons for the "cow camp." The theory is to use cows and teach various cowboy skills to enhance the riding abilities of the women. Jim feels that while the rider is attempting to herd the doggies down the arena, the use of the hands, legs and body aids to maneuver the horse become sub-conscious and much more instinctive and smooth. He feels that by having a specific task such as moving cattle, commonly learned horseback maneuvers such as a rollback, backing, sliding stop and sidepassing are put into a unique context and make sense as to why horse and rider might want to know them.

The women in the cow camp were very diverse in their level of experience. Some, like Vickie VanFossen, 43 and self-described IT "jack of all trades" had ridden as a young girl and drifted away from the sport to raise a family and pursue careers while others were just starting to ride. Janet Bahmer had just completed her fifth riding lesson when her sister Jennifer Kloppman suggested the "cow camp." Janet said "It looked like so much fun and I do not want to miss out on fun." Having fun was definitely a goal of the camp and all of the riders.

Jim placed a high premium on fun with a well constructed and diverse game plan. In addition to moving cattle the camp included speed rodeo skills such as running the barrels, pole bending and rollbacks. As the riders were learning to run the barrels, friendly competition, mutual support and just plain fun helped them to lose their fear of performing complex maneuvers at speed.

Always at the forefront of the camp’s focus was rider safety. During one demonstration, Jim stopped, pointed to the ground and said "This hurt when I was sixteen…it hurts a lot more now." While the camp places a high priority on success, the curriculum and instruction recognizes that the riders all had responsibilities that needed to be met when they went home or back to the office and most of them could not be met with a broken leg! Performing complex riding maneuvers becomes much safer when the horse and rider operate as a smooth and confident team.

Successful real estate agent Jennifer Paschel, 34, is enthusiastic about the opportunity to ride in a unique environment. She agrees that by concentrating on the task at hand, the skills needed to guide the horse to a successful completion become second nature. As a veteran of the women’s camp series held at Oakleaf, she sees great improvement in her riding skills.

The benefits of the cow camp are not limited to the riders. Jim, in his down home style, is quick to point out that "every time you are on a horse you either training him or un-training him." About half the riders in the camp were riding their own horses in an effort to cement their partnership for future riding endeavors. Others rode the steady mounts provided by Oakleaf.

The next cow camp will be held in the early spring and interested riders of all skill levels are encouraged to contact Jim Barrett at Oakleaf Stables in Nokesville, Virginia. The phone number is (703) 594-4328. Jim is also willing to schedule a special clinic for other interested groups.