Boulder County 4-H Horse Program: Coping with the COVID-19 Pandemic

By Carmen Porter

The Boulder County 4-H Youth Development program provides opportunities for members age 8–18 to develop life skills through their 4-H horse project under the direction of CSU extension, and powered by volunteer 4-H horse leaders.

This 4-H year started out like any other for kids and their horses, with many hands-on opportunities planned  and provided by the county horse leaders’ council, individual 4-H horse clubs and leaders. The program was in full swing with our first successful opportunities for the horse members. Starting with a ranch clinic with cattle in January; two days of clinics in March featuring skills in showmanship, English equitation and western horsemanship; and a Monday night open arena ride for 4-H members with clinicians. A full slate of activities and opportunities were scheduled for the remainder of the year, including:

  • Clinics
  • March Leaders Season Opener Show, featuring the Ashleigh Doolittle Memorial hairiest horse contest
  • Continuing riding opportunities and club sponsored shows
  • Boulder County 4-H Fair Horse Show, July 31–August 3

Carefully laid plans came to a dead halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic on Friday, March 13th when the CSU extension put a moratorium on face to face 4-H activities. The Boulder County Fairgrounds closed all of their facilities, including the arenas that we depend upon so much for riding, and the Extension office building closed. The Boulder County 4-H horse program, just like the rest of the country, and the world, had to cope with the situation. Extension agents and 4-H leaders put their heads together and did their best to continue to provide learning opportunities for the kids. As a result, 4-H horse and horse-related activities have been conducted in the following ways:

Jocely Fiegland performing a recorded horsemanship pattern for the virtual show.

1: Virtual Ratings

The Colorado 4-H horse program builds on horsemanship and knowledge skill levels through a horse level advancement program. Members advance from Level I Novice through Level IV Horsemaster by being tested with a riding test and a written test in four disciplines: Showmanship, English, Western and Ranch.

Typically, riding level tests have always been administered in person with an approved rater while the written tests taken in the extension office. But in order to allow the members who were ready to advance to a higher level to do so (during this time of COVID-19), a novel method was approved in which the riding tests could be performed virtually, either through real time interaction with video feed from the arena to a rater at a remote location, or via recordings of the test skills sent to a rater. Members would now take their written test via a link provided by the extension agent.

2: Horse Shows

Erin at the 4-H Ranch clinic, Boulder County Fairgrounds

While certainly no horse shows were able to take place due to the fairground closure and the restriction on face to face activities, two virtual shows have been provided during this time, in which members are able to enter classes and submit a video of the provided class pattern to be judged and placed.

3: Competitive 4-H Horse-related Teams

Boulder County 4-H has strong participation in all three 4-H competitive horse knowledge teams: Hippology, Horse Bowl and Judging. The coaches adjusted to the restrictions on meeting face to face in the same way that schools managed, by switching to virtual platforms. Team coaches scrambled to figure out ways to continue practicing and studying via video conferencing apps such as Zoom, and the teams competed in virtual contests held in Wyoming and Utah. Last week, the state 4-H contests were held and Boulder County 4-H members performed extremely well as a result of their commitment to continue studying and honing their skills when they could not practice in person.

Mackenzie Weber and Calvin

Normally, state contests would be held in June at CSU during the multi-day state 4-H conference, but the state conference had to be adjusted by going virtual. The results of Boulder County participants in the horse-related virtual contests were announced on June 26th. First place winners are eligible to compete in the National Western 4-H Roundup in January, 2021. Placings were:

  • Hippology
    Team members: Mackenzie Weber, Soren Aamot, Emma Grassmick and Alora Klatka
    Won the State Championship!
    Overall individual placings were: Mackenzie Weber 1st, Liz French 3rd, Soren Aamot 5th, Sequoia Stark 8th, Emma Grassmick 10th.
    Coached by 4-H leader Donna Pattee
  • Horse Bowl
    Team members: Soren Aamot, Liz French, Emma Grassmick, Mackenzie Weber and Sequoia Stark
    Overall individual placings: Liz French 2nd, Mackenzie Weber 3rd, Soren Aamot 4th, Emma Grassmick 5th
    Coach: Carmen Porter
  • Horse Judging
    Team members: Madalyn Gable, Ava Wright, Moriah McQueen, Lily Thomas.
    Placed 3rd
    Mariah McQueen placed 3rd overall individual, and Jessi Jacobucci 10th.
    Coaches: Kendra McConnell and Rachel LeClere
  • 4-H members also made a strong showing in the individual contests with the following placings: Madalyn Gable 2nd (Public Speaking); Jessi Jacobucci 1st and Delaney Helgans 3rd (Demonstrations)

The Boulder County Fair is the culmination of the normal 4-H year, but this year it will not be a public fair. The county fair board is committed to providing 4-H exhibits and competition in some form. Without a county variance from the state restrictions for gatherings, options for in person classes are limited and the arrangement of horse show classes remains undetermined at the point of writing this article. The Colorado State Fair 4-H Horse Show will also be conducted in September at the State Fairgrounds in Pueblo in a modified version to adjust to COVID-19. We look forward to the time when events and meeting are returned to normal, but in the meantime great effort has been put into providing learning opportunities for 4-H youth to continue building those important skills and knowledge related to the horse.

For more information about Boulder County 4-H please contact Carmen Porter.