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Written by Dale Woodard
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Saturday, August 22 2009, 10:34 PM |
Smaller pen, smaller horse, fastest time?
Right, says Freddy.
In the spirit of saving the best for last — almost — Adel Hansen and her horse, Freddy, hit the ground running as the ladies barrel racing event wound down at Whoop-Up Days Saturday afternoon at Exhibition Park.
And when the rider from Okotoks and her 12-year-old mare crossed the line, the duo did so at a lightning quick time of 14.60, good enough for top spot.
Suddenly, the sun wasn’t the only thing blazing at Exhibition Park as Hansen — a first year pro — and Freddy clipped the 15-second mark.
“I knew it was a smaller pen so I thought it would suit my little horse pretty well,” said Hansen. ”She turned the first and second (barrel) really well. We’ve been having some issues on the third barrel, so I just her do her stuff and she did really well. I really needed this one.”
As if sensing that, Freddy shook off those third barrel troubles to aid her owner to victory.
“Sometimes she popped up a little bit wide for a little bit,” said Hansen. ”So it’s always in the back of your head. Is she going to turn this time? She worked really well. She’s very fast and pretty fun to ride.”
In the time sensitive sport of barrel racing, a lot can happen over those 15 or 16 seconds around three barrels.
“I think you just take it bit-by-bit and try to focus, guide your horse and not get in the way,” said Hansen. ”Especially in the small pens where things happen really quickly. So you just have to keep it in your head what you want to do and follow through with it.”
If the Okotoks rider has her way, the victory at Whoop-Ups days will be a springboard to bigger and better things in an already successful rookie run in the pro ranks.
“I had a really tremendous spring,” said Hansen. ”This is my first year going pro. So this is a really exciting time. I’m just on the bubble and I’m striving for the Canadian Finals Rodeo, so I really needed this one.”
Now Hansen is knocking on the door of that CFR berth she’s striving for.
“They take the top-12. The top-10 in the Canadian standings and then they take two out of the tour finals. Right now I’m sitting (around) 12th, so it was big today,” said Hansen, whose family matters allowed her to pursue her pro dream. “I had really good horses and my kids have finally gotten to the point where they can do their own thing I can live my dream. I knew I had a good horse and that’s what led to it.”
With her Whoop-Up Days win sealed, Hansen pressed on west to B.C. for a go-round in Kamloops with six rodeos left to earn a berth in the CFR,
“It’s always tough to say,” said Hansen of her bid.
“I feel good and confident in my horses. I’m just going to take it one run at a time and let the chips. I’m just going to keep the vision in mind.”
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