2009 ICA Mare of the Year and Barrel Horse of the Year - Phoebe Sugar Daddy

BY SARAH SKAAR - reprinted courtesy of Horse Sports

PARMA, Idaho - When cutting horse trainer Richard Jordan received Phoebe Sugar Daddy ("Precious") for training as a three-year-old, it was soon obvious that cattle events weren't going to be in her future. His wife, Hope, was keen on barrel racing, so when they later acquired the mare through a trade they pointed her toward the barrels. The cow cutting drop-out shines in her new sport and was recognized as the 2009 Idaho Cowboys Association Women's Barrel Racing Horse of the Year. The Barrel Racing Horse of the Year award is bestowed upon a horse selected by the ICA barrel racing finalists each year. Precious was also chosen ICA Mare of the Year from among all the timed even and rough stock horses in the association by vote of all the members. The ICA Mare of the Year program was introduced in 2009 by sponsor, Outback Stallion Station. For this honor she earned an embryo transfer and breeding. Precious earned the respect of barrel racers in the elite association. Bred Doc Bar on top and running lines on the bottom, she secured the ICA Reserve Championship in the barrel racing event behind Kyna Schrader and her great gelding. "It's really awesome for her to win these," said Hope about her mare's awards. "Especially since there are a lot of really good horses in this association. It's really fun for somebody to see what she can do and for everybody to be so excited for us. It's the first buckle I've ever won!" Hope, 24, says that last year everything "Just came together. It was so much fun! Kyna didn't really start hard (in the ICA) until the fourth (of July). Our 4th wasn't great. At that time my goal was to get to the finals. Then for about two weeks Kyna and I were back-to-back in the draw on the same night everywhere. Sometimes I would win or she would make it with hundredths between us. She has such a phenomenal horse that it was so much fun to ride with him. We had such a great time." Kyna pulled ahead of everyone for the ICA championship, but Hope's reserve championship is an accomplishment she's justifiably proud of. "This mare has more try than any horse I've ever rode," said Hope. "She will not quit you. Ever. That's her best quality." That gutsy attitude was evident at the ICA Finals Rodeo when the horse lost her footing and went down during a tight turn during the first night's performance. It was a hard fall but the mare scrambled upright and zoomed off to the next barrel to complete the pattern perfectly, shaking off the crash in an instant to re-focus on her targets. "That's just how she is. She likes to run barrels," Hope comments. "I took time off to have a baby last March, but when I started back up again she just clicked. I realized her ability." Hope brought the ambitious mare, now 9, along slowly through jackpots and a derby or two over the years. She had time off when Hope had her first son, Rance, now three, and was never pushed. Hope was also riding a half brother to Precious that she recently sold - another horse the Jordans got in trade from the rancher in Harper, Oregon. "I have learned a lot. Until I married Richard, I didn't know what a broke horse was," she laughs. "I grew up riding bareback. There would be three of us on a pony waiting for it to buck us off. I've definitely improved my riding, which is improving my horses. He helps me a ton." Hope uses the mare to turn back in the cutting pen occasionally, but the conditioning program is mostly long trotting in big pastures. Hope is also training a promising young barrel horse she purchased from breeder Ken Dunn, and even pilots Richard's calf roping horse around the pattern. "Of those two we got from over in Harper, the gelding was more laid back and was a great horse for me to learn on," says Hope. "He was marketable so I sold him. But she's more of a challenge and would not fit just anybody. And she's definitely a rodeo horse. She likes that format better than jackpots." Of her mare's antics Hope says, "She might be hopping three feet in the air, but when she's ready, she's ready. She knows her job. It's all about getting in there to do it." Hope had her second son in March of 2009. Then she tapped friend Katie Davis for tips on getting herself and her horse sharpened for 2009. Hope says, "I asked Katie to help me figure out how to ride her to the level I needed to. And I had to decide I was going to ride to win, after riding carefully for all those months. I learned to ride more relaxed but accomplish more. I had hauled to rodeos, but this was the first year I was ready to go and win. "That I was ready," she emphasizes. "My mare could do it. I just had to be there for her. It's so great that it worked out this way."

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