For many years, Kyle Performance Horses had 40 or 50 head in the barn. But today, we concentrate on showing a few of our own, and focus on conditioning and building confidence in our horses.
Instead of showing one or two classes on several horses, now we both show one or two horses in several classes. KR Smart Dreamer is one of those horses. In 2024, he won the Stock Horse of Texas open world champion title [with Pete] then showed at the American Quarter Horse Association World Championship show where he won the select ranch riding [with Tamra]. While it takes a special horse to be successful with open and amateur riders, there are several things that we do to ensure he’s in top condition to compete.
Outside The Arena
Horse-show preperation starts at home. We first focus on a good feeding program that meets our horses’ nutritional needs for their ages and workloads.
Then we make sure their feet are ready for the show by planning our farrier schedule around our horse show schedule.
We also provide turnout and downtime for the horses to let them relax. We often think we have to keep riding and training, but a lot of times, if you step away and give them a little time off, your horse’s mind is fresher, and he’s ready to go.
Show Pen Focus
You’re always looking for that line of your horse being tired enough to show or too tired. When we get to a show, we usually give our horse a pretty good workout. Then he doesn’t require as much prep before a class. As we warm up, we try to avoid getting on too early and not over-schooling him for each event.
We have a specific warm-up program for each event we’re going in and mentally let our horse know the class that’s coming up. It comes down to your warmups and exercises at home, so you know when he feels ready. Then we can go and show. We do try and limit how much we ride him at a show if we are both competing.
If we notice him napping more or feeling tired, we do ice therapy spas if they are available to us at the shows. Ice really helps take out any inflammation in the horse’s legs. When they are not available to us, we will ice the legs ourselves, and then if we see any swelling in the legs, we always wrap his legs for the night.
We also try to show him the arena, even if it’s just riding up to the back gate and looking in.
Read: When Less is More: Don’t Overshow!
Mastering The Mental Side
Conditioning is also for our minds. If you’re negative about something, you probably won’t get it done. If you’re positive, you’ll probably have a good result. It’s your mental thinking that makes a big difference in how you ride a show.
Along with your horse, you need to make sure you’re also physically fit and ready to go show with your horse. Stretching before riding has become a big part of our riding routine. We always want to be physically fit so we can be our best for our horses. If you watch a lot of rodeo participants, they are preparing their body for what is going on. A young buck is OK, but as you get more age in your amateur years, you need to take more care of your physical wellbeing and ensure that you’re doing your part to help your horse be the best that he can be in the show pen.
Pete Kyle of Amarillo, Texas, is an AQHA Professional Horseman and judge, and formerly worked at AQHA as the chief of shows. Before that, he owned and operated Kyle Performance Horses, where he trained open-level horses and coached non-pros to world championship titles and major NRHA victories. Now, Pete and his wife, Tamara, focus on their own horses and enjoy spending their free time with family.
