In the “We”d Love To Own” section of the September issue, H&R features an American mustang named Sham. The red roan gelding competed with Brent Winston of Peyton, Colorado, in the 2011 Extreme Mustang Makeover at Fort Collins, Colorado. (Scroll down to see a video of the pair competing.)
Sometimes, there are so many good stories and tidbits that we don”t have room for on the Love To Own page. Here is a little more from my interviews with Brent Winston and Christine Churchill of Lucas, Texas.
Brent
Q: What is Sham”s personality like?
A: He has a no-nonsense personality. Once he learned his job and knew his job, he went right to it and did it. I”ve ridden some horses that goof around a little bit–not Sham. At the end of the event, he got to where he”d rather be around you than the other horses, so he was really friendly, too.
Q: Did he develop a taste for any certain treats?
A: He didn”t like too many treats. Just before the sale, we found out he liked Nickermakers. There were some little kids of some friends of mine that gave them to him, and he liked that–probably because they were coming from kids instead of me.
Q: Does he like kids?
A: He did, actually, like kids. We had him tied to the trailer after a cow working session at a buddy”s house, and his 4-year-old kid went running up to Sham. I thought, “Oh geez, oh no, no, no,” and old Sham just lowered his head as if to say “Watcha doin” buddy?” It was pretty neat.
Christine
Q: How would you describe Sham?
A: He”s very laid-back, very sweet. He”s got a nice, level head on him. As far as his disposition and his interests, he just seems like a nice, all-around working horse. He”s going to be a trail horse, and I”m going to be doing competitive trail with him. We”re going to continue doing things like that, but he”s a great horse.
Q: What was it that led you to bid on him?
A: It was kind of funny, because I didn”t realize how much I was attracted to him from day one. I was there watching another friend who had trained a horse for the event, and I was watching their horse. I attended Friday before the competition, and I was with two friends from the Fort Collins area, and one of them told the other that “Chris is going to buy that little red roan. I watch her, and every time it went by she said, “That is a nice looking horse,” and she kept talking about its conformation, color, the way it moved, and how level-headed it looked.” I didn”t even know I was going to buy him until the day of the auction.
Q: Have you been able to ride him and work with him yet?
A: Oh yeah! He”s been going really good. I”m so pleased with him. I”ve been wanting a mustang for a very long time, and he”s just everything; he”s been the perfect horse.
Brent and Sham made it to the finals in the Extreme Mustang Makeover, placing fifth. Watch that run below.
