2018 Miniature Horse World Magazine WINTER 2018 Volume 34, Number 8 | Page 76

Super Amateur
Madison Holly
H
ello from Idaho! I’m
Madison Holly and will
be graduating from
college next spring. I’ve been
involved with the American
Miniature Horse Association
almost my entire life, present-
ing my first Mini at the age of
three…there I was, a precocious
preschooler in the ring for my
very first showmanship class! As
I’ve grown up, my relationship
with horses evolved: when I was
a youngster, the Minis in my
backyard were part-time baby-
sitters and full-time teachers.
And as I became a busier teen,
the horses (and barn) always
provided a comfortable place to
relax and just be “me.” After ag-
ing out of the youth division of
AMHA, I set my sights on win-
ning the title of Super Amateur.
This award spotlights my favorite
type of Miniature, the true “all-
around” horse; pretty enough to
stand up in a halter class while
also being versatile and ath-
letic enough to be successful in
multiple performance events. To
accomplish this goal at the 2018
World Show was quite an honor
and I’m grateful for all the op-
portunities I’ve been given while
working towards this title.
Abrias Daring Return is a “once
in a lifetime” horse, and I truly
know how lucky I am to own
this beautiful and talented mare.
When I saw Dare for the first
time, I immediately liked her
74 Miniature Horse World
WINTER 2018
“look” and in the fall of 2016,
began messaging her owner,
Stacy Sachen of Anivia Equine.
Dare wasn’t offered for sale,
but Stacy ultimately decided to
sell her to me (actually, I think
she just wanted me to stop
messaging her)! I cannot thank
Stacy enough for breeding this
mare and letting me make the
purchase. It was hard to wait for
the cold Idaho winter to pass
so Dare could be clipped, and
when I saw what was under that
shaggy coat, once again I was
counting my lucky stars!
I’m proud to say that I’ve
been responsible for all of
Dare’s training since the day
I brought her home. When I
began working with Dare in
the spring it was apparent she
was going to be a very willing
partner. She is a “chill” mare,
very easy to be around, eager to
learn new things, and loves to
show! It took a little time to get
horse and handler on the same
“team,” but there has never
been a day that I don’t enjoy
working with her. In Ft. Worth
(our third show together) Dare
won 7 World titles including Re-
serve Grand Amateur Country
Pleasure Driving and Reserve
Super Amateur horse. I was ec-
static with the results and knew
2017 would be hard to top.
Being a very goal-oriented
person, I like to put my
ambitions and practice schedules
in writing to help me stay
focused and prepared. I play
basketball for The College of
Idaho and some aspects of the
sport, both physical and mental,
spill over into the training
methods I use with my horses.
For example, keeping my horses
fit through balanced nutrition
and conditioning programs sets
them up to be more successful
at shows, because I know they
will have enough stamina to
drive a cart in a huge class or
keep a beautiful hunter frame
throughout an entire course. I
love spending time with my
horses so much and the hours,
months and years of training are
(mostly) always enjoyable. Some
of my other performance Minis
are more challenging, sensitive
and quirky to work with then
the phenom mare, Dare. They
seem to continually need more
direction and take longer to train
and teach new skills. Lucky for
me, patience and perseverance
are traits that are just a natural
part of my personality. When I
face obstacles in training, I take
a step back to figure out what I
could be missing. For instance,
by taking the time to break down
each element of an in-hand
maneuver into smaller steps, I’m
eventually rewarded with a horse
that’s self-assured and eager to
please. I keep practicing all the
disciplines but do so without
burning out my horses. I also
Photos courtesy of Casey McBride Photography- Garret Harrington- Melissa Powell
trust my intuition when it comes
to how much I can push each
Mini in their training. I treat
practice like it’s “the real deal”
and never…ever…give up! I love
to compete, and while I may feel
some nervousness in the warm-up
ring, all those nerves disappear
once I enter the in gate. It takes
a lot of time and effort to create
a lasting bond with horses, but
when my Minis are relaxed and
focused enough to trust my
guidance and cues, it’s almost like
I can see their confidence grow.
As the partnerships continue
to deepen, good things happen
naturally, both in training sessions
and the show ring…just as it did
with Dare.
This mare takes to every crazy
idea I throw at her, and this
past year, we added hunter to
Dare’s class list. At the 2018
World Show, she garnered titles
in Roadster, Country, Versatility,
Halter, and placed Top 5 in
Hunter. These combined wins
gave us the momentum to
head straight into center ring
to receive the award for Super
Amateur. Dare was also the
World Grand Amateur Roadster
horse and Reserve World Grand
Amateur Country Pleasure
Driving horse. I was so excited
with these results, and wish I
could have ten “Dares” in the
barn because the mare is such
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