ASHLAND — A 12-year old Ashland girl was a finalist in the 2020 Pinto World Championship last month.
When Stanzi Moser of St. Edward School flew to Tulsa, Oklahoma this past November to compete in the competition, she and her pinto horse commendably represented Ashland with their performance.
Moser placed 5th in the world for YA Junior Horsemanship, 6th in Western 13&U Disciplined Rail, 10th in 13&U English Showmanship and was a finalist in the Novice YA Horsemanship class.
The 16-year-old horse leased by Moser is a pinto horse, which refers to horse’s unique hair patterns and coloration. Moser enjoys competing with Milton because he is highly disciplined compared to other stallions. His proper name is Machine My Assets, but he is more often called by his nickname, Milton.
“It depends on how the horse behaves,” Moser said. “I’ve had a horse in the past where he’d feed off of my emotions, and it did not end well.
“He’s really calm. He doesn’t feed off of your emotions, and he’s really well behaved, too.”
Moser rides with SS Performance Horses in Ashland. Her trainer is Emily Scott. Olivia Born owns Milton and coaches Stanzi.
Moser has been riding horses since she was 6 years old and credits her grandmother for introducing her to the practice.
“My grandma thought it would be a good idea to take me riding horses one time because they had us clean out the stalls,” Moser said. “She thought that would make me not want to ride horses.”
In the competition, Moser had to memorize specific maneuvers and patterns and execute them by guiding Milton in front of a panel of judges.
“It takes a lot of practice,” Moser said. “We would saddle up the horses, and we would go to the arena and ride in the arena we were going to show in, so that they could get used to the environment.”
Monica Moser, Stanzi’s mother, explained that she always feels tense while watching her daughter compete in these shows.
“It was incredibly nerve-wracking,” Monica Moser said. “At some point in every show I go away and just leave her with her coach and her horse.
“We’ve never had anything as big as the Pinto World Championship. Everyone was super nice, and it was really well run. It was a great time,” she said.
The Pinto World Championship took place in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Nov. 14 through the 18. The event was sponsored by the Pinto Horse Association of America.
