Local 4-H Club Sets Sights on Nationals

BROOKSVILLE – As the season shifts to fall, the local Pony Express 4-H Club of Hernando County has a lot to celebrate. Earlier this year, members Delaney Sheldon and Kaylie Michot competed and took 1st place for Team Illustrated Talk at the Florida State Competitions at the University of Florida.

On the first day of August, Sheldon and Michot then competed and placed 6th overall in Team Illustrated Talk at the Southern Regional 4-H Horse Championship in Perry, Georgia. Team Hernando’s strong showing at regionals qualified them for the national tournament on November 9. Months’ worth of time, practice, and critiquing went into showing a seamless presentation.

While Sheldon and Michot will be making the trip to Louisville, Kentucky for the American International Livestock Expo in November, members Megan Watier and Layla DelVecchio recently earned spots on the National Horse Judging Team as well. The two competed alongside Delaney and Kaylie at the State Horse Judging competition where they took 1st as a team. The two also placed 1st (DelVecchio) and 3rd (Watier) individually.

Horse judging involves evaluating a variety of factors such as how well a horse moves and how well the rider instructs their horse. The competitions can include as many as eight classes with four horses in each class. These “classes” can be anything from jumping, to confirmation, and even cow working. According to DelVecchio, competitors learn more about riding itself in addition to preparing them to become judges or trainers down the line.

Eliana Snodgrass, the fifth member of their team, also deserves recognition as she and Sheldon share a horse at such competitions. However, because of the way the classes were handled at their last outing, Delaney showed the horse, and Snodgrass went as their “elite pit crew member,” noted club leader Dorothy Blair.

Michot and Sheldon’s Illustrated Talk was on the subject of “How Horses Built America.” They presented a timeline of horses’ uses during the formative years of the United States including the group’s namesake, the Pony Express. “All your great countries that are superpowers to this day are the ones that, centuries ago, were able to catch and train horses,” added Blair.

This is a useful discussion to be had as histories begin to be lost to time and as fewer children are brought up around horses. Illustrated Talks, which involve 4-H members speaking alongside a visual presentation, are also helpful for children to get acclimated to public speaking. Blair joked that Sheldon and Michot are great examples of the talks’ efficacy. “By themselves, this one shakes like a leaf, and this one cries. We put them together and they won everything,” she said.

Standing for Head, Heart, Hands, and Health, 4-H is the largest youth development organization in the United States, “empowering nearly six million young people with the skills to lead for a lifetime,” the organization’s website stated. 4-H has been around for over 100 years and is carried out through partnerships with 100-plus universities through the concept of “Cooperative Extension.”

4-H is mostly known for agriculture and is where many children are introduced to horse riding, sewing, shooting sports and other such activities. Watier, who got her start with horses through the club, has received several scholarships such as the 4-H CALS (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences) and the Hernando County Chamber of Commerce Community Service Scholarships because of the program. These are helping her to afford her tuition at the University of Florida where she is currently enrolled for Equine Sciences.

“I always have said the judging team kids in this county, always, they are the cream of the crop […] These girls here, for what they’ve learned, if they go out and look at a horse, I know they’re going to come back with something pretty nice […] but this has been the outstanding team that really took them to the top,” said Blair, who is in her 32nd year with the organization.

The club leader is confident in her squad and will look for her girls to continue showing out at events like nationals later this year.