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PrintArizona horsewoman and mustang win Mustang Makeover
For the challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, 100 horse trainers took 100 wild mustang horses for 100 days. In the finals, the trainers showed their horses, competing for $25,000 in prizes.
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Wylene Wilson, a horse trainer and clinician from Queen Creek, Arizona, won the Western Stampede Extreme Mustang Makeover in Fort Worth, Texas, on September 20, 2009. For the challenge, 100 horse trainers took 100 wild mustang horses for 100 days. In the finals, the trainers showed their horses, competing for $25,000 in prizes. Wilson received $5,000 as the top prize, which she won with mustang Rembrandt. It was Wilson's third Mustang Makeover at the Fort Worth venue and her first win.
Wilson named her horse Rembrandt because he resembled "art in motion." "Remi," as Wilson sometimes calls him, is a beautiful black American Mustang with a distinctive face; he is quiet, muscular, and stands about 15 hands. It's thought he might have some draft horse in his history.
The win in Fort Worth meant a lot to Wilson not just because it was the victorious culmination of the 100 days of training. The Mustang Heritage Foundation, which sponsors the event, had dedicated the Extreme Makeover to Wilson's 7-year-old daughter, Kensley, who had been seriously injured in mid-July when another trainer's mustang kicked her in the face. Wilson found her daughter unconscious but breathing. Kensley was airlifted to the hospital emergency center; it was feared she would have brain damage and lose an eye. Wilson devoted much of her 100 days of training to caring for Kensley, who has been riding since she was 3. Once her daughter was in the clear, Wilson and Remi went to work.
Their performance was described as "all horsemanship," most notable for many flying lead changes, a cowboy step-off, and stops that would make a reiner envious. Kensley was in the audience to watch her mother's ride, which Wilson had dedicated to her daughter.
For more information on Wylene Wilson, please visit www.wylenewilson.com.
The Mustang Heritage Foundation
The foundation, in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, sponsors wild-mustang competitions for horse trainers across the United States. Each trainer has only 100 days to break and train a wild mustang from the time they pick it up at the BLM. The trainers, among the best in the country, then compete with each other, demonstrating not only their horsemanship and training skills, but also the versatility of American Mustangs.
In the recent Western Stampede Extreme Mustang Makeover, nearly 30 trainers comprised the Western States Legends Division, the highest skill level. Following the competition, each mustang was auctioned to qualified bidders who could provide a safe and healthy home.
