“Honestly, it doesn’t feel real right now,” she says. “Last year, he foundered in the spring, and it hit hard. We didn’t think he was going to make it, and we had actually considered whether to put him down or not. But, somehow, a miracle happened, and he persevered through. I wasn’t able to ride him until January of this year, but he came back 100% and gave me everything he had.”

“I was very excited about today’s class and wanted to win the golden globe. My trainers [Judd and Jennifer] told me to have a nice, fast walk in and jog down the chute and over the hill into the pen on purpose with some speed. That was the judges’ first impression. They said to keep my arms back and tight and my shoulders back.”

“Pattern classes are my favorite. It’s more exciting, because you can do fast stuff. He’s good at it, and I’m just along for the ride.”

While her horse’s name may have alluded to her experience at the AQHA Youth World Show, 13-year-old Dakota Andrie is a YWC newbie no longer. At her first appearance at a Youth World, Dakota walked out of the pen with a golden trophy for her performance with her THREE-YEAR-OLD, Never Have I Ever.