The Johns Family – Horsemen To The Core
To many of us, horses are synonymous with family, and in the case of the Johns family of Scottsdale, horses are intertwined with their family and their legacy.
Horses are part of their identity, but make no mistake – the Johns horsemen are riders to the core, and they earn their wins with grit, talent, and dedication.
After Jeffrey Johns won the Amateur Western Riding with KM Flat Out The Best Wednesday at the 2024 NSBA World Championship Show, he says Lilly is pretty special, but she also keeps them on their toes.
“She is very solid, but she’s still a horse, and she makes you work hard,” he admits. “She doesn’t give you anything. I’ve gotten to ride some great western riders over the years, and some of them take a little bit better care of their riders than others, but though even though she makes you work hard, she also rewards you the most.”
He explains that Lilly also knows she is special, so she will definitely challenge her rider, but she will also reward the rider – usually! “Western Riding is my favorite class,” he explains. “Trail is fun but it can be hit or miss, but for western riding, you have to be the most in tune with your horse to get their feel, with split second timing to get the lead change, and to me there’s no better feeling.”
Right on his heels to win Gold with Lilly was his mom, Susie Johns, who cinched the very next class, Amateur 50 & Over Western Riding, with her sister, Kathy Tobin, sharing the winners’ circle with a Reserve title on All Eyezs On Him.
Susie had her share of challenges in the class, considering the town’s noontime tornado siren went off when she first started her pattern, and went until almost the end of her pattern, she explains.
“I had to think a minute!” she laughs. “Is this really a tornado warning, or is it noon someplace?!” Being from Arizona, she says, it was just a bit of a distraction during her pattern, since they’re not done in Southwest. However, she came through it with flying colors.
Congratulations to the family for a job well done! See results for both classes below:
Amateur Western Riding:
Amateur 50 & Over Western Riding:
