It’s My Turn – Ann Woodruff is Back in The Saddle Again
Click here to read the complete article
By Kristen Spinning
One might be forgiven for believing that Ann Woodruff picked up her talent, poise, and presence in the show pen by osmosis. After all, for many years she was ringside, supporting and encouraging her daughter, Lillian, to numerous championship titles. Now, the roles have reversed. Ann is scooping up the wins in the arena while Lilli cheers her on from the rail. With enormous drive and passion, Ann has enjoyed remarkable success in her inaugural few months of showing after a hiatus that spanned decades. Yet, like most overnight successes, the reality is that success has been years in the making.
Ann showed as a youth and then gave it up when she went off to college. Her love of horses never waned, and her connection was renewed when she and her husband, Buck, purchased a 400-acre ranch in Whitefish, Montana. The Woodruff family has three children: Harrison, Lillian, and Carolina. The family splits their time between a home in Atlanta and the Montana Round Meadow Ranch. “In the past, we would go out there for the summers,” Ann says. “When the kids were young, we spent a lot more time at the ranch. We had several horses to ride for fun on the trails, and Lillian fell in love with everything to do with horses. Then, we started buying some show horses. The older Lilli got, the deeper we got into the show world. We absolutely loved it. We were always running off to a show. Between the Paint shows, the Quarter Horse shows, and the NSBA shows, our time at the ranch became extremely limited.” While the Woodruff family missed Montana, they developed a vast network of show family. Showing was integral to family life, plans, and schedules.
Lilli graduated high school last year and is now a freshman at Alabama. However, Ann wasn’t content with leaving the excitement and friends of the show world behind. She asserts, “It’s my turn now. It’s up to me to get out there and do it.”
She came to this realization at the end of the AQHA Youth World last year when Lilli flew home so Ann could help her pack for college. “As she left, it was as if the door had closed. Boom. It hit hard that we’re not going to be showing that much anymore. It was very emotional. That’s when I told myself, ‘You enjoy this so much. You have such incredibly beautiful animals. We’re breeding animals, and we’re raising animals. This is not going to end.’ By gosh, I got myself on a horse in October and here I am.”
