Like Mother, Like Daughter: Twin Highpoint Trophies For Ellexxah and Melissa Maxwell, Earned Nearly 20 Years Apart
Ellexxah and Melissa Maxwell. Photo courtesy of Gordon Downey.
By: Brittany Bevis
Her adorable pixie looks and enthusiastic personality aren’t the only traits that 13-year-old Ellexxah Maxwell inherited from her mother, Melissa. Ellexxah also received mom’s knack for excelling in equestrian competition, in showmanship, in particular.
The 2013 show season culminated in spectacular style for Ellexxah and her now 6-year-old mare, Zips Bossy Chip. The pair has (unofficially) won the AQHA Youth Highpoint title in Showmanship, Equitation, and Performance Halter Mares as well as the Highpoint Youth All Around 18 and under title. The team’s most coveted award is most certainly the one earned in Ellexxah and Melissa’s favorite class, showmanship.
“That’s kind of what we’re known for,” Melissa says. “I’m the showmanship diva, but I’m going to have to give up my title to my daughter. She has far and above whipped my butt in anything I’ve ever done. I will have to hand over my crown and scepter to my kid.”
“Some of the older amateurs say it’s like looking into a mirror from 20 years ago, except that she can outshow me ten to one. I knew she would do it [win a Highpoint title], but I didn’t think she would do it at age 12. It took me my whole career to do it at age 23!”
When the final year-end standings are made official, Ellexxah will receive her very own Highpoint trophy in Showmanship, just like her mother did nearly 20 years prior. In 1994, Melissa and her horse, Prince of Silence, also won an AQHA Highpoint title in Showmanship, in the amateur division.
As far as Melissa is concerned, it wasn’t a big surprise that her daughter would have such a successful career. However, the rate at which this young competitor has excelled is definitely impressive.
“She’s been showing since she was 18 months old,” Melissa says. “She was the youngest two-time Congress Champion in history. She was six when she won the 13 and Under Novice Showmanship and Small Fry Horsemanship, both in 2007. Now, she’s in 13 and under, and she’s won Highpoint by a 200 some point spread. I just talked to AQHA. It’s not even final yet. We’re pretty proud.”
What makes the pair’s journey even more amazing is that 2013 was their second year competing as a team. The Maxwell family purchased “Annie B.” just before the All American Quarter Horse Congress in 2011 as a green 3-year-old from Todd Yoder and Becky Schooler. In fact, Ellexxah was the first rider to show the mare in competition.
“Ellexxah said she was brave enough to put her in the pen [for the first time],” Melissa says. “She rode her maybe 20 minutes and stuck her in there as a real maiden 3-year-old. She was 2nd and 3rd out of 25 head the first day she showed her. Then, we took her to the Congress, and she was top 5 in 11 and Under Hunter Under Saddle. We took her home and hauled her in 2012. That was the first year the horse had been shown, and she won Highpoint in Performance Halter Mares that year and in Equitation and was the Reserve High Point All-Around in AQHA the first season she showed in it.”
“The next year [2013], she came back still as a junior horse. She was five years old and Ellexxah was 12. We found out we were sitting on top of it, so we went ahead and hauled. She may not be the youngest rider ever to win the [year-end] Highpoint, but for sure she’s the only 13 and under [rider] that’s ever done it on a junior horse in their second year of showing.”
Annie B and Ellexxah prepare to enter the pen for their final showmanship pattern of 2013. Photo courtesy of Melissa Maxwell.
Undoubtedly, Annie B. is a very special horse, and, as the saying goes, the most talented horses often come with the most interesting quirks. According to the Maxwell ladies, this particular mare definitely enjoys girl time. No boys allowed…
“It goes without saying that she had a wicked personality, and she still does,” Melissa says. “Basically, she hates Brent [Ellexxah’s father and horse trainer]. Every time he tried to get on her, it was a disaster. So, Ellexxah took it upon herself to put all of the events on her.”
“This year, when we started 2013, she decided the horse was going to get a lead change. That was her goal for the whole summer. As luck would have it, her horsemanship pattern at the Congress last year contained a lead change. She won three out of the four judges and was top five in every event except for one. She won the Highpoint All Around 12-14 at the Congress and was Reserve Overall Highpoint. She’s finished every superior, AQHA Championship, and Performance Championship in a matter of two years. Where do we go from here? There’s nothing left for her to win!”
While Ellexxah and Annie B.’s list of accomplishments is impressive, there’s one particular title that has eluded their grasp.
“I’ve not won anything at the Youth World Show,” Ellexxah says. “I’ve been top 15, top 10, and top 5, but I’ve not earned a globe. Showmanship would probably be my best bet, but any event will do just fine! Showmanship is my favorite. I love it because there are so many different styles that people can do to make it their own. You can really spice it up and make it different.”
Looking forward to 2014, Ellexxah would like to start competing in western riding and has her sights set on making an appearance at the AQHA Novice Championships later in the year. Even further down the line, Ellexxah has a dream to compete in the Congress Queen competition.
“She’s a fanatic about Breyer horses,” Melissa says. “I asked her the other day to dream up a goal that she wanted to achieve. This is what she told me… she wants to keep this mare long enough that she can run for Congress Queen. She wants to win it on this horse so she can have her made into a model horse. She loves her that much.”
Ellexxah describes her beloved equine companion as a feisty schoolgirl-type with a “prissy personality.”
“She’s kind of like the schoolgirl that no one really likes, because she’s got this really prissy personality, but she’s as cute as can be,” Ellexxah says. “She loves to show. One time, we left her home, and she was an absolute grump the whole time. She whinnied when we put the other horses on the trailer.”
Ellexxah and fellow competitors enjoy time spent out of the show pen at the March To The Arch. Photo courtesy of Gordon Downey.
It goes without saying that Brent and Melissa Maxwell couldn’t be prouder of their daughter’s accomplishments. The fact that she’s followed in her mother’s footsteps by excelling in showmanship is just icing on the cake.
For Ellexxah, all of the hard work and dedication she puts into preparing for horse shows has a very practical purpose.
“It was always my goal to really impress my parents so they would keep letting me show,” she says. “It’s really cool to know how much they care.”
A huge congratulations goes to this talented youth competitor and her family on their recent accomplishments. Look for Ellexxah to kick off her final year in the 13 and under division at the 2014 March To The Arch.
