Wise Guys: Five Young Men Make the Finals of 14-18 Showmanship at 2024 AQHYA World
Elden Fredenburg, Evan McColley, Collin Froman, Chesney Watkins, and Aiden Rizk. Photo by Shane Rux Photography
By Delores Kuhlwein
In a discipline seemingly dominated by horse-crazy girls, a swing in the trend of young men and boys showing their stuff in Showmanship is on the rise.
Take the 2024 AQHYA World Championship Show in Oklahoma City, for example. Five young men entered the L3 Youth 14-18 Showmanship out of 70 entries, and all five made it to the finals! This was no gift, however – in the words of the gentlemen about their peers: they all earned their way to the finals.
“I don’t think it was just the fact that they were guys – they were all really good and they all deserved to be there,” says Elden Fredenburg, who showed ItsOnlyRockAndRoll and made the finals for the first time ever, which was his goal. “It was really fun.”
That was the consensus, including the opinion of Evan McColley, who has been showing Vital Sassoon in Showmanship for a long time as his primary event. “I feel like sometimes people say there are guy points, and every here and there it does count against you, but everyone who made it back are good showmanshippers, and they all deserved to be there,” he agrees.
In fact, Aiden Rizk, who showed Catch Twenty Two, says, “As a boy you stand out anyway, so it made it challenging to stand out and that kind of raised the bar of competition. I’ve never been in a class where a third of the population is full of boys – it’s actually really exciting. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and I thought it was really fun competing against all the boys.”
For Chesney Watkins and and his new horse, One Hot Chilly Willy, showing with other young men provided an unexpected benefit. “It really boosts your confidence because there are other guys in there, considering the majority are usually girls!”
Collin Froman, who shows My Dream Remembered, says in 2021 when he won Showmnaship here at the AQHYA World Show, he was the only guy to make the callbacks, with maybe one or two of them showing total, a big shift from this year’s number of five. “It was really awesome to see everyone making the callbacks and showing in the showmanship. I’ve really seen more guys showing in it, especially at the smaller shows, like in Cloverdale,” he says.
The Allure of Showmanship
The reasons they all like Showmanship as a discipline vary, but they all agree it’s fun.
Chesney says he loves running, and even though he can’t do it as much as he’d like, he had fun in his first show with One Hot Chilly Willy, and his first 14-18 experience.
“I’ve always enjoyed Showmanship,” explains Evan, who came to show in that event and asked if he could help trainer Jesse Jones at the same time to help finance his trip. Evan explains he had no set goal for this show, and he wasn’t expecting to come back. “I thought no matter what happens, it would be a cool experience. I’ve had the same horse forever, and I’ve only really done showmanship with him. I enjoy the technical part of it, such as setting your pattern, figuring out where your marks are, controlling your pace, and keeping it consistent.
Elden agrees that the technical aspect is appealing, and it’s fun to see how the horse reacts. “I like dressing up,” he adds. “Honestly, it’s fun.”
For Collin, he finds the event to be the best way to connect with his horse. “You’re right there on the ground with them, so you can get more of a feel for what they’re thinking, what they think about the pattern, and if they’re ready or not,” he explains. “You do need to make sure they’re ready for the next manuever, especially trotting or walking off. You can immediately tell on that chain if they’re ready to go, or if they’re tired, or if they’re not expecting it, and then you can account for that as you make the manuever or as you prepare.”
Congratulations, gentlemen! Check out the complete results from their class here:
Results: L3 Youth Showmanship 14-18 Final Results
Score sheets: L3 Youth Showmanship 14-18 Final Score Sheets
