About 15 area youths put on a display of grace and skill with their horses Sunday at a little-known part of the Jefferson City Jaycees Cole County Fair.
The Cole County 4-H/FFA Horse Show took place at Kempker Arena in Eugene. The judged exhibition featured various discipline classes that had riders guiding their horses through various speeds, patterns and around cones.
One of the events, egg and spoon, had riders holding a spoon with an egg on it while they rode. They were challenged to ride at different speeds until only one rider, Clara Lackman, was still holding the egg on her spoon.
One of Sunday's competitors was 20-year-old Shianne Walther, of Taos, who grew up on a farm and has been around horses all her life. She got a couple horses at the age of 8, but didn't really start riding until around 12 years old.
"I really enjoy riding a lot of different horses," she said. "You really learn something new about every horse you ride."
One of the horses she competed with Sunday was Hank, an American quarter horse. She's had Hank for about five years, and describes him as "slow, lazy and easy-going.
"He's the slowest horse I have, but I can check cows and have a relaxing evening with him," she said.
Hank contrasts in personality with Thunder, the other horse she competed with at the event. Thunder, she said, always has to "hurry up and get there. He's got a lot of get-up-and-go."
Walther is a student at Missouri State University in Springfield, where she is majoring in agriculture business and animal science, with a minor in equine science.
She said her heart is with horses, but she might consider a career in agricultural loans at a bank.
Horse show Superintendent Rachel Hasty started riding when she was 10 and has competed in a handful of horse shows. She said everyone knows each other at the show and comes out to cheer for each other.
The appeal, she said, is to "come out to see friends and get to show off what you've been training for. It's kind of fun to see your friends and compete against them."