Sara Schifferdecker and her horse, Ralphie, have winning ways.
The daughter of Mark and Nancy Schifferdecker, Girard, she and Ralphie competed July 31-Aug. 8 at the 2009 Ford American Quarter Horse Youth Association World Championship Show in Oklahoma City, Okla. They placed in the top 20 in a class of around 180.
More recently, they competed at the All American Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus, Ohio. This is the largest horse show in the world, with more than 8,500 horses and 17,000 entries. They placed in the top 10 in three events and won a reserve grand champion in Schifferdecker’s youth equitation class.
Her interest in horses started years ago.
“We blame her grandparents,” her mother said. “They put Sara on a horse when she was a child, and that’s all it took.”
“I rode my grandfather’s ranch horses, and kind of worked my way up,” Schifferdecker added.
She is the granddaughter of Sheldon and Patsy DeLange, who had the horses, and Martin and Sandra Schifferdecker, all of Girard.
For the past two or three years she has ridden Ralphie, a 6-year-old quarter horse gelding.
“His registered name is A Special Invite,” Schifferdecker said. “He’s in training with Terry Cross, who has been my coach for the past three or four years. He’s kind of like a mentor to me.”
She and Ralphie go to about two shows a month.
“I’ve gone to shows from Tampa, Fla., to Phoenix, Ariz.,” she said. “We travel quite a bit, but usually go to closer shows in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. Most of my lessons come from my experiences at shows.”
“Her father and I take turns going to the shows with her,” her mother said.
A Girard High School senior, she is active in the Girard FFA chapter and serves as secretary. She enjoys participating in prepared public speaking and horse judging, and will run for a state FFA office in the spring.
Schifferdecker plans on attending Kansas State University next year.
“I plan on selling Ralphie to go to college, but I’ve already signed on for the K-State equestrian team,” she said. “K-State also has a very good FFA chapter and I’d like to be involved with that. I’ve developed a love for the organization.”
She intends to major in psychology, and is very interested in horticultural therapy.
“It’s a new and upcoming field,” Schifferdecker said. “It’s done a lot in hospitals and nursing homes.”
She currently has an after-school job at Jenny’s Flower Shoppe, Girard.
“My main job is making deliveries after school, and I’ve done some graphic design work,” she said. “I also love to arrange flowers.”
Schifferdecker believes that her horse show experiences will benefit her in whatever path she takes through life.
“I’ve met a lot of new friends, and learned how to deal with competition,” she said. “It can get kind of tense at some of the big shows, and I’ve learned how to handle those situations, how to be independent and take care of myself.”
PITTSBURG —
