NYS 4-H Horse Program Takes on Louisville

NYS 4-H Horse Program Takes on Louisville

The New York State 4-H Horse Program proudly announces its outstanding performance at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup held on November 4th, 2023. Sixteen dedicated youth from various regions across the state showcased their expertise in Horse Bowl, Hippology, Judging, and Communications. This year's competition featured over 20 states and drew over 250 participants, highlighting the caliber of talent on display.

Horse Bowl Highlights:

• Coached by Ann Janson and Heather Whitten, the Horse Bowl team was the 9th place team, with Rhiannon Swimelar placing 10th in individual rankings.

Judging Team Highlights:

• Coached by Colleen Wersinger and Jenny Groen, the Judging team had team placings in each division. Kylie Estrella was the 4th place High individual in halter. The team had the following team placings: 7th place in Halter, 8th place in performance, 4th place in oral reasons, and was the 6th place team overall.

Horse Communications Highlights:

• Under the guidance of coaches Sarah Wilhelm, Trish Bagley, and Rhonda Turrell, the Horse Communications team had great success. Emilee Roadcap secured the 6th place in Public Speaking, Charlotte Couchman took 1st place nationally with her outstanding Individual Presentation and the team presentation by Abby Donnelly and Lizzy Cable earned them the 8th place. The NYS Horse Communications team was the 3rd place overall team.

Hippology Highlights:

• Coached by Donna Walker and Kathy Bliss, the Hippology team displayed great success. In the Written Phase, Payton Youngers secured 2nd place, Zeke Visser 3rd, Lydia Visser 7th, and Tess Bergfjord 8th. The team was the 2nd place reserve champion title for the written phase. In the Stations Phase, Zeke Visser secured 1st place, Payton Youngers 4th, Tess Bergfjord 5th, and Lydia Visser 6th. The NY team earned the 1st place Champion team for the Stations phase. The Judging portion saw Lydia Visser placing 6th in individual rankings, and the team secured the 3rd place in problem-solving. In overall high individual placings, Payton Youngers ranked 3rd, Zeke Visser 5th, Lydia Visser 6th, and Tess Bergfjord 7th. The New York team earned the 2nd place reserve team for the overall contest.

We are so proud of every one of you for all your hard work, dedication, and time you put into preparing for these contests. We also want to thank all our coaches who help make this possible and all the time and effort they put into preparing state contests and then preparing youth for the National contests!

We look forward to the 2024 Nationals contest and trip and once again congratulations to all of our NYS Youth!

Contact: Jessica Tyson, jms943@cornell.edu