Four young people entered the world of high school rodeo, never foreseeing that their paths would diverge and come together again. In Chasing the Dream, the four friends find their way through complicated lives to discover the rewards of professional rodeo life, love, and ultimately, a faith in God. One of them, Tom Rawlings, is a cowboy with a dream of his own, a passion for barrel racer Melanie Monroe, and a heart for God. Through him, each of his friends slowly finds his or her way to Christ. But will Mel find a place in her heart for Tom as well?

A successful barrel racer has known how to select a winning prospect, to train and condition it, and maintain the seasoned horse's competitive edge. In this truly comprehensive guide to barrel racing, Ed and Martha offer experience and wisdom from three decades of professionally training and competing on winning barrel horses, Learn the philosophies and techniques which Ed and Martha use to produce consistent results.

Barrel racers put a lot of effort and expense into improving their skills and developing their horses. But even when they seem to be doing everything right, it's not uncommon to continuously miss the mark in competition. The problem often lies in inconsistencies or weaknesses in the rider's inner game - the aspects of competition that aren't always easy to see, but have perhaps an even greater impact on our end results. Finally, a resource has been created to assist barrel racers on the path to truly becoming more confident from the inside out. The Confident Barrel Racer covers eight key areas and concludes with two special bonus sections. Challenges of Competition - Develop awareness that prevents you from falling victim to the dangers that exist in the competition environment. Fierce Love - Get off the endless roller coaster of emotions to develop a steady, unwavering level of confidence regardless of your circumstances or results. Self & Source - An introduction to two key relationships, that when developed and nurtured, will turn your life around. Four Steps to Confidence - A step-by-step guide to creating confidence, by helping you to first master change in the moment, then offering support all the way through integration. Be Here Now - Today is a gift, that is why we call it the present. Learn how to be in the moment, the perfect mental space to be in a run, where self-doubt cannot exist. Practices - Being a winner in the arena means developing winning habits in all aspects of life. Develop practices in three areas to optimize your confidence. Tips for Competition - Specific action steps for overcoming nerves, getting into the perfect mindset, and creating laser-like focus to perform your best. Confidence Smashers - Have past experiences, horses, or people damaged your confidence? Get tips for overcoming past and present challenges. The Confident Horse - There's more to developing a confident horse than just being a confident rider. Learn how to build your equine partner's confidence. Additional Resources - Recommend books, programs and more for further personal development and confidence building.

The Secrets are OUT! Barrel racers are driven by an unrelenting desire to win. Unfortunately, they are often misled. The secrets have been well kept for much too long. The time has come for barrel racers to stop looking for success, in all the wrong places. In this revolutionary book, author Heather Smith boldly reveals the real reasons for slow times, tipped barrels, behavior problems and much more. Smith challenges readers to develop new perspectives and describes specific action steps, all proven to yield positive, fast results. Secrets to Barrel Racing Success provides an integral foundation, yet far from just the basics, it empowers barrel racers to demystify even the most advanced concepts: Sense and correct subtle mistakes on the pattern quickly and easily. Utilize special techniques to make any barrel horse faster. Realize what feel really is, and how you can harness it's power. Develop a barrel horse that is always mentally focused and with you. Communicate in a way that creates feather-light responsiveness. Become a rider and competitor that brings out the best in every horse. Achieve optimum barrel racing performance, through optimum horse health. Master your inner game for confidence every time you blast down the alley. Understand true collection, why it's so critical and how to achieve it. The secret to winning lies in becoming aware of and dissolving the lesser-known blocks (that many don't even know exist) standing in the way of success. In the process, a path is cleared for each barrel racer to achieve their greatest potential. Only when the secrets are revealed, does winning become possible. Heather Smith is a Wyoming barrel racer with a passion for learning and self-development. Through her own journey to achieving barrel racing success, she became inspired to help others do the same. Heather continues to compete and share her insights at BarrelRacingTips.com.

The story by an American rodeo star shows that while two feet moved her body, four feet moved her soul, in this cowgirl's journey of triumph over tragedy.

In this book, Jim Masterson, Equine Massage Therapist for the 2006 and 2008 and 2010 USET Endurance Teams, and for equine clientele competing in FEI World Cup, Pan American and World Games competitions, teaches a unique method of equine bodywork, in which the practitioner recognizes and follows the responses of the horse to touch to release tension in key junctions of the body that most affect performance.This practical book with step-by-step instructions, photographs and illustrations is ideally suited to accompany you to the yard/stables, where you can practice the Masterson Method techniques on horses. Expanded chapters with Tips & Techniques, anatomical explanations and examples from Jim's practice help deepen your understanding. A 'quick reference' section will point you to exercises that are specifically suited to your particular discipline, may it be dressage, endurance, eventing, or others in the vast realm of horse sports.

Do you have a dreamer in your family? A child who loves adventure? Horses? Adventurous dreamer Dee loves the rodeo and her favorite event is Barrel Racing. She has been dreaming about her first race with her best friend Hank for as long as she can remember. They have worked hard, practiced and persevered. But will it be enough?

Fourteen-year-old Miya Skippingbird, aka Mega Miya, knows all about middle school struggles. She wants the perfect horse that will win every time so the rodeo kids will notice her in a good way and maybe even like her. However, Miya's hope is shattered when her "Dream" turns out to be a stubborn paint mare who has no interest in running, much less winning a barrel race. "She's the fattest horse I've ever seen. Yeah, she's stubborn. She wouldn't move. First, she was so barn-sour she acted like she couldn't gather up enough strength to leave that end of the arena. Then, no matter how hard I kicked her, she barely trotted. To top it off, when I asked her to lope, she tried to kill me. So, there you have it. She's not a dream. She's my worst nightmare." Can Miya overcome the viral videos and humiliation? Can she face her nightmares and stand up? Can she move forward? Take a chance? Sometimes you might win something unexpected. . . .