b'Running the RaceBy Betsy Nunn Hey let me watch the baby for an hour or so and you go getFall into howfastdouwannab@gmail.com, facebook.com/Willnunnp3, youtube.com/user/howfastdouwannabI on your horse and clear the cobwebs. Needless to say, I was want to talk about something I havent told many people. It was the year 2002 and Iin uncharted waters. Depression was an understatement. had a really neat futurity mareOnce he got to be 2 or 3 months old I started going back to by the name of OBD Toot Sweetmy moms place and she would watch him while I rode her Too, affectionately known as Tootie, by our stud Otherherd but mine werent getting tended to. That was ok forto slim my herd down again as there are just so many hoursFBrother Daryl. Bill Overton rode one by him that year asa time but I kept having this nagging feeling like what amin the day. I guess I am always changing and tweaking to goORAGEwell named Smoke This. Both of us won a ton on DarylsI doing? Sometimes the Duramax would just sit and idle offspring that year as it was the first crop of futurity coltswith the baby sleeping in it if it was warm or cold out. The Daryl had on the scene. They were outrunning some goodthing that just kept going through my head was, I am out Dash Ta Fames and Frenchman Guy babies that had somehere on a horse and missing my boy. I dont want to miss great jockeys on board as well.any of his firsts. I would ride most of the day and just go in to nurse him. God forbid I just be his mom. Will and I were newly married and things were off to awith the life and times of our crew. I feel like you have to be tremendous start. I had sold a bunch of horses that year.I felt that I needed to be out on these horses we raised,moldable, bendable, and even more so teachable.Wills shoeing business was flourishing too. From there itsgetting them ready for the futurities. Again this is just my been almost 18 years ago to the day that we had our firstjourney and I want to put it out there for any young momsI guess my point is that God gave us these babies and they son. Being pregnant was hard on me as my uterus wouldthat may have felt this same way or are feeling this way. Inare only babies for a minute. Enjoy that time. Dont feelSAVE WITH STANDLEEswitch to the one side and I would feel like my groin wasno way do I want anyone to feel guilty for doing things theirpressure from whomever that you need to be on their pulled for most of my pregnancies. I would stay as active asway. I finished Tooties futurity year at OKC Futurity andschedule and adhere to how they think you should do I could until I couldnt any longer. I weighed in at about 199did well. Will went with my mom and me and helped but itthings. I had someone say when I was pregnant with our lbs., at the time of delivery, with all three kids. My oldestwas funky as three isnt always company as you might hopefirst, Betsy, this wasnt the plan! Also, I had another lady son was the first and it was a long and tough labor. We wereit would be. Eventually, we ran Tootie in the derbies andcome up to me at a barrel race when I stopped by with two super thankful he made it and excited to bring him home.she did great as well at some rodeos. She placed second inbabies in the tandem stroller and one in my belly and say, From there it was tricky navigating a new little life. Why isa go-round and at Prescott that year. I decided to step backWhat are you gonna do have a basketball team? I thought, he crying? What do I do? Is he hungry, tired or do I needbefore the Oklahoma City futurity and my mom wasnt tooWell, shoot maybe so! to change him? I had never even babysat. I had nothinghappy with me. She and my dad had Charmayne James (who against kids but I didnt know what the heck I was doing.is the greatest jockey to ever live in my estimation) run herIts your life and you will be the one that has to answer for Dont get me wrong. I am all about getting knowledge andat OKC. She made a great showing there. They came back,it. Live it well! In the book of Ecclesiastes, it says there is a understanding. I read all the books I could find while Iwe visited and I ran her at a big jackpot barrel race in Deserttime for everything. Make time for those babies and not just was pregnant and after about nutrition, nursing, discipline,Hills. She clocked up awesome and ran the fastest time ofthe baby horses. I know I dang sure dont have everything vaccinations vs no vaccinations, etc. I even had a gardenthe barrel race. The bad part was I missed my run the dayfigured out so I am not even going to act as I do. I am saying and made my own baby food. His first food was avocado.before as I was in the truck nursing the baby. I had a pit crewto just keep things in perspective and do what works for LOL. The thing I did not understand was why I was sothere and had lots of help so it was no ones fault. I was justyou. If you havent figured out what works then change down and out in my big pretty place with my house on thetaking care of what I felt was important which was our son. Isomething and go with what you have peace with, not what hill. My mother-in-law thankfully came and stayed with usdidnt even realize they had called my name. It was then andsomeone else thinks is right for you. As a buddy of mine by for a little while after I had him just to help cook and keepthere I decided we needed to sell Tootie. It was a super hardthe name of Jamie McIntyre says, Just do what matters. me lined out. I was just in such a funk after she left. It wasdecision to make with my folks but I felt like I needed to step even a stressful ordeal for me to make plans with someoneback a bit. Not too long after that, I became pregnant withLove to you all and I hope this finds you well! for lunch. If someone were to stop by and say lets go toour daughter and my dad said, Thats ok Bets, as long as itsBarrel TipBUY 3lunch, I would go but anytime it was planned it woulda red-headed little girl, you are good. Guess what? She was aCan one really pick a horses shoulder up coming, SAVE $5.00 about do me in and I would almost always cancel. I lovedred-headed little girl. My dad called it. I still rode and trained my son but I couldnt understand why I was having suchfrom there for a bit and then we sold our place and moved to a hard time. I had 13 head of horses that we owned at ourColorado. We found out my dad had Parkinsons and moved house; riders, broodmares, and babies. Will was working aback to Wickenburg a year later. bunch to pay the bills and I had no one to step up and say, I know there are lots of barrel racers with one kid or nointo the barrel? I think not. A lot of folks have said kids. I respect that. You have to do you. Some families seemthis for years. I have seen folks picking up on the to be able to handle it all unscathed with dads helping andinside rein and not using their legs coming into the grandmas, aunts, and friends all in the middle of it. Theybarrel and the horse runs square into it. Then they seem to be doing an awesome job of raising those littlesay the horse is shouldering the barrel. Most times this is a miscommunication to the horse. The rider people. I just felt so stressed trying to get it all done well thatis saying turn and teaches that horse to turn or asVisit standleeforage.com/coupons to download offerI didnt think I was doing any of it well. I felt if I made goodsome folks call it drop a shoulder. In my book, horses but didnt make good kids that turned into goodthey are turning too soon and their front end starts adults then I wasnt doing the job of properly raising thethe turn too soon. A horse has to be taught to move little people God gave me. I felt my kids were too importantforward with all four legs while a person picks to me for me to not be the one raising them. I just didntup their hand and to keep moving their front end want to miss anything. I feel like society has dictated thataround the barrel. This should all be taught before both mom and dad need to be hard at it to keep the billsrunning barrels but can be taught later if you need paid so that has made it hard on a lot of families these days.to fix something that a previous rider has ingrainedCoupon required at time of purchase. Offer valid September 1 to October 31.in a horse. You can round a horses body coming I still train/sell horses, ride and help my daughter withinto the barrel with your leg and inside hand and her horses but I have also been at the soccer field, theshape them for the turn. They have to be taught swimming pool, the basketball court, baseball field, archeryto move forward while there is tension on the shoots, shooting range, track meets, hunting, camping, andbridle reins and leg pressure. You cannot change dance recitals over the past 15 years. Maybe some momsphysically the way a horse is made to pick up theirProud sponsor of:can do it all but I couldnt go after my goals to the extentshoulder. You figure out what works best but you that I always had. Maybe someday I will again but I wantcannot physically lift a shoulder on a barrel horse.to finish strong with our family. Right now I feel like I need 16 October 2020'