I apologize for getting this to you a little late, but it has been pretty hectic. We are winding down our Horse Owner Workshops for the spring, but still have some good ones scheduled in the next few weeks. Make sure that you plan to attend our 2nd Annual Million Dollar Reining Clinic with Brent Wright and Dell Hendricks, on May 29th, 30th, & 31st at the Kansas ExpoCentre in Topeka, KS.. On Friday night, May 29th, we plan to have a special Horse Owner Workshop with 20 riders competing in a Jackpot Reining and each ride being critiqued by Brent and Dell immediately after their run. For information about this clinic and HOW meeting, you can either e-mail me or give me a call at 785/418-6047. Also, you won’t want to miss out on the Saturday night festivities with a great steak dinner and entertainment.

There is still time to sign up for our 2nd Annual Spring Dream Ride in the Flint Hills which will be next week, May 1st, 2nd, & 3rd at the Flying W Ranch near Cottonwood Falls, Kansas. We plan to have around 40 at this ride and this ride has proved to be one of the best. Great new rides through new pastures, great education, great entertainment, great food, spending great time with friends, and making new friends are all planned for the ride next weekend. Give me a call or e-mail and make plans to come out and join us. Call me at 785/418-6047 or e-mail me at ernest_rodina@purina-mills.com .

Congratulations to Purina Reining Ambassadors, Shawn Flarida, Craig Schmersal, Brent Wright, and Matt Mills for their performance at the NRBC last week in Katy, Texas. They all sewed up 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, & 7th in the Open Finals; and Matt Mills also took Reserve Honors in the Intermediate Open. Great job! Also congratulations to Joe and Cindy Johnson on the performance of their horse, The Sargeant Dunnit, ridden by Matt Mills.

If you are looking for something to do this weekend, you are invited to stop by R&D Stables in Topeka this Saturday, April 25th, for Purina Influential, Cindy Branham’s Open House. Also, Cal Middleton, will be having an Open House at his facility on Sunday, April 26th, just located north of Smithville, MO. We are sure proud to be hooked up with them.

Our Summer Edition of Better Horses Network will be coming out the first of June. If you are interested in advertising in this paper contact me at 785/418-6047 or e-mail me at ernie@betterhorsesradio.com. The deadline for ads is May 13th.

Better Horses Radio has been a blast, and we want to thank our guests for making it a success. You won’t want to miss the show scheduled to be aired on May 9th & May 10th. We plan to have Eldorado Kansas native and up and coming singer, Rusty Rierson, make a special presentation to Elsie Frost, mother of the late bull riding champion, Lane Frost. Plans are also to have George Michael, the host of the great show from a few years back, The Sports Machine.

Purina’s new Omolenes are beginning to hit the market. These products, along with the improved Equine Senior and Equine Junior are unbelievable. Go to the new website www.purinadifference.com to learn more about them and sign up for the trial program.

I want to thank you folks for letting me share my newsletter with you. You are the best! Let me know if I can ever be of any help to you.

April

April 25-26 1^st ANNUAL KANSAS CITY SHOOTOUT, Lone Wolf Arena, 22801 State Line Road, Cleveland, MO. Cowboy action shooting -- the Oklahoma-Missouri-Arkansas Moutned Shooters of America. April 25^th starts at 1:00 pm. April 26^th starts at 10:00 am. For more information, Click Here.

May

May 1-3 2^nd ANNUAL SPRING DREAM RIDE IN THE FLINT HILLS, Flying W Ranch, Clements, KS. We will be riding on new pastures and ranchland. Singer, Rusty Rierson, and his band will be entertaining Saturday night. Last year's first Spring Ride proved out to be one of the best. Call Suzan Barnes at (620) 273-6763 to register and for more information. For Ride details, Click Here.
May 1-4 PETER CAMPBELL CLINIC: Foundation Horsemanship & Horsemanship II / Ranch Roping Clinic. SouthWest Arena, Archie, MO. One session $475.00 for 4 days if paid in full before April 24, 2009. After April 24, $525. Auditing per day, $30 at the door. Click Here to view flyer. Click Here for additional Clinic details and registration form.
May 2 FIRST ANNUAL LARRY BOGART MEMORIAL DAY, Topeka Round-Up Club, 7843 SW 37th Street (1/2 mi. east of Auburn Road), Topeka, KS. In honor of a great cowboy and even better man! Proceeds will go to American Cancer Society and the Topeka Round-Up Club. Join us and his family to remember Bogey. (Negative Coggins required) Fun Show at noon, 3:00 pm Trail Ride, Barn Dance! Spread the word and invite your friends and neighbors. For more information, contact Jami (785) 845-5052. Click Here to view/print flyer.
May 2 RED HATTERS ON HORSEBACK, Misty River Stables, Independence, MO. 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Red Hats & Purple Chaps -- you are welcome to come learn about the group. Women of all ages, with or without horses, are invited. Come join us! $20 per horse/rider, no charge to audit. Please e-mail rhpcmo@gmail.com to register in advance. Website: www.redhatsandpurplechapsmo.com. Click Here for more information on our organization.
May 2 KANSAS STATE HORSEMAN'S ASSOCIATION 5^th ANNUAL WILDCAT CLASSIC OPEN FUN SHOW, CiCo Park, Manhattan, KS. Registration opens 9:00 am; Show starts 10:00 am. For more information, contact Dr. Joann Kouba (785) 532-11240. Click Here for detailed flyer. Click Here for Horse Show Sponsorship Form.
May 9 FAMILY CENTER TRAIL RIDE, 10:00 am, Hillsdale Lake in KS. $20 advance, $25 day of ride. Price includes ride, dinner and raffle. Raffle includes prizes donated by Purina Equibrand, Farnam, Weaver and more! Grand prize is an HR Roping Saddle from Family Center. Sign up at any Family Center location or call Kimberly or Stacy (816) 884-6100 for more information.
May 9 POSTPONED! PLAN TO RE-SCHEDULE IN FALL -- BENEFIT TRAIL RIDE FOR WOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT, southeast of Manhattan, KS near the Alta Vista area. Details will be distributed later in the year. Any questions, call Raye (785) 527-2052.
May 29-31 PURINA MEGA HORSE OWNER'S WORKSHOP EVENT / 2^ndANNUAL MILLION DOLLAR REINING CLINIC; Lone Wolf Ranch Arena & Training Center; 22801 State Line Road, Cleveland, MO; Friday, doors open 6:00 pm, HOW Event Program begins 7:00 pm. Reining Clinics held Saturday and Sunday. Brent Wright & Dell Hendricks; Limit 22 Riders (10 already signed up); call Ernie at 785/418-6047; evenings-785/242-8748 or e-mail ernie@betterhorsesradio.com.
NOTE CHANGE FOR REINING CLINIC LOCATION: The Reining Clinic has been moved to the Kansas ExpoCentre in Topeka. KS.
Click Here to view flyer for more detailed information.
May 30 SADDLE UP FOR ST. JUDE CHARITY TRAIL RIDE, BBQ, SHOOTING RANGE - Saddle & Sirloin Club, 144th & Holmes, Kansas City, MO. 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm. To register, contact St. Jude coordinator, Melissa Andrasik at mandrasik@vseckc.com. Click Here to view flyer. Click Here for additional details on this event.

June

June 6-7 OPEN RANGE HIGH SCHOOL RODEO, Ransomed Heart Ranch, 204 East Casey Road, Lone Jack, MO. This is a sanctioned high school rodeo! Saturday at 2:00 pm and Sunday at 10:00 am. There will be a HUGE turnout with many vendors, activities and even a killer band for the Saturday evening dance! Admission: $10 adults, $5 ages 6-12, Free for 5 and under. For more information, go to: www.openrangefellowship.com.

Missouri Mule and Donkey Circuit

For MMDC 2009 Show Dates, Click Here. Website: www.mmdc.ws

Missouri Rawhide Mounted Shooters

        For 2009 Competition Schedule, Click Here.

Hartville Saddle Club - 2009 Gymkhana

        3rd Sunday of each month -- April thru October. Gymkhana is a meet at which riders and horses display a range of skills and aptitudes. Starts at 2:00 p.m.
        For more information, contact Debby (417) 464-9003 or Janelle (417) 741-7924.   For more details, Click Here -- or visit website at www.justasplashofpaint.com.

Pro Rodeo Hosted Day Camp for Youth -- Kids Get a Lesson in Rodeo 101

Kids in Oklahoma had a chance to learn more about rodeo early this month. The ProRodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) hosted a camp on April 10-11 for prospective bareback and saddle bronc riders at the Crosstie Arena in Hinton, OK. Click Here to view article.

LISTING EVENTS IN OUR NEWSLETTER -- If you are an organization or business who would like to list your event in our Calendar Section, click on the Event Listings box above for rates. Then contact Jo Ann Riggs at e-mail address listed with your request.

CLASSIFIED AD LISTING -- If you are interested in a Classified Ad listing, click on the Classified Ad box above. Rates and placement information is located directly below the box. Simply click on "please click here." Be sure to check our Classifieds each newsletter as ads are changing all the time.

NEW CATEGORY FOR WEBSITES -- Due to many requests for website listings, we have a new section in our Classified Ads called WEB LINKS. Check this section from time to time as we add website links that may be of interest to you. Enter our Classified Ads and click on Web Links, then click on the name listed and you will be taken directly to that party's website.

Our subscriber list has grown to over 8,600+ recipients -- almost entirely horse-owning households!
Our ad and event services are a great way to reach those people!

When you are riding with others, always ride at the lowest level of who is riding with you. What this means is if they feel more comfortable riding slow, then you ride slow.
Never run back or hurry in going back to the camp. Your horse will be anticipating this and develop a bad habit when you are returning back to the camp.

Help make riding a great experience for the entire group, always help your buddy.

Spring is here, and here's a great treat for your horse -- or they make wonderful gifts for your neighbor’s horse!

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup light karo syrup
1 cup water
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla

Cook first three ingredients to medium-crack stage (280^o by thermometer). Add salt and vanilla. Stir into sweetfeed. Grease hands and shape mixture into balls.
Place on wax paper to set. Wrap in colored cellophane and tie with a bow or twine as a special gift for a friend's horse!

Please notice our inclusion of the Share button shown above. The Share button (powered by AddThis.com) makes it easy for you to bookmark and share the content of this newsletter with others who might find it of interest. Just clicking on this button makes sending an e-mail link to a friend a breeze or bookmarking this copy of the newsletter with any of the social networking services almost as easy as falling off a log!

We at Better Horses Network would love to hear any questions, comments or suggestions you might have, and we are always looking for items to add to this publication. To contact us, please send an e-mail to Ernie.Rodina@agbusinessmail.net.

For Classified Ad placement, please send an e-mail to JoAnn at JoAnn.Riggs@agbusinessmail.net .

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