4-H Equestrians Learn Life Lessons

Enlarge Image Image Gallery The Stars N Steeds Senior Equestrian Drill Team courtesy Lou Ann Biggers

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The horse tosses his head and looks at the crowd. This definitely is not Willard, Missouri. He snorts and paws the pavement. The boy at his side pats his neck to calm him. Fifteen other young riders, all in matching costumes, are doing the same for their mounts.

It is January 20, 2005, in Washington, D.C., and the event that has this mounted drill team full of excitement is the Presidential Inaugural Parade. The Stars N Steeds Equestrian Drill Team was selected to be one of two Missouri groups in the parade, out of 1,500 that applied. The start signal is given and, in one motion, the young riders mount, adjust their flags and ride forward. As they pass the presidential podium, nobody beams with more pride than their coach standing on the sidelines. Almost a decade earlier, Lou Ann Biggers single-handedly started this grassroots 4-H equestrian group.

Near tragedy spurs action

A few years earlier, Biggers had seen two young riders almost come to tragedy during a flag ceremony at a local 4-H fair. "They smacked the horses on the rump and sent them into the arena at a gallop holding flags aloft," she says. "About 100 feet into the arena, the horses were spooked by the loud music and noisy crowd. They turned and ran out of the arena with the little girls hanging on for dear life. It took six people to catch those horses. I'd been teaching riding for years, and I decided right then that I could prevent something like this from ever happening again. I got the fair manager to allow me to take charge of that part of the show."

Biggers recruited four children who were taking riding lessons at her stable and her two children, Amber and Matthew; all were 4-H members. The small group started by simply getting the horses used to flags fluttering around their ears. Soon they added music.

"It's not enough just to love to ride," Biggers says. "Being part of a group takes work. There's a lot to learn." The group learned synchronized routines to two songs, Garth Brooks’ We Shall Be Free and the National Anthem.

At the 4-H fair the following year, the team rode into the arena and performed a synchronized routine and presented their flags. "There wasn't a dry eye in the house,” Biggers says. “People came up and congratulated us on being such a good drill team. Then offers started coming in from shows and fairs asking us to perform. It was quite overwhelming."

Word spread and more children asked to join. The group grew, and routines became more intricate. The group entered national competitions for equestrian drill teams in Texas and won the Color Guard Division, the Rodeo Division and took reserve place in the Theme Division.

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