Five Minutes With... Top Western Trainer - Carolyn Johnson

by Jo Johnson

Carolyn riding imported stallion, Smoochin (photo: Crazy Horse Photography)

Anyone who is a fan of western showing will know Carolyn Johnson - we've all watched this extremely talented horsewoman compete on beautifully trained and turned out horses, at shows across Australia for several years now.  Carolyn is without doubt one of the most successful western performance trainers in the country, having won most big titles in the showing world, many times over.

When first starting out in western showing, I was privileged to live only a short distance from Carolyn and was lucky to get my early instruction on the fine art of western performance from this master of the discipline.

It is a pleasure to watch Carolyn train. She is a beautiful rider who is always calm and patient, not only with horses, but also with amateur riders.  She is friendly and her instruction is easy to understand - early training from Carolyn certainly helped me become addicted to the world of western showing!

To my detriment, but NSW's gain, Carolyn moved to Tamworth and in 2003 she purchased the 100 acre property at Country Road, where Rockin Horse Ranch is now situated.

Daughter Holly, who inherited all Carolyn's skills, and talented young trainer Kane Skopp (who joined the team in 2009) are also part of the Rockin' Horse Ranch team, making this one of the most formidable training teams in the country!

The Rockin Horse Ranch Team: L-R Kane Skopp, Holly and Carolyn, with Smoochin (photo: Crazy Horse Photography)

Rockin Horse Ranch (Carolyn Johnson Show Horses) specialise in training futurity and aged event horses and along the way have taken many amateurs and youth to National titles. Horses ridden and trained by Carolyn, Holly and Kane have won the prestigious NPHA 2 yr old Western Pleasure Futurity several times over the years, as well as many other big classes.

There was plenty of excitement for the team and indeed western breeders across Australia, in 2010, when Smoochin - a 2009 Red Roan Quarter Horse colt, imported from the USA - arrived at Rockin Horse Ranch.

After watching the Rockin' Horse Ranch crew in action at the recent NPHA Pleasure Celebration Show, I was extremely impressed with the smoothly oiled machine presented - considering how many horses they were showing.  Everyone worked well together, helping each other out and were more than happy to speak to anyone who popped in to have a look at Smoochin and admire the other equine stars, being shown by the Rockin Horse Ranch team.

I managed to grab a few moments with Carolyn at NPHA, (well, I followed her around while she carried out the many jobs involved with showing a large team of horses, including mucking out boxes, everyone on the team pitches in with all tasks!) and caught up with her again in recent weeks, to find out more about Carolyn, Rockin Horse Ranch and of course, the beautiful Smoochin.

Carolyn, How did you first become involved with horses?

My family have always been involved with horses, I had my first introduction to Western Pleasure and Cutting horses at King Ranch in Queensland.

Have you always worked with western bred horses?

Yes. I showed cutting horses for a long while, hopefully I will get back to that some time soon.

What do you love most about western horses and shows?

Most of my life has revolved around horse shows, some of the best times I have had are with the great friends I have met in the industry, good memories with a dash of success thrown in.

Smoochin IMP (photo: Crazy Horse Photography)

What are the attributes you look for in a good horse?

Confirmation, Movement, Attitude.

Which horse would you love to own?

I already own him “Smoochin”!

What goes through your mind as you enter the pen for a big class?

I just try to stay focused on getting my horse shown to the best of its ability, gain a good rail position, and hope all the training stays together.

What would you say is your greatest achievement to date?

I have had many successes in the show pen.  Importing Smoochin has been a huge achievement for me, we love the way he moves, but we just have to wait and hope that his progeny prove him the sire we believe he will be.

 

Tips for up and coming western showing competitors who want to succeed?

Lessons, lessons and more lessons – gain as much knowledge as you can from trainers.  Attend clinics. Learn as much as you can about training your horse and presentation for the show arena.

Tell us about the gorgeous Smoochin - why you chose him and what makes him so special?

He is a good type, very strong in the loin, has a great hock set.  His movement is so impressive, very flat kneed, soft when he hits the ground and slow legged. He has this natural drive from behind and stands his shoulder up when he lopes. A pretty picture – he’s a nice boy.  I hope that his movement will complement our mares and his bloodlines will be a valuable outcross to the stallions we already have here in Australia.

 

Holly wearing the beautiful 'Smoochin' designer jacket made by 'Showtime Show Clothing'  (photo: Ace Photography)

This will be Smoochin's first breeding season - everyone in the industry is very excited about that - who are some of the mares that will be getting in foal to him?

Yes we are on the countdown now, I don’t have the exact list of all the mares at this moment, but he has some of the most highly credentialed, well performed mares in the country being bred to him, along with a few imported mares. So needless to say, we are very excited to get this breeding season started!

You must be incredibly proud of Holly's achievements - you both work together so well - is there any mother daughter rivalry between the two of you?

Not at all, we are fortunate enough to have some beautiful horses in our stables, we just want to present them the best we can.  We usually decide who is showing what in the hunters, based on the horse's height and which one of us may look better on that particular horse – height wise.

Holly and Kane are currently in Queensland for the All Breeds Celebration Show and Quarter Horse State Championships - is this the first time they've been to a big show without you?

No, its not the first time they will be without me.  I have every confidence in their ability and professionalism to do the best they can. 

Goals for Rockin Horse Ranch in the future?

Keep producing well trained Aged Event horses, that our Amateurs can show and be successful on. Now that we are venturing into the breeding side of things, I look forward to building a broodmare band and raising some nice foals destined for the pleasure arena.

What would you be doing if you didn't work with horses?

Not sure on that one? I think I would always have a horse or two around me. Although an office job sounds inviting, especially in the middle of summer when we are out coping with 40 degree heat, dust and flies!

How do you relax?

Not much time for that, though I love visiting the coast or family and friends, watching a good movie and shopping!

Thank you so much for your time, Carolyn, and we're sure we'll see you and the Rockin Horse Ranch team heading the line up at the big shows again next year and look forward to Smoochin's first foals in 2012!

Quick Links

• Rockin Horse Ranch website.
• NPHA website.
• Horsezone's report on the 2011 NPHA Pleasure Celebration Show.
• Check out western breed horses for sale on Horsezone - Quarter Horses, Paints and Appaloosas.