Hattie Henderson works with Lady Impulsified before heading off to the World Western Dressage Championships in Guthrie, Okla. Courtesy photo

When Hattie Henderson, astride Lady Impulsified, steps into the ring today for the start of the World Western Dressage Championships in Guthrie, Oklahoma, she’ll not only be representing her Cambria County farm, but showing local 4-H’ers what can be achieved with perseverance, practice and patience.

After all, Henderson — an experienced horsewoman and riding instructor — was bucked off Lady Impulsified on the day she purchased the registered paint mare.

Henderson, a Westmoreland County native and current Ebensburg resident, has spent her life around horses and wants others to experience the same thrill she does every time she steps foot into a pasture or barn.

She and her husband, Tyler, own Bailey Hill Farms, where she provides riding lessons to about 40 kids each week.

“I grew up in the 4-H program (in New Florence),” Henderson said. “My husband and I spent several years looking for a farm and found this one here in Ebensburg. We bought it in 2020 and moved in later that year.”

Not only has Bailey Hill Farms given Henderson space to set up her own training facilities, it has provided space for the Cambria County 4-H program to flourish, as the program previously paired up with Somerset County.

“She’s a gift for our county in the fact that she and her husband chose to move and reside and start a farm in Cambria County,” said Christy King, whose daughter trains under Henderson.

Henderson’s greatest passion is to see children of all ages learn to ride and love horses.

“I get kids into horses, introduce kids to horses and teach,” she said. “That’s kind of my big thing.”

But when she isn’t busy teaching, Henderson enjoys competing, and that’s what she’ll be doing this week at the Lazy E Arena in Oklahoma.

“Dressage is just sort of my hobby on the side,” she said.

To get to the championships, Henderson had to compete in a qualifying show earlier this year and hit a minimum score. She also had to submit a video of herself riding before she was invited to the prestigious five-day event that runs through Saturday.

Lady Impulsified, now 11, had some issues when Henderson first purchased her.

“She actually bucked me off the day that I bought her,” Henderson said. “She had been through other programs with some other trainers that just didn’t work out.”

The horse appeared to lack a bright future due to her less-than-desired habits.

Henderson, though, saw the possibilities.

“I really liked her and scooped her up,” she said. “Then I found out she was really good at western dressage.”

Tough competition

Because she is paid to ride and to teach, Henderson competes as a professional, a harder bracket and division.

She’s believed to be the first person from Cambria County to ever participate at the World Western Dressage Championships.

Western dressage, while including classical dressage elements, pays homage to the heritage of the North American cowboy.

“The classical dressage is a very prescribed program of how to train horses to properly develop their muscles and ability to make them into elite athletes,” Henderson said.

With North American cowboys, there’s the Western heritage, she said. “Think of these cool cutting horses, these reining horses — like the cool horses on ‘Yellowstone,'” she said.

“(Western dressage) sort of combines those ideas with the European classical dressage and creates a discipline that focuses on developing the horse properly to be a handy working horse,” she explained.

Henderson will compete in different events during the competition’s five days, scoring points before a panel of judges.

“I’ll be showing every day,” Henderson said. “Within the level, there are four different tests, and they have it split up so I ride one each day. The tests do get progressively harder.”

She likened the program to a gymnastics competition in terms of how things are laid out.

“I would say it’s similar to gymnastics in how they kind of have a routine that incorporates a bunch of different skills and each skill is judged separately,” Henderson said. “The competition is split up into different levels — an intro and a basic level, then it goes from level 1-5. I am competing in all of Level 1.”

There are 20-25 different skills that riders demonstrate in the arena and each is scored differently then added up.

“It’s very standardized much the same way as gymnastics is,” she said.

While Henderson was looking forward to the competition, she waited until the last minute to leave for Oklahoma.

Tyler and her parents — who will be on hand to cheer her on during the competition — left Friday to haul Lady Impulsified to Oklahoma while Henderson stayed behind to be with the 4-H kids at their district events.

“She has made such a major impact in Cambria County for the 4-H horse program,” King said.

“So much so that … she is staying to coach 22 kids and 20 horses at districts in Bedford. Then she’s getting on a plane and making it to Oklahoma.”