My family lives on a small farm where we have 1 cow, 6 pigs, 5 horses, 7 rabbits, 1 dog and 3 cats.  I have two brothers, Jacob (some of you call him fly-spray boy) and Jesse (some of you call him…well, you just call him names), my mom (Heidi) and dad (Scott).

(Jesse with his tractor)


(Jake at BRF) 
 
I will be taking my driving test soon and I am hoping to be driving myself to BRF in the near future. 
I also enjoy hunting.   I got a buck this past hunting season. 



I am looking forward to the 2010 show season with Hershey and hope to make it to

~ MICHELLE VETOVICH ~

Hello, my name is Michelle and my love for horses, actually animals in general, started at a very early age.  When I was growing up, my pets consisted of hamsters, fish, birds (domestic and wild) cats & dogs.  Any injured animal that I came across, I tried to nurse back to health and the strays I would beg my parents to keep.

As far as horses go, I could only dream about owning one.   I made friends with as many horse people I could find and would drag them every weekend to the local stables to ride.  Every summer, my family would go to Clarion County and while they were off doing their own thing, I would  be on a trail ride.

I started taking english riding lessons 5 years ago. Part of that time, leasing a wonderful thoroughbred horse.  As much as I enjoyed sharing a horse, I knew I wanted to have my own.  I finally decided to jump in - I think I had my eyes closed.  After months of searching,  I stumbled upon a breeder in southern Ohio.  I fell in love with Lelah on the internet and MADE my husband drive the 5 hours to go see her.  A month later, she was mine!  I never set out to get such a young, untrained horse especially since this is my first and everyone thought I was crazy.  It has been a lot of work and we have a long road in front of us but I wouldn't change a thing. 

My husband is understanding and supportive although my teenage son is more interested in music and drums. 

Thank you Dan and Chris; it has been a great year at Blue Ribbon Farms!

Hi, My name is Gabriella. I am 9 years old.

I live at home with my mommy and daddy, Pam and Wayne, and my brother, Christian.

I love spending time with my family and going to Disney with them.

        
We have two dogs, Buca and Sir Prize, and loud Mollucan Cockatoo named Chico. I lease a pretty horse named "Her Heiress". Everyone calls her Quinn.

I am in 3rd grade and really like school. My favorite subjects are math and science. I like science experiments. I even practice them at home. I really want to travel to all the places I am learning about in school and meet new people.

When I am not in school I like to play with my friends. I am learning to play the piano and want to learn how to play the flute, too. I, also, play softball but my favorite activity is horseback riding. My riding instructor's name is Julie. I love her. She is really nice. I like everyone at the barn, too. I am making a lot of friends and I like to ride with them.

Quinn is my favorite horse. I think she is the prettiest horse at the barn. She likes me and I have fun riding her. We play follow the leader with my mommy. I like to give her carrots and apples as treats.

Last summer I started riding Quinn in horse shows and we won a lot of ribbons. I showed her in walk/trot pleasure and english equitation. Paige assisted me so I could ride in a barrel class, too. That was a lot of fun!

My most memorable riding experience was cantering Quinn for the first time. She was really fast and I rode her all the way around the arena. I have to keep working on my heels so I can learn to canter really good.

I love horseback riding!

My mommy and I want to thank Danny and Chris for letting us lease Quinn and ride and their barn. We are really happy at Blue Ribbon. Everyone is wonderful there. Thank you!

March 2010  
~ DEBRA MONZI ~

 

 

February 2010
~SABRINA PERILLI~

          My future goal on “T” is to place at the All American Youth Horse Show in Columbus, Ohio.

          I just love riding horses and I will continue doing it for a long, long time!

 

~CONNIE KORNER~

And when they run across the field I always stop---------and just watch them run.

---

November 2009
~MELAINA SWOGGER~

Age 9, 3rd Grade
Family
Dad - Greg, Mom - Jess, Brothers - Colton and Dillon

My Pets
Blue Heeler - Cowboy, 2 Cats - Emmy & Amber, Filly - Andie, We have 5 other dogs, 2 rabbits and 3 other horses.
Other Interests
Cheerleading, Beaver County Stockmans Club


My most memorable moment at the barn is when I first started to canter. I didn't listen to Dan and I though that I could canter Flight and I fell off and then got back on.
My biggest horse accomplishment was winning a silver plate at the State 4-H Horse Show for Small Pony Western Pleasure and showing at the Youth Show.
   
The horses that are important to me are Ebby and Flight. Ebby is important to me because she helps me do a lot of things and helps me learn more things. Flight is important to me because he was the first horse I rode Hunt Seat and he taught be how to be easy and kind.
I learned not to wear sandles around horses, never to say never, to pay more attention to what I am doing and how to take care of my stuff because my mom pays for it.
In the future, I would like to learn how to band and clip and I can't think of anything else right now.
Dan has taught me that as long as I do my best it doesn't matter what place I get, to never smack a horse and to have a good attitude and to practice.

October 2009

~COLLEEN KARNES~

~KRISTEN GREENAWALD ~
 

   

---

RIDER OF THE MONTH - July 2009

~PAIGE PRAWUCKI~

   

My name is Paige Prawucki.  I am 12 years old and attend Hopewell Jr. High School.  I will be going into the 7th grade.  My family consists of my father Jay, my mom Karen, older brother Zack, and my grandmothers Dorothy from Hopewell and Marilyn who lives in Georgia.  I also enjoy playing softball.  I have been riding for about 3 years.  The horses that have played a part in my equine experiences are Sunny which is the first horse I ever rode, Hershey is the first horse I got a ribbon with which was a first place in showmanship.  Reggie was my first show horse and I did really well on him, and last was Sonny who is my current show horse.  He does alot of disciplines and he is very good  at them.  He does western equitation, English equitation and pleasure, he jumps and he does trail.  My most memorable horse related moment was when I got my first blue ribbon in showmanship with Hershey. The three things I have learned are dedication, commitment and preparation.  You have to know all of these things to be a good showman.  Now that I know these three things I can use them for life, for softball and for school.  Horses have impacted my family because before I started riding we didnt know anything about horses and now not only have I learned alot about horses, my family has some knowledge about horses, and they also have to get up early to go to the horse shows.  My future plans are that I would like to place at the All American Youth Horse Show and I would also like to make it to States.  I would also like to say that at our Silver Spurs June Show that I took Steeler, a off the track TB, to his very first horse show and we got first place in walk-trot cross rails and fourth place in walk-trot equitation.

 

---

RIDER OF THE MONTH - June 2009

~BLAKE SIRKO~

My name is Blake Sirko. I am 13 years old. I have been riding horses for almost 3 years now. I am in 7th grade and go to Center Middle School. My family members are my parents (Laurie and Bob) and my sisters Jesse, Taylor, Madison and Quincy. My other interests besides horses include basketball and playing with my other animals.

The horses that have played a major part of my equine experience are Impulsive Miss Pine, Dzs Dakota and One Night Stand. Impulsive Miss Pine (Maddie) is a 5 year old chestnut Appaloosa mare with some roaning. Maddie excels in English and Western riding. One Night Stand (Hooker) is a 12 year old chestnut Appaloosa gelding who does just about everything!

Dzs Dakota has played such a huge part in my life and experiences. He is my very own gorgeous 15h red dun, 11 year old Appaloosa gelding. He does English and Western, but he is very good in Western riding so that is what I mainly ride him for. We p urchased Dakota in May of 2008 from people named the Henles. He is definitely worth every penny we spent on him. He has turned out to be a great, loving and awesome horse. Sadly, he is currently laid up and not going to be ridden for awhile because he pulled a flexor tendon in his hoof.

I have had many memorable moments on many horses. My most memorable experience on Dakota was amazing. We were at the County Show last year and I placed in all of my classes and qualified for the District Show. My most favorite memory on Hooker, which I will never forget, is when I took him to the All American Youth Hose Show recently and rode him in barrels and he ran beautifully. And, I didn't fall off! My most memorable moment on Maddie was also when I took her to the Youth Show and she performed outstanding.

I am going to show Maddie and Hooker in the summer shows this year. I will show Maddie in western events and I will show Hooker in gaming events.

I would like to thank Connie Korner for letting me use Maddie! I would also like to thank Dan McLaughlin for letting me use Hooker and ride his other horses while min gets better. I would like to thank my friends, family and the the BRF crew for supporting me in riding. I would also like to send a special thanks to Colleen Karnes, Katelynn Greenawald and Samantha Grimm for telling me not to be afraid to barrel race and just do it and have fun. If it wasn't for everyone at BRF and my family I would have never been able to ride a young horse and actually barrel race. Thank you so much for your support. I really appreciate it.

---

RIDER OF THE MONTH - May 2009
~KATELYNN GREENAWALD~

   

          My name is Katelynn Greenawald. I am 13 years old and go to South Side Area School. I am currently in 8th grade. My mom's name is Jen and my dad's name is Dale. I also have a younger sister named Kristen. My interests other than horses are basketball and drag racing. I have been riding off and on for the last 9 years.
            Some horses that have played a part in my equine experience include Vern (who was my very first trail pony), Hotroddin' Velentino (who was my first show horse), Deep Wave (my first barrel horse) Zip Like A Mercedes (the first western pleasure horse I have seriously ridden), and Affairs d'Etat (my off the track race horse that I am training).
            My most memorable horse moment was at our County 4-H show when I won my first blue ribbon in walk/trot english equitation.
            I have learned many lessons from riding horses, but my top 3 would have to be never to underestimate anyone, keep a positive, calm attitude no matter what happens, and always trust your riding ability and your horse's ability to perform. These 3 things apply to everyday life by reminding me that things change in the blink of an eye and happiness comes from trust and determination.
            My involvement with horses has shown me that my family will support me always and has brought us closer together.
            My future goals with horses will be to qualify for 4-H States and also to try hard and ride with pride everyday.
            I would also like to say that thanks to Dan, Chris and the rest of the Blue Ribbon Farm team, I have grown as a person and am now ready to face any challenge given to me.

 

---

  RIDER OF THE MONTH - April 2009
~SAMANTHA GRIMM~

Age 15 / 10th Grade

Family: Jeff, Angel, Nicole

Other Interests: Soccer

        I have been riding for almost seven years.

        There are many horses that have played a part in my equine experiences, but there are three that are very important to me. My own horse, Willies Starmaker, the first pony I ever competed on, Flurry, and the horse I qualified for states with, Shades of a Hustler.

        My most memorable horse related moment is when I qualified for the 2007 Pennsylvania 4-H State Horse Show. I qualified in Hunt Seat Equitation which is judged on the rider's performance.

        I have learned so much from the horse world. I have learned how the economy affects nearly everything horse related. This has increased my appreciation for my family having good jobs and that they care enough about me to pay for my horse and my showing. I also learned to never under estimate any other rider or their mount. The people with the most expensive equipment and horse don't always win.   Finally, I've learned how to be a sportsman. Winning isn't everything and as long as I practice and perform to the best of my ability, I have done well.

        These things apply to my everyday life in many ways. I pay attention to the state of the economy and the effects it will have on my family.

        I will never again underestimate anybody. Sometimes the people you pay the least attention to could become your best friend or toughest competition.

        Lastly, I will always do everything to the best of my ability. Whether in school or at the barn, I will always try my hardest.

        My involvement with horses has brought my family closer together. We now spend time together with our close friends at shows. This time together has spawned many great moments and memories.

        In the future, I would love to remain involved with horses when I go to college. I would like to participate on an equestrian team. I also wish to continue showing at least until I finish school.

      What Danny does for those of us who ride and train and Blue Ribbon Farms is unparalleled. If it wasn't for Dan and my parents, I wouldn't be showing or involved in 4-H. For that, I am terribly grateful to both Dan and my family.

I fell in love with horses at an early age growing up in Virginia.   I didn’t have a horse of my own then, but my parents faithfully drove me to the public stable to ride my first love, Blue River. He was a fine old school horse and I believed that I would never love another horse as much as I loved him.

Later   my family and I moved away to Maryland.   I fell in love with all my friends’ horses and rode as often as I could at the local stable and friends’ farms. Mostly we rode on the trails and entered small shows.
As an adult, I was finally able to buy my own horse and I fell in love with Brocato’s Chick, a lovely chestnut, quarter horse mare. Chick was very handy and liked it when we hunted with the Iron Bridge Hunt.

I also bought a quarter horse for my daughter, Ginny, after she outgrew her pony, Coco. Ginny and I had lots of fun riding together on Chick and Bo.

My granddaughter, Caroline, is a very good rider and it has been a blessing to ride with her as I did with her mom. I also love riding with my daughter-in-law, Lisa, when I visit her and my son, George, at their farm in Maryland. We are a very horsey family and never lack for conversation or gift ideas.

My next love was a thoroughbred gelding named Commander. It was short lived. He was very handsome, but he turned out not to be the wonderful horse that the horse trader said he was. He had a nasty habit of rearing and trying to rub me off on a tree every chance he got. We parted friends.

Then there was Impetuous, a large, chestnut thoroughbred/walking horse mare.   She loved to hunt and was real comfortable to ride for long periods of time. We had fun doing hunter paces and jousting tournaments. I was sure that I loved Pet more than all the rest.
One horse that I loved belonged to my friend and I rode him in the Marlboro Hunt Race- Relay Race. He was a thoroughbred named Skinny.   He was off the track and fast as the wind. Whew! What a horse!

When I moved to Pennsylvania, I was horseless for a few years until I met Roscoe. Now, I can honestly tell you that Roscoe is the horse love of my life. (I know! I have said this before, but this time it’s true!)   He is an all black Appaloosa and has the cutest face!   Roscoe has a personality like Dennis the Menace and loves being mischievous. We have been hunting for a couple of years now with the Saxonburg Hunt and Roscoe loves all the excitement of the chase and the hounds. We trail ride and do hunter paces, and just hang out together.   Every day is a good day for Roscoe.   He loves living at Blue Ribbon Farm where Dan and Chris take such good care of him and he gets   treats from so many of his friends.

I have had a different horse in each phase of my life, it seems – childhood, teen, young adult and mature adult and I have found that horses are wonderful to love in all phases of life.   I have found that each relationship with my horses was different, but all were special . They have all been my teachers. My horses have taught me to trust, know fear and courage, to show respect, recognize grace and fairness, have patience, and especially to keep my sense of humor. They have been there when I needed a teammate, a friend to hug, a pal to play with, or just a listening ear.

If you are at the farm, stop by and say hi to Roscoe. He will definitely make you smile.(He is real partial to peppermint treats.)

~Ann

My name is June Matusin and Danny calls me his “oldest” boarder.   We’re talking seniority here (just thought I’d add that tidbit).   I don’t remember exactly how many years it’s been, but I’m guessing Jess and I have been in Danny’s barn for at least ten years, first in Brighton Township and then the big move to Aliquippa.   I bred Jess to be a replacement for his older brother, Count Rage, who I lost in 2003, and who was a champion Arabian English Pleasure show horse.   But Jess was built to be a western horse.   He started his show career as a Halter Colt and in performance he was Western Pleasure.

Jess (registered name “Outragess”) was born in 1987 and was orphaned at three months of age.   At nine months of age, he almost died from double pneumonia and had to be admitted to a clinic to save his life.   The veterinary doctor treating him told me not to worry…Jess will pull through because Arabs are fighters.   I sure found out he was right in the years to come.

At two years of age, Jess had an accident in his stall and almost cut his leg off.   There was nothing left but cannon bone and tendon. But after six months of healing, he survived and eventually was back to normal, except for an ugly scar.

At age five, Jess collapsed in his stall with a serious colic attack.   I had to rush him to the same clinic that saved his life when he was a colt.   He had emergency colic surgery and survived that, however, he ended up with just about every complication possible after surgery.   First he foundered and then ended up with an internal infection, all while still at the clinic trying to survive his surgery.   The infection settled in his knee which blew up like a balloon.   Back to surgery to clean out the infection.   In fact, he had three knee surgeries to clean out the infection and one additional surgery to clean out scar tissue.   But the infection did its damage and ate away part of the bone in Jess’s knee joint.   Being lame for over a year, the person where I was boarding at the time told me I should put Jess down because he was dead to me anyway.   I told him that if any horse could survive this adversity, it would be Jess because I knew Jess had a huge heart and a strong will to survive.   Survive he did and he turned out to be a great trail horse for me.   I guess we showed that guy what Jess was made of.

Jess will be 22 years old this year and is lame again from an injury he sustained in 2008.   But I’m not going to give up on him.   Knowing his history, would you?