What does it take to win on the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) circuit? Hard work, guts, and a few good horses. And for Jackie Ganter, a family connection to the sport of barrel racing helps, too.
Jackie’s mother, Angela, is also a competitive barrel racer, but as a kid, Jackie took a different path and competed in English riding. That changed when she was 12 years old and decided to try running barrels.
At age 18, Jackie reached her goals of qualifying for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo and winning Rookie of the Year, and she has no intention of slowing down. Today’s video shows some footage of Jackie, her horses, and her family, as she shares the story of her rise to the top at a young age.
Learn more about Jackie Ganter’s journey in her interview with Red Bull here.
Leslie Potter is a graduate of William Woods University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Equestrian Science with a concentration in saddle seat riding and a minor in Journalism/Mass Communications. She is currently a writer and photographer in Lexington, Ky. Potter worked as a barn manager and riding instructor and was a freelance reporter and photographer for the Horsemen's Yankee Pedlar and Saddle Horse Report before moving to Lexington to join Horse Illustrated as Web Editor from 2008 to 2019. Her current equestrian pursuits include being a grown-up lesson kid at an eventing barn and trail riding with her senior Morgan gelding, Snoopy.
Awesome, congrats Jackie!
What a great accomplishment! Ride On!
Congrats Jackie, love your horses!
Continued success young lady! Love your horses!
Congrats! Love that Palomino!
Nice work, congratulations! Continued success!
Quite an accomplishment young lady. Keep up the great work!
Congrats, very impressive! Keep up the great work!
Great success story, keep up the great work young lady!
Very nice accomplishment and determination on you part young lady! Keep up the great work!
Read along for a look at each horse competing in the 2024 Kentucky Derby. In…
Thanks to a rail down by overnight leader Tom McEwen (GBR) on the 13-year-old German…
In a day of heat, then rain, followed by blazing sun, the sun indeed shone…
Tom McEwen of Great Britain had a big day under beautiful skies at the Kentucky…
It’s almost summertime—there’s more time to ride and more time to spend outside with your horse. Unfortunately, the warm weather…
Welcome to Barn Banter, the official podcast of Horse Illustrated. In Barn Banter episode 19, hosts Susan Friedland and Horse Illustrated…
Mark Bolender is a busy guy… Mark and his wife, Lee, owners of Bolender Horse Park, are the founders of…
For beauty expert Jessica Andrews, equestrian underwear designed to flatter, fit and offer comfort to women in the saddle just…
Post-workout leg care can be as hot-button a topic as blanketing among horse owners. Some riders cold hose, wrap, and/or…
Welcome to Horse Illustrated’s weekly installment of the Right Horse Adoptable Horse of the Week, offered in partnership with the…