Equestrian Drill Team Prepares For Halloween Festival At Warner Springs

Equestrian drill team practices approximately 6 to 10 hours each week.

By E.A. Barrera

Janet Worts loves horses. The Mission Bay High School alum may have liked surfing and beach life while growing up, but she always had an affinity for horses and preferred the saddle to the long board when given the chance to choose.

“I was 10 years old when I got my first horse. We boarded her out in Alpine and it was what I enjoyed. When I was in my teens I worked on a ranch in Descanso. What can I say — girls like horses. It’s romantic,” said Worts.

She went to college in Northern California, but eventually came back to San Diego County, where she became part owner of the historic Warner Springs Ranch. A competitive endurance horseback rider, Janet is now working with a team of young ladies to form the Warner Springs Ranch Equestrian Drill Team. The goal of the effort is to train the young girls (ages 12-17) to eventually compete in state fairs, competitions and rodeos.

“We’re still forming and right now we’re focused on training for the ranch’s Halloween show. But I would love to eventually see these dedicated girls compete elsewhere,” said Worts.

The equestrian team currently has six girls and they train approximately six to ten hours each week, according to Worts. The girls all own their own horses, though the ranch can provide horses when necessary.

Current drill team: Jackie Worts (team captian), Alisa Amaral, Lauren Biedenharn, Sara Islas, Danielle Nisan, and Madison O'Mara. To be a member of the drill team girls must demonstrate proficiency and control at the four gaits; walk, trot, canter, gallop. Team members must also be ranch owners, children of ranch owners or employees of the ranch.

“It’s tough to schedule because so many of the girls live in Los Angeles or San Diego city,” noted Worts. “But we are doing it and the efforts so far have paid off. The girls are becoming much better riders. They are learning how to control the horses and get them to do what they want. There are a lot of stunts and galloping featured in the routines and that takes practice.”

One of the skit’s the team has already performed is a vaudevillian number where an outlaw tries to steal one of the girl’s horses, only to be roped and caught by the other members of the team. Worts noted that in order to get to a point where such a skit works, the girls sped a lot of time desensitizing the horses to the crowds and loud noises that come during a performance.

“That’s maybe the hardest part — getting the horses to work together — finding horses that will be compatible with each other. The girls work very hard on this and part of my job as the teams coach, is to find horses that will be suited for this type of entertainment,” said Worts.

Once a stop along the Butterfield Overland Stagecoach route, Warner Springs has evolved over the years around the ranchs celebrity as a vacation spot for the rich and famous. Presidents such as Ulysses Grant and Theodore Roosevelt have visited the ranch during its 125 year history, along with such famous American and international icons as Kit Carson, Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin and John Wayne. The resort hosts an 18-hole championship golf course and 240 private bungalows.

Worts said that in addition to the annual Halloween carnival, where the equestrian team will perform, the ranch is scheduled to host a 50 mile endurance race sponsored by the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC).

The race is scheduled for the first weekend in January 2006. For more information on the Equestrian Team or any other activities at Warner Springs Ranch, contact them at www.warnersprings.com or by phone at (760) 782-4200.

Photos courtesy of Warner Springs RAnch.