Horse show mom and occasional competitor, Lana Farley of Scottsdale, Arizona may only show once every decade, but she sure knows how to make it count. Seventeen years ago, Lana was the 1998 Reserve Congress Champion in Novice Amateur Western Pleasure with her daughter, Andrea’s legendary horse, Zippo LTD. For those who may not be familiar with LT, this now 28 year-old gelding is the second all-time point earner in AQHA history with over 5,770 points.
This past weekend at the Level 1 Championship in Las Vegas, Farley returned to the show pen after 17 years and won the Rookie Amateur Western Pleasure with her horse, Nothin But Certain (Fritz) who is owned by Susie Johns.
“We were all talking one day and the Level 1 Championships came up. We all thought about it for a week or so, and, after I rode Fritz, that was it, I had to do it. He is so much fun to ride. He is like a toddler – fun to play with and not to mention, an amazing mover and gorgeous, too. Susie Johns was kind enough to let me lease him. She is a great person who I am proud to call a friend.”
Lana reflects on what it was like showing again. “I wasn’t really nervous until the finals. I didn’t realize there were only a few horses left until the very end when there were only two horses left standing in the middle – including me. I really wanted to make Ryan (Kail) and Andrea proud of all their hard work.”
Lana’s daughter, Andrea, is married to trainer, Ryan Kail, and they have two children, Lane and Carter. Recently, Andrea has been through a rough battle with cancer, but, fortunately, she received favorable test reports right before the show, which also was a cause for celebration.
“Ryan had the idea of my mother showing at the Level 1 Championships. He thought it would be something fun for her to do since she would be coming to help with the boys anyway,” Andrea told us. “We also wanted a way to show her how much we appreciated everything she has done for us the last few months with my medical problems. She really stepped in, and we couldn’t begin to thank her enough. We just wanted to do something that was all about her!”
We asked Andrea if she was nervous watching her mother show.
“Nervous is an understatement,” Andrea says and laughs. “I’m pretty sure Ryan was about a hundred times more nervous than she was, and I was about a thousand times more nervous than that. I literally thought I was going to throw up. It really made me wonder how she watched me heart attack free all those years. It was so much more rewarding to see her win than any of my wins. I was literally balling; I was so excited, happy, and incredibly proud!”
Lana expressed her gratitude for both Andrea and Ryan’s help getting back into the show arena.
“I love them both and they are so patient when I ride. It was a little stressful because I know the long hours and time they put into the horses, and it makes me try harder,” Lana reveals. “It was an amazing horse show with my husband, both daughters, son-in-law, and both grandsons in Las Vegas to cheer me on. The only word is amazing.”
