Youth exhibitor Matthew Barrackman of Las Vegas, Nevada marches to the beat of his own drum. The bright young man is competing in his last year of youth and searching for his first world championship. Barrackman has the backing of his supportive parents and talented mounts to help in his quest to succeed at the national level in the quarter horse industry.
The Nevada native is described by many of his close confidants as “one-of-a-kind” and he illustrated that recently when he decided to think out-of-the-box and train with the first person to ever give him a riding lesson, Rhonda Graff. About ten years ago when Graff met Barrackman, she specialized in training Arabians, but now the Las Vegas trainer says that she mainly has quarter horses in her barn.
“I really enjoy the people and the horses,” says Graff, who operates a horse training facility, Victory Lane, located in Las Vegas, Nevada. “I’ve had a lot of fun helping Matthew. I love the versatility of the quarter horses and their laid back nature. I knew immediately that Matthew had the spark and drive to succeed in this industry, and I enjoy working with him to improve his skills and become a better rider.”
Graff adds, “I also think horses give him a peace of mind and helps him relax from the stresses of school and everyday life. I hope we can even have a better year in the show pen in 2013.”
This year, Barrackman has an impressive lineup of horses. Matthew is showing his bay gelding, Relax Im Good (Rex) in the western riding, trail, and performance halter geldings; Amblin Impulsion (Jackson) in the youth western pleasure and non-pro western pleasure maturities; Potential Dooplicity (Andy) in the all-around events; and his new horse, A Whiskey Girl (Sophie) in the hunter under saddle futurities.
Barrackman told us that his favorite win so far in the show arena was in the Novice Youth Western Pleasure 14-18 with Amblin Impulsion at the 2011 Congress. Barrackman said that was the best ride he ever had on Jackson. The duo dominated the placings in the class and received three firsts and a second and beat out over ninety other exhibitors to take home the coveted bronze championship trophy. (Photo © Jeff Kirkbride)
“It is certainly a challenge having a trainer that doesn’t specialize in the western pleasure, but I think we have done very well considering. I’ve known Rhonda for over ten years, and I like the way my horses look when she prepares them,” says Matthew, who considers Rhonda a close friend. “My goals this year is to finish qualifying for the Youth World and to win a world championship at some point. I would love to win it in any event but my favorite events are the western riding and trail.”
What many people may not know about Matthew is that he also showed hunter jumpers while he attended boarding school at Fountain Valley School of Colorado. The recent high school graduate even won an IEA National Championship. Since graduating high school last May, Barrackman told GoHorseShow that he plans to attend San Diego State and major in International Business.
Barrackman recently remodeled MB Farms which is a gorgeous training facility near San Marcos, California right off the 15 highway. It features a 31 stall barn and two arenas.
“I decided I wanted to get more involved in the business aspect of the industry, and I am enjoying the challenge of learning more about running a training operation,” says, Barrackman who started this new venture about four months ago.
GoHorseShow wishes Matthew good luck this year with all his horses. Look out for him first at the Sun Circuit in Scottsdale, Arizona and then at all the rest of the major circuits across the country.
Click here to view his ad in the January issue of GoMag. Thanks to Kathleen Downs of Market Street Marketing for her help with this article!
