CSU Ranch Horse Team

The Colorado State University Ranch Horse Team is a collegiate club founded in 2010.

The team consists of both riding and non-riding members of various riding backgrounds and skill levels. Although the CSU Ranch Horse Team as a whole is open to any CSU student regardless of major and equine background, we offer a points team that travels to and competes at shows locally, regionally and nationally.

The CSU Ranch Horse Team competes in Collegiate Stock Horse competitions consisting of ranch pleasure, ranch trail, reining, and cow work. To learn more about stock horse and the shows we attend, click here.

SUPPORT THE CSU RANCH HORSE TEAM!

Because the CSU Ranch Horse Team is a club organization with the university, we are reliant solely on donations and fundraising to operate. Your generous donations and our amazing sponsors are what allow our hard working team members to practice efficiently, travel to shows and pay their entry fees. From the bottom of our heart, thank you!

To learn more about our generous sponsors, click here.

What is a collegiate ranch horse competition?

Ranch Trail

“Tests the horse’s ability to cope with situations encountered in everyday riding. The horse is ridden through a pattern of obstacles which should nearly approximate those found during the course of everyday work. The horse/rider team is judged on the correctness, efficiency, and pattern accuracy with which the obstacles are negotiated and the attitude and mannerisms exhibited by the horse. Judging emphasis is on identifying the well-broke, responsive, well-mannered horse which can correctly navigate and negotiate the course.”

Cow work

“Non-Pro completes a traditional working cow horse pattern consisting of boxing, taking the cow down the fence and executing at least one turn in each direction, and then circling the cow in each direction. Riders have the option of roping instead of circling the cow.

Limited and Junior divisions demonstrate their ability to control a cow by boxing on one end, driving the cow to the opposite end and boxing on the opposite end.”

Ranch Riding

“Measures the ability of the horse to be a pleasure to ride while being used as a means of conveyance from one ranch task to another. The horse should be well-broke, relaxed, quiet, soft, and cadenced at all gaits. The horse should be ridden on a relatively loose rein with light contact and without requiring undue restraint. The horse should be responsive to the rider and make timely transitions in a smooth and correct manner. The horse should be soft in the bridle and yield to contact. The ideal stock horse should have a natural, levelheaded carriage at each gait.”

Ranch Reining

“Measures the ability of the stock horse to perform basic handling maneuvers. Each pattern is a combination of maneuvers and these maneuvers include stops, spins, rollbacks, circles, back up, hesitate, lead changes and run downs.”