Garman and 6 Jo’ MICHELLE RANCK Lancaster Farming Staff EPHRATA (Lancaster Co.) The one-week trip down South proved to be a good one. A great one, in fact, as on July 3, in Forth Worth, Texas, Noel Carman, Ephrata, captured a World Championship title at the World Championship Paint Horse Show, a competition of the American Paint Horse Associa tion (APHA). Years of hard work paid off for Carman and “Colonel Dakota Jo,” an 11-year old Quarter Horse gelding, as the pair turned in the best time to win the Novice Barrel Racing class. Barrel racing is a timed event as the competitors run a com plete a cloverleaf pattern around three barrets, “a right turn and two left turns,” said Carman. Approximately 2,000 entrants competed at the show, which at tracts competitors from the U.S. Canada, Germany, and Austral ia. Classes include Western, Eng lish, cattle, driving, and speed classes. “There are people from all over the country. I knew I was competitive at home but didn’t know where I stood there. I knew we had to give everything we had,” said Carman. Noel received a saddle from a first-place finish in re cent state competition. The ribbons are from the world championship title. Capturing the moment: Noel Carman rides back from collecting her ribbons and belt buckle for a world champi onship title in barrel racing at the World Championship Paint Horse Show. Mt’-rrf «*•* r i • * n « % W«r In barrel racing horse and rider either “blow wide” or “wrap” the barrels, and Jo’s ex pert wrapping of all three barrels helped to win the title, according to Carman. The pair competed in seven classes in different levels of competition. They also took home a first in amateur pole bending, another pattern class where horses run weaving pat tern around poles. Growing up on a dairy farm in Mount Joy, Garman enjoyed the horses her family owned to enter tain the family’s bed and break fast guests. “I rode as soon as I could,” she said although she was pressed into service with milking duties. “I just fell in love with horses and that was it, they (her family) had to make me get off,” she said. Her parents, Galen and Eileen Benner, supported her horse af finity, as her father would tack up the horse she would bring to him before she headed out on long trail rides around the 120-acre Rocky Acre Farm. When she was nine year old she got into barrel racing with her 4-H club. Saturday mornings in the summertime would find her riding along with one of her four brothers to another show. “Then when I turned 16 they wondered which of their trucks I Win World Championship Noel’s husband, Jason, accompanied her to Texas, along with both of their parents, her trainer, and the horse’s former owner. wanted,” she said. “I just did average, but I loved to ride. As long as I was with my horses, that was enough,” she said. “It didn’t really matter to me where I placed.” When Garman turned 17 she got in touch with a local lessons and got lessons to improve her competitiveness in the sport. With the addition of a compet itive horse, she made it to 4-H states, her first big event in the class. She took several years off for college and married Jason Garman, who was also interested in horses and competes in reining classes. “At that point we started pur suing a professional level of horses,” she said. “We knew that someday we wanted to get a well bred, well-trained horse.” Auction To Benefit Lebanon County 4-H LEBANON (Lebanon Co.) On Thursday, Aug. 2, the 20th annual Lebanon County 4-H Auction will be conducted to ben efit 4-H youth and adult leader education and leadership pro grams. Featuring items sure to appeal to the avid auction bidder, sale items include farm toys, handmade craft items, collecti bles, movie passes, gift certifi cates to area restaurants and businesses, specialty gift baskets and much more. The auction is a successful fund raiser for the county 4-H de velopment fund and organizers hope to raise more than $4,000 this year. The Lebanon County 4-H board of directors coordi nates the event and contacts more than 100 area businesses and crafts persons for donations. The auction includes special theme gift baskets assembled by the members of the county 4-H clubs and Farm Women Socie ties. Clubs have selected themes based on their 4-H projects such as dairy, horse, goat, or a more general theme such as a, “Wel come to the Community” or “Pennsylvania Products” Basket. The auction will be from 6 to 9 p.m. in the North Hall of the Leb anon Area Fairgrounds, Corn- s' £ I 1 . « .vrrr>"« • » ,~-rc s iv/: t■.v j r: ■> ssv. l l ft-'.'.** j r : vjfrt r