January 15, 2010 Barbara Merrill and her horse Proud Red Pepper set an arena and standard pattern record at the Greg Olsen Memorial Derby.  It was held in Arizona at the Buckeye Equestrian Center.  Give it a watch here and see what you think.  Feel free to comment on what you think made this run so fast.

To me, I love how she is a quiet rider in both her body and hands.  The horse runs to his points and wraps the barrels in one smooth motion.  He looks happy and runs so smooth.   She is in control but stays out of his way.  Look how proud he is of himself at the end and walks flat footed into the arena full of confidence.  His trainer has done a great job of taking her time and grooming him into the confident champion he is.   Way to go Barbara Merrill and Proud Red Pepper!

Her record setting time was 16.653 the fastest time recorded previous to this was Jordan Peterson and Frenchmans Jester in October of 2008 with a 16.665.

Here is a video of that amazing run.  Smooth!

There isn’t a specific tip associated with this but I think it is important for all of us to see be reminded – if a time can be run, it can be beat!  This is what the fastest time in the world (on a standard pattern) currently looks like.  Who will raise the bar next!?

What do you think made these runs so fast?  What can you do in your programs to mirror these runs and bring yourselves ones step closer to your next championship?

If you are reading this off the facbook fan page, you’ll want to go to Free Barrel Racing Tips.com so you can watch the videos 🙂