Gig Harbor equestrian packs her bags for Kentucky

4-H student will represent Washington at Nationals

Susan Schell

of the Gateway

When Tavia Simpson first met Tasha, she had no idea that this spirited, mischievous horse would take her all the way to the 4-H Nationals in Kentucky.

“She was wild,” Simpson said of the dark bay Arabian Thoroughbred. “And huge. She was totally untrained and had barely been ridden. The people who had her before kept her as a pet and she was allowed to run free. But she has a great personality and she’s very sweet.”

The story of the Gig Harbor High School senior and Tasha is one of pure patience, perseverance and the special bond that can develop between a human and a horse.

Last month, Simpson competed with Tasha at the Western Washington State fair in Puyallup. She placed first with her Equine Public Presentation and will represent Washington state at the 4-H Horse Roundup in Louisville, KY.

Simpson’s mother, Sherry Stump, bought the horse for pleasure riding, but soon found that she was too much to handle. Stump comes from an equestrian background — her parents were involved in the thoroughbred racing industry. Nevertheless, Stump admits that years of city living made her “green” again when it came to dealing with difficult animals. When she had had enough of being battered and bruised, she let her daughter tackle the horse as a 4-H project.

“It was either that or I was going to sell her,” Stump said. “I just didn’t have time for all that.”

When the wayward animal was paired with the energetic, ambitious teenager, she found a kindred spirit.

Simpson is finishing high school while enrolled full time in the Running Start program at Tacoma Community College in Gig Harbor. She is involved with 4-H and knows exactly where she wants to go in life.

“That’s why we get along so well,” Simpson said of her horse. “She’s busy and she doesn’t like to stay still. We figured each other out, like our body language. We’re totally in tune with each other.”

Not that the journey was easy. Simpson suffered two broken ribs and injured her back before bringing her case to a higher authority. Her 4-H leader told her she had to spend at least two hours a day with the horse. She took that to heart and put everything she had into it. Working with the silent, strong animal was therapeutic.

“When she’s stressed out she spends time with Tasha,” her mother said.

The horse came to the family with the name “Pepsi.”

“We don’t like to change animals’ names,” Stump said. “But she didn’t look like a Pepsi.”

If it’s true that it’s all in a name, Tasha was transformed from a bubbly, sugar-injected drink marketed toward a youthful generation into something more sophisticated.

“It was a slow process,” Simpson said. “It was all about winning the small battles. But when I started working with her every day she began to turn around. She’s awesome now and her cues are perfect.”

The two eventually became so in sync, they went on to compete in county shows.

“When I’m riding I can tell what she’s going to do five steps before she does it,” Simpson said. “It’s so nice to be that in tune with someone.”

The two ended up competing at the state level in Puyallup and Tasha showed just what she was made of in the barrel racing, keyhole and figure eight competitions. She struck a pretty picture for the judges.

“She cleans up well,” Simpson said. “And she dropped a second in every show.”

The teenager explained that state fair competition is based on a point system and that even a fraction of a second faster in races can make a big difference. Only seven students from Pierce County made it to the state level.

It was Simpson’s equine presentation that put her over the top. She gave a speech on equine infectious anemia, EIA, also called swamp fever.

“It’s related to the HIV/AIDs virus and goats can get it as well,” she said. “I just want to spread the word about this. Everyone can help and do what they can to keep it from spreading.”

She will be giving this same presentation in Kentucky and has also had the opportunity to practice the speech again in front of her 4-H members. She said she’s not particularly nervous about giving the presentation.

“I’m just going to go with it,” she said. “This is something I really like doing, talking to people.”

“The 4-H puts a high level of importance on education,” Stump said. “That’s what they shoot for. They can utilize the skills they learned here in other parts of their life.”

Simpson studied under an internship with Dr. Larry Castle at the Deschutes Animal Clinic. She plans to go into human medicine for job security reasons, but said her long-time goal, not surprisingly, is to be an equine veterinarian.

Simpson is not sure where the presentation in Kentucky will lead, but hopes college recruiters will be on hand to take notice of her talents. But whatever happens down the road, she will be able to look back at how she got there —with patience, commitment, love and the help of a special friend.

Simpson’s goats place at fair

Tavia Simpson also showed her two goats, Teagan and Tribute, at the Puyallup Fair. Teagan was named Best Nigerian Dwarf in Washington State.

Reach Lifestyles Coordinator and reporter Susan Schell at 253-853-9240 or by e-mail at susan.schell@gateline.com.