Money Well Spent

I can’t count how many times I’ve told a person that I am too “horse poor” and cannot splurge on a trip to Mexico with them, though I really really want to. Once in a blue moon, after board, feed and the farrier are paid, I might splurge and buy something nice for myself, but more often than not, I think, “No, I could pay off that vet bill with this money..” Below you will learn how barrel racers spend their money and weekends vs. normal people.

1) Normal people can afford to eat out at lavish restaurants; barrel racing horses groceries cost more than your own, but that’s okay, have you checked out how shiny her coat is? Do you know how great Ramen noodles are, or KD? With these low prices, we’re saving money if anything!

2) Normal people visit the salon and get pedicures once a month & possibly a new pair of heels; barrel racers spend $140 on a set of shoes every 4-6 weeks for their horses and resole their boots when they can feel the gravel poking through.

3)  Normal people sleep fairly regularly the month of December with holidays; barrel racers don’t sleep for two weeks during the Wrangler NFR cause the live feed is delayed and played ’til midnight, then we have to discuss everyone’s runs, and there’s no way we can sleep while we’re thinking about how fast our own horse would be in there.

4) Normal people have comfortable king size mattresses with silk sheets; barrel racers horse’s stall gets bedded with a couple $6.00 bags of shavings daily, while you sleep on a twin bed you’ve had since you were 6.

5) Normal people drive newer nice vehicles; Some barrel racers broke the bank buying the new rig, others are hauling with the old truck that makes a few noises and trailer from 1986. Either way, we’re getting to that rodeo!

6) Normal people go on an annual vacation; barrel racers don’t go on a vacation unless the horses can come with and there’s a few jackpots to enter where ever they’re going. Hello Arizona! Plus the whole summer is a vacation away from home. (What is a lake?)

7) Normal people buy expensive hair products; barrel racers use Vetrolin Shine or that pink liquid spray to keep their horses coats soft and shiny, plus the good feed and $100 supps, while we use $5 shampoo and conditioners every other day. Ball caps and dry shampoo cover the no-wash days.

8) Normal people buy nice houses; barrel racers spend their retirement money building nice barns and indoor arenas, or board at facilities with these luxuries, all while living in a cave.

9) Normal people go to the chiropractor when their back is sore; barrel racers have 3 vets, 1 massage therapist, 1 chiropractor, and 1 witch doctor on speed dial, but will drown an Advil Liquid Gel with a glass of rye, cause the Advil alone won’t do a damn thing.

10) Normal people buy new clothing on a regular basis; a barrel racers horse may have looked extra cute the other day, so they get a new Back On Track blanket, or new $500 saddle pad. You can never have enough!

11) Normal people have expensive hobbies like golfing or drag racing: Oh wait, if we didn’t spend all our money on our horse you mean there’s a whole new world out there with other things to do? Uhhhh… Oh look, a slot race to enter!

12) Normal people go out to the bar on weekends & take cabs home often sleeping in ’til noon; barrel racers are at a small town caberet stumbling back to their trailers to be up at 5am to feed, then get ready for 7am slack in the midst of “Monsoon June”.

13) Normal people might join a multi-level marketing company for fun; barrel racers join 5 different companies to sell all the things to everyone they know so they have enough money to enter every big money jackpot/rodeo all year.

14) Normal people go for a run, for their cardiovascular health; the only running barrel racers do is running after their horse if one got through the electric fence at 2am, or alternatively the only thing they run is their mouths.  (just joking – kind of)

15) Normal people buy expensive bottles of wine or whiskey; barrel racers know to stock up on beer when there’s a sale and that Canadian Club & boxed wine gets you just as drunk as the fancy stuff.

Do you have any to add? Comment below!

-Cass