Male VO: Welcome to Equestrian Nation.
(Dramatic music)
Male VO: There was a time when one man
had an American dream, that he would build a farm.
[Music]
Male VO: He would sow seeds and
produce plants for health, and wellness.
[Music]
Male VO: The farm would breed and
cultivate magnificent horses.
And other horsemen from around the land
would bring their magnificent
horses to the farm for a competition.
[Music]
Male VO: But the competition wouldn't stop there.
World champion cowboys would also come
to the farm to compete in a rodeo,
as the last chance to qualify for the
national finals rodeo in Las Vegas, Nevada.
[Music]
Male VO: The dream farm would host
jousting tournaments, where even young men
and women would learn the
centuries' old sport of jousting.
[Music]
Male VO: The dream farm would also
have many other animals, all sorts living there.
[Cow moos]
Male VO: They would celebrate different
cultures and entertain the guests
with legendary American music icons.
[Music]
Male VO: People from all over the world
would come to the farm to see the plants,
animals, and competition, and they'd
experience the reconnecting of their
inbred spirit to their truly human roots,
and disconnecting from the dependence
of the cold world of technology.
[Phone shatters]
Male VO: The man with the dream is
Gary Young, and he built his dream farm
in the great state of Utah.
[Music]
Male VO: Welcome to the Young Living
Family Farm in Mona, Utah,
and the Second Annual Young Living Draft Horse Show.
[Horse whinnies]
[Country music]
Female VO: The Young Living Draft Horse Show
features 12 hitches of heavy draft horses,
shires, Clydesdales, Percherons and
Belgians all compete in the traditional hitch
classes for a chance at the $90,000 in prize money.
From the one-horse cart classes to the team
unicorn and four, six, and eight horse
hitch classes, this is a sight to behold.
But this show a little different from other
draft horse shows because there are all-breed
classes open to ponies, mules
and light driving horses.
Anything that pulls a cart or a wagon.
[Majestic music]
Gary Young: You know, last year we had
people tell us "You knocked it out of the park,
how could it be better than this?"
And this year it is better.
[Majestic music]
Female VO: This draft horse show PRCA Rodeo,
and fall harvest, is held at the Young Living
Family Farm in Mona, Utah.
It's one of the farms where Young Living
Essential Oils grows and harvests plants
to make their pure, authentic essential oils.
Young Living has a deep partnership with nature,
and nowhere is that more evident than here at the farm.
[Majestic music]
Female VO: It's hard to imagine that the rugged
landscape of central Utah would embrace
the quiet and sweet-smelling lavender fields,
but it does, to everyone's delight.
1400 acres of fragrant herbs, a cool reservoir,
pristine natural beauty, and fresh mountain air
create a family destination of pure peace and relaxation.
[Majestic music]
Female VO: The draft horse competition
is fiercely competitive, and for the few minutes
they spend in the showroom, it takes hours
of labor-intensive preparation.
Bret Fielding: Because usually if it's a Belgians
or Percherons, they're just rinsing horses.
We're scrubbing feather every morning,
seven o'clock, scrub feather, get 'em clean,
get 'em wiped, get 'em pretty for the show.
Brian Lynch: Washing a Clyde is like washing
two Percherons, easy. Easily.
So the is a lot of preparation that goes into
getting the feathered breeds.
It's a lot of work.
Female VO: First into the show ring is the Open Unicorn Class.
Brian Lynch: A unicorn hitch you definitely
want a horse that is a true lead horse out there.
A lot of times they're not as bold out there,
and you do like that horse to be
bold and lead that hitch.
Just a slight bounce in his trace.
But you like 'em to be very animated out there.
Female VO: The winner of the Open Unicorn Class
is the Mark Messenger Memorial Hitch
with Brian Coleman, driver.
[Music]
Female VO: Now take a look at the Men's Team Class.
Brian Lynch: But I am a stickler for a team
being a team.
You want two horses that really, really
match well, and work together well.
Female VO: Scoring first in the men's team
competition are the Meadowlake Belgiums
with Casey Russell riding.
David Cunningham: Well, I mean it's a lot of validation,
right, for all the work, and this is a very competitive –
for us, at least on the West Coast,
a very competitive show.
You have some fantastic hitches here.
I mean you have Messengers who just
won the Classic Series.
So to be able to place anywhere in a
show like this, you have to feel pretty happy about that.
Female VO: And here comes the Ladies Cart Class.
Young Living Percherons takes the
Ladies Cart Class with Chyrah Bussian driving.
Coming out now, this is the Amateur Cart Class.
Male VO: A lot of times the amateurs is for
the folks that haven't gone on all the open
classes yet, but maybe, you know,
for crew members that, you know, aren't a junior,
it gives them a chance to have a class of their own.
Female VO: And the winner of the Amateur Cart Class,
the Eagle Rock Belgians, Rhett Thornely at the reins.
All Breeds Pleasure Driving with single pony,
mule, or horse taking center stage.
Male VO: We had everything from a Clyde
or a shire in there right down to a mini.
So it was a little switch of gears a little bit.
But your pleasure criteria is a little different
than what you're looking for in your hitch.
You're looking for a horse basically
to go on that Sunday drive with.
Female VO: Taking first place in the All-Breeds
Pleasure Riding Class, Mickey Faulkner
driving this bay Clydesdale.
[Upbeat piano music]
Female VO: Time for the Junior Team Contest.
Steve Gregg: Again, judging those type of
classes it's about the driver.
I mean obviously a nice big really good pair
of horses can't hurt. It's about the driver,
the way they handle 'em, and the way they
handle the lines, the way they sit, the way they,
you know, basically handle their horses.
[Upbeat piano music]
Female VO: And winner of the Junior Team
Competition: Yoder Family Hay Company
Percherons driven by MaryAlice Yoder.
Enos Yoder: Awesome. It tells me I'm a
better trainer than a driver. [Laugh]
Because they bring in more.
They brought in more blue than I have.
So that's all... it's about the kids.
If they're having fun, we're all having fun, you know?
And they do so much of the work here.
[Dramatic music]
Female VO: Young Living's jousting stadium
is one of the premier jousting venues in the world.
There is a steadily growing interest in this
challenging event that takes you back in
time to the middle ages, and actually lets
you feel the experience of this rigorous contest.
Young people are learning the art of jousting.
And for the first time at Young Living's jousting
stadium, a female is competing at this event.
[Dramatic music]
Marquise Faucett: I've had a lot of people
just say that was really neat that a girl can do it.
And they think I'm crazy. [Chuckles]
[Music]
Gary Young: You know, this is not something
that's just isolated to men.
But women have an equal opportunity.
The other thing is I heard a lot of women say,
"I would never do that."
But it inspires me to see that a woman can do it.
[Medieval music]
Marquise Faucett: And hearing that shatter
of the lance is like the coolest thing you can –
you just get this feeling inside,
you're just like, I did it.
And I'm still on the horse.
[Medieval music]
Female VO: One of the young men who
is getting quite good at this medieval
sport is Gary's son, Jacob Young.
Gary Young: He's a natural horseman.
He's set up on that big Percheron mare of mine.
She's 18 and a half hands high.
Two thousand pounds.
She runs like the wind.
And he just sits there just like he was
born on that horse.
And...
it made Dad proud.
[Medieval music]
Gary Young: My younger son, Joseph,
he did the spears and the rings the second
day on a Haflinger same way.
He sits in the saddle like he was born in the saddle.
And it does, it makes Mom and Dad really proud.
Female VO: Don't go away, more from the
Draft Show coming up.
Female VO: There's nothing like a high-spirited
rodeo, and Young Living's new rodeo facility
takes you there on a first-class ticket.
Gary Young: We brought in some of the top
consultants in the industry to help us,
to structure and set up our shoots and our pens
and moving our animals when the trucks
come in to unload.
When they load to leave.
Everything just flowed absolutely perfect.
Female VO: It's a PRCA Rodeo destination.
The last one where champion cowboys can
earn money toward a shot at the national
finals rodeo at the end of the year.
[Dramatic music]
Female VO: It captures the thrill of the Old West.
It's a fitting event for a farm
that makes you feel like a cowboy.
[Dramatic music]
Female VO: All Breeds Pleasure Driving Class
is up next with teams of ponies, mules, or horses.
[Music]
Female VO: And the winner of the All Breeds
Pleasure Driving Class:
Joshua Harper, with his team of Haflingers.
[Music]
Female VO: And here comes the Amateur Team Class.
[Music]
Female VO: Amateur Team winner is
Yoder Family Hay Company Percherons –
Devon Gingerich, driver.
[Music]
Female VO: Now in the show ring, the Junior Cart Class.
[Music]
Female VO: And the Junior Cart winner,
Young Living Percherons with driver Marcha Allred.
[Music]
Female VO: And now, the exciting six-horse hitch competition.
[Music]
Bret Fielding: There's something about these
big horses pawing into an arena,
the thunder that they bring with them.
[Dramatic music]
Bret Fielding: It just pulls on the heartstrings
of all my friends once they come and see what we're doing.
[Dramatic music]
Brian Lynch: You look for a big powerful
wheel team, an athletic swing team,
and a very athletic lead team that truly
does their job leading the hitch.
[Dramatic music]
Female VO: And here's the winner of the
Six Horse Hitch Class: Hersch Belgians,
with driver, Duane Herschberger.
Winning doesn't come easy, and when you
put your heart and soul into it, it means
a lot to win against the top hitches in the country.
[Dramatic music]
Male: What was your reaction?
Sara Herschberger: There was a mistake.
Male: Yeah?
Sara Herschberger: She read it wrong like Steve Harvey.
Male: And for you, how did it make you feel?
Duane Hershberger: Good, I guess.
Male: Was it emotional for you?
Duane Hershberger: Very, very.
Male: Why is that? Because these guys work so hard?
Duane Hershberger: Well... I don't know.
We try. We worked so hard -
Sara Herschberger: We're little nobodys.
Duane Hershberger: - to put this on the road.
And it cost us so much money to do it.
And... how would you say, sometimes you don't –
we think we don't work hard enough at it or whatever,
but then you win at a level like this,
and you beat Messenger, the world champions.
Very emotional.
Yeah, I've never done that before, it's the
first time we've ever done that.
[Dramatic music]
Female VO: Young Living Farm is like a tapestry
that lovingly shows the world as it once was:
acres of fragrant plants, a place where music comes alive,
horse shows and rodeos and the Old West,
and a love of the land, and all it provides.
[Soft music]
Female VO: This is Gary Young's dream,
and it became a beautiful reality that
he shares with all who come.
[Soft music]
Gary Young: It's exciting because that was
the whole reason I created this is to get the kids out
of the city and off the cement, and off the pavement,
and get them in touch with real life.
And realize there's more to it than a cell phone
or a computer or an iPad or the things that they
do today in the world, and very gratifying.
[Soft music]
Female VO: Next week, join us for part two
of the Young Living Draft Horse Show from Mona, Utah.