First, when she was 8 years old, Heidi Schmid and her horse, Velvet, learned to walk together.
“I was terrified of her. I was afraid she would step on me,” Schmid says.
But little by little, in the rolling hills west of Kalispell at her family’s ranch, the pair built a friendship and relationship of trust. As they each became more comfortable together, they began riding at a trot. And then a gallop.
Now, riding atop a 20-year-old quarter horse named Joe, the Kalispell cowgirl is blazing fast, winding around barrels and dashing between poles in the top local, state and national competitions.
“The speed is what I enjoy most. That’s what rodeo is,” the 18-year-old recent Flathead High School graduate says.
Schmid has come a long ways from her younger years and developed into one of the best cowgirls in Montana, a state rich with rodeo tradition and all-time great riders.
Schmid recently placed second in pole bending at the Montana High School Rodeo State Finals in Baker. She was eighth overall in barrel racing and fourth as overall cowgirl. A year ago, she was the state champion in pole bending.
For the second year in a row, Schmid has qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo, which is being held in Gillette, Wyoming, July 17-23.
Schmid will compete against the best high school riders in the nation riding Joe, who is still a speedster despite his age.
“He’s not slowing down at all,” she says.
While most mainstream sports provide structure for practice and preparation, Schmid has trained to be a top-notch rodeo competition on her own or with friends.
Schmid has been a member of the high school rodeo team the last two years, but it has seen a dip in overall participation, leading her to train mostly on her own with her best friend and next-door neighbor, Kassandra Senner, who is also a standout competitor.
Schmid has had a few trusty horses to help with that confidence and preparation. First it was Velvet, who helped the 8-year-old ride atop her first horse. Then it was her friend’s horse, Blue, a wild speedster who inspired Schmid to go fast.
“He was really fast. He knew all the games and he’d run it for you,” she says. “You’d just sit there and have fun.”
Each of her horses have helped her learn something about herself, too, like patience and self-confidence.
“The more you ride, you just figure it out,” Schmid says. “Building your confidence is a big thing.”
Schmid has also enjoyed the mentorship of other standout rodeo competitors, including Wendy McCaffree, a longtime standout rider who lives in Columbia Falls.
“Heidi has an outstanding work ethic and she’s so humble and appreciative about everything, not just with horses but in life,” McCaffree says.
“She sees something and she gets it. She’s a visual learner. She understands what you’re telling her and she picks up on it and goes for it.”
Pole bending is a fast-paced competition requiring speed and skill, similar to slalom skiing. A horse and rider must wind around a series of poles as fast as possible without knocking them over. Last year Schmid set a personal-best time of 20.8 seconds at National Finals.
“She has that desire,” McCaffree says.
Training atop a horse has made her fall in love with rodeo competitions and riding, which she does on a daily basis for at least an hour. After the national competition, she plans to ride at local events throughout summer. She’s unsure what her future plans will hold. Except for one certainty.
“I’ll probably ride forever,” she says.