Amateur in the Spotlight: Pam Rose
by Melissa Halvorson
Pam Rose was born and raised on a dairy farm in Rice Lake, Wisconsin. She grew up with 5 older siblings, 4 brothers and 1 sister. Living on a farm, their parents let each of the children have an animal of their choice…Pam chose horses! She started riding and showing at the age of 3. Her early show experience consisted of 4-H, open and some Arabian shows. Pam was mostly self taught, but sent a horse out for training for a short period of time while she was a youth rider. When not learning on her own, she received most of her instruction from John Gurtner of Sun Valley Stables.As she grew older she quickly learned that she wanted to show reining horses. Pam purchased a reining horse, Buddy, and sent him for training with Rod Matthieson of Eleanors Arabian Farm. She used her college money to buy her horse, so when it was time to go to college she had to sell Buddy. Pam finished her schooling with a degree in Television Broadcasting. (She really enjoyed college, but always thought about horses!) After college she went to work for Micro Control Company, owned by Harold and Eleanor Hamilton, in the Marketing Division. Occasionally Pam would go out to Eleanor’s farm and ride.
In the fall of 1992, Pam was invited to a party/open barn at Horseshoe Lake Arabians, where she met one of their trainers, Hoyt Rose, who is now her husband. They were married in May of 1994 and P&H Horse and Cattle Company was developed shortly thereafter. They bought a house in River Falls, WI and leased part of a barn just down the road. In 1996, Pam and Hoyt purchased their current farm in Almena, Wisconsin, where they own 77 acres. Their farm consists of woods, farmland, pasture and lake access.
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| Pam on The Rocketeer |
Pam’s lifelong love of horses has brought her continuous accomplishments. With many Class A and Regional Championships under her belt, Pam attended her first National level show in 1998. Here she claimed Top 10 honors in Purebred AOTR Reining 18 & Over with The Rocketeer and made the final cut in the AOTR Purebred Western Pleasure 18-39.
Pam’s 2nd visit to Nationals as a competitor was in 2002, where she captured the title of Canadian National Champion Purebred AOTR Reining 18 -39 with Zee The Gem++.
This past summer, Pam thought “if you have a dream…you better chase it”. She and Gem did just that. In August the two were again named Canadian National Champion Purebred AOTR Reining 18-39. With this success, Pam decided to take Gem to her first U.S. Nationals just to see what they would have to do to prepare for the future. She was amazed there were 43 of the top amateur reiners competing! She said she looked over the list of entries and could not believe that she’d be competing with a lot of riders/horses that she has idolized over the years. Pam & Gem++ ran fast and hard and when they left Albuquerque, they returned home with their 3rd National Championship in Purebred AOTR Arabian Reining 18-39.
When asked what kind of horse it takes to reach these levels, Pam explained that Gem is a 14.1 h mare with a “ton of heart!” Gem was a gift to Hoyt, from Eleanor Hamilton, when he graduated from college. Hoyt started her as a 2 year old and gave her to me when his training business took off. I am very fortunate to have such a “giving” husband. He knows what this mare means to me and I also know what she means to him!
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| Pam & Eleanor Hamilton |
Gem is now 8 years old and has been shown for only 3 years (at about 4 shows a year). I don’t show her very much, as you don’t want a reiner to get sour. So we trail ride a lot and take her to shows to school her. Gem is a typical mare, extremely moody! However, you learn to work around that and let her do her job. She is so awesome at what she does, and knows when to give it her all. With the combination of being well bred (Heza Zee++ daughter, bred by Eleanor Hamilton), well trained (thanks to Hoyt), and a heart of gold (All Gem’s)!
Pam’s lifelong love of the Arabian breed had many inspirations from the past, present and future. She mentioned that she is inspired by anyone who shows horses. To be able to control a horse and compete among other competitors is truly a talent. Pam also mentioned that she has a ton of respect and admiration for Eleanor Hamilton. “I hope to be 70 years old and still showing at the National level – she is my inspiration. My husband, Hoyt is truly my inspiration for showing horses. He is so dedicated to doing the best job possible. He works 7 days a week in the barn, starting at 5:30 a.m. and works until 7 or 8:00 p.m. Working horses doesn’t stop when he gets in the house, we talk about each horse, how they worked that day and what the future holds for them. Hoyt has been very fortunate to have had some really good horses over the years and in 2006 we’ll add to that with a lot of new talent.
As to Gem’s future...it involves a Quarter Horse Reiner and hopefully a foal in 2007. As for her show career? It will be short lived, as Pam & Hoyt’s daughter, Madison Rose, (who will be 2 in February) will show her when she gets a little older. Pam mentioned that the opportunity to sell Gem for a lot of monies has come up several times. However, she believes that no amount of money could replace a gift, or a horse that has had such an impact on her dreams. There will never be another Gem!!!
Gem & Madison Rose
As to Pam’s future…she has been nominated for the “Amateur Working Western,” rider of the year, by the Arabian Professional and Amateur Horseman’s Association. Pam said that this nomination is a great honor and asked that we mention that there are also several other talented Region 10 members that have been nominated for awards in this organization. (You can see the other nominees and vote at www.horsemansawards.com).