MEET THE JUNIOR Kari Burgett

Hi, my name is Kari Burgett. I am 13 years of age. I live in the West Region, in a small town known as Georgetown, California.

I have been riding horses in endurance for the past year and half. My Arabian mare Tatopani (which in Nepalese means "hot water") has taken me through all of my rides. I call her Tato for short.

Tato and I get along very well. Tato likes to think of herself as "alpha mare," bossing all the other horses around in the pasture -- but when we are on trail you may think of her as a perfect angel. Tato is one of the best horses I could ever have in my lifetime because she is not a runaway, rarely does she ever buck-unless as if to say "let's go!" -- and she pins her ears back at other horses but has never kicked out.

Tato has finished the famous ride called Tevis, a 100-mile, one-day ride, two times with my mom Linda Glazier. I hope to be riding the Tevis in the coming years but for now just 50s, 70s and multi-day rides. .

My experience in endurance was a good way to learn from my mistakes. I do suggest for girls to use Desitin if you don't want to have a burning time after your first vet check. Young men: I don't know what I should tell you because I have no clue what guys go through.

In some of my rides I have faced many hard times. On a ride in Oregon my mom, dad and I were following this red cinder road into ride camp and something hit me that made me feel like I was really weak and that I couldn't go on.

My dad, Roger Yohe, kept saying the devil was messing with me and that my grandpa was fighting him to make him go away and to leave me alone. I know that my grandpa won because I finished the ride and I was feeling great.

There have been other times similar to the one in Oregon. One was at the American River 70. The ride started in Folsom and ended in Auburn. My emotions really came out on that ride.

My best advice for other juniors is to really talk to your horse and not just hop on and ride. Does your horse ever not listen to you, spook at stuff? That is where you really need to talk to the horse instead of jerking back on the horse's mouth. Talking really helps because that is how to keep your horse and yourself nice and calm.

I am in the 2004 rankings for the West Region Junior, the Pioneer Awards, and in the family awards. I want to thank you for your time for reading this and I wish everyone happy trails!

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