contributed photos
Makyah Seguin gives her beloved horse, Alice, a kiss in a meadow in South Dakota, where she lives with her father during the summers.
Sitting proudly in her saddle, Makyah Seguin shows off the ribbons she won for her equestrian skills at a competition in Rapid City, S.D. Seguin is a sixth-grader at Sartell Middle School.
Besides horses, another love of Makyah Seguin’s life is her pets, all of whom were purchased from the humane society. From left to right, front row are dogs Marley, Maple and Sequoia; the two cats are Hunter and Cloudy.
by Dennis Dalman
news@thenewsleaders.com
Eleven-year-old Makyah Seguin rode her way to glory at a horse show in South Dakota, winning three first-place ribbons and two second-place ribbons.
The name of the show was the “Horsing Around Club Show.” It took place in Rapid City, S.D., where her father, Mitch Seguin, now lives.
“I was amazed I won those ribbons,” Seguin said. “I felt proud of myself and proud of my horse, Alice. It was, like, wow! All the way home, I patted Alice and talked to her and congratulated her. And she was listening.”
Seguin’s three first-place ribbons were given for the “Walk Trot 11 and Under,” for “Newcomer Class” and for the “Walk Trot Championship” for all classes. She won second in both “Showmanship” and “Walk Trot All Ages” competition.
Not bad for a girl who started riding horses less than two years ago.
Seguin’s passionate hobby began with her stepmother, Kristen, also of Rapid City, who is a professional horse trainer. While visiting her father in the summer, Seguin fell in love with Kristen’s horses. Eventually, Mitch and Kristen bought her a horse she named Alice, which is half-Arabian, half-Pinto. They bought it at Custer State Park, where there are about 60 horses used for trail-riding. Mitch and Kristen not only live in Custer State Park, but he is a maintenance man there, and Kristen is a catering manager for the park. Before they bought the horse, it was love at first sight for Makyah and Alice. Only later did they find out Alice’s “father” is a national champion horse that lives in Texas. During the school year, Seguin stays with her mother, Shannon Spiczka, in Sartell, where Makyah is a sixth-grader at Sartell Middle School.
Her mother, who is an LPN at Health Partners, drove to Rapid City where she had the happy occasion to watch her daughter win so many ribbons.
“That was Makyah’s first big show,” her father said proudly. “She and her stepmother work so hard with that horse. Three or four times a week. Everyone who’s seen Makyah ride calls her an amazing horseman.”
Back in Minnesota, Seguin also trains several days a week at the Rocking R. farm near Rice, where she works with a horse called Kharrosel, a pure-bred Arabian. She loves Kharrosel, too, of course, but not a day goes by that she doesn’t miss Alice so far away in Rapid City.
Besides her love for horses, Seguin is wild about all animals, any animal. She has three dogs and three cats she got at the humane society – dogs Marly, Maple and Sequoia and cats Hunter, Cloudy and Lily. All of those pets, except for Lily, live in Rapid City. When Makyah takes the trip to Rapid City, there are hugs and kisses that never end between her and her happy animals.
“Makyah eats, sleeps and breathes horses – and animals altogether,” her mother said. “She longs to volunteer at the humane society, and she will when she’s old enough. She’s a sweet, all-around good girl, and a good student, too. We are very proud of her and of what she has accomplished in such a short amount of time. The Rapid City show was the first time I was able to see her in a big show. I was just amazed. I’d taken her to many lessons before, but I was so amazed to see the results of all her work.”
Seguin will likely win many more shows.
“Horses are part of who I am,” she said. “I hope to train horses someday like my stepmom. She is the one who trained Alice. I’ve only been around horses for two years, but I know they will always be a big part of my life.”
