Ella Grey McMaster is a local nine-year-old girl who dreams big and heads for the prize. And she recently brought home a victory within the horse competition circuit.
Ella Grey, the daughter of Greylin and Babs McMaster, has always had a strong love for horses. She started riding horses when she was only seven years old. Babs began searching for different horse camps and found one called Winterview Farm in Flora. This really stole her heart and won her over for her love for horses.
Ella Grey began taking lessons when she was in the second grade. She wanted to do competitions, but her parents wanted her to understand the value of competing and the amount of work that would go into her hobby.
“For Ella Grey, that meant going to bed early and getting up even earlier than a school morning,” Babs said.
Ella Grey takes lessons every week with her instructor, Meghan Roider.
“She has gained so much confidence and has also gained many barn friends,” Babs said.
One of Ella Grey’s biggest challenges was learning how to handle different horses and learning that they do not all behave the same. And through her hard work and training, she was able to secure a victory in a recent horse competition at Winterview Farm. She won three first place ribbons, a second-place ribbon and earned the title of Grand Champion in the Trot X division. She also won two fifth place ribbons in the X to Vertical Division.
Not too bad for her first competition.
“We had a big talk beforehand that she probably would not win anything since it was her first competition,” Babs said. “But little did I know, she would win the first division of her first competition.”
When she is not competing with horses, Ella Grey is very involved in other activities at Manchester Academy, where she is in the fourth grade. She is a member of Pee Wee Cheer team, Pee Wee Basketball team. She is also a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church.
“As a mother, you get pure joy watching your child do what they love,” Babs said. “I don’t know anything about horses, much less the competitive side. But we love watching her grow in this sport, and we will follow her as far as she wants to go.”
