O-mok-see returns to St. Regis
Horse riders from all over the Northeast got together this weekend in St. Regis at the Lazy J Arena to participate in an o-mok-see sponsored by the River Valley Saddle Club.
“The o-mok-see is really a family sport,” said River Valley Saddle Club Vice President, Janet Neville
Around 95 riders came from as far as Washington and Idaho to participate in the event and try to win prizes provided by the River Valley Saddle Club.
The o-mok-see lasted from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Some riders camped out at the arena and others stayed in hotels around the area.
Neville said that the o-mok-see is traditionally an American Indian sport. It typically consists of several different speed-based horse riding events.
According to an article on the Glacier Horse Community Web site, the event came from the Blackfeet American Indian Tribe and the name, originally oh-mak-see pass-kan, means “riding big dance.”
The Blackfeet event was typically a war ceremony done by warriors before setting out on a mounted expedition.
This weekend riders competed in Pole Bending, National Flag Race, Two-Barrel Flag, Figure-Eight, Half-Eight, Keyhole, Straight Barrel, Speed Barrel, Arena Race and Polo Turn.
Neville said that this event was a “saddle show” which means that they gave saddles to the top scorers in each age category.
Riders were divided up into 9 years old and under, 10 to 16 years old, 16 to 30 years old, 31 to 45 years old and 45 years old and older.
The top six riders in each age group were given prizes, with the saddles going to the highest scorer in each age group.
To score points, riders had to place within the top ten in an event. At the end of the weekend the points were added up to determine the top scorers of the event.
“That the thing that’s nice about it, it’s an event that everybody can participate in and the entry fees aren’t really, really high so people can afford to enter,” Neville said.
Entry fees were $65 per person. Neville said that the entry fees were higher for this event than most of their other events because they bought saddles for the top placers.
She said that many of their other events only cost a few dollars per event to enter.
Neville said that this event is usually a big money-maker for the River Valley Saddle Club, but this year they were had around 30 riders fewer than they usually have.
She said that the club broke even but did not really make any money off of the event.
Neville said that despite the smaller crowd, the event went smoothly and she was pleased with the turnout.
“I think it went really well and most of the people enjoyed themselves. Like I said it’s a family sport so you have children to their grandparents riding together,” Neville said.
The top six point scorers in the 9 years old and under category were Randi Schular, Reanne Schuler, Allison Rust, Katie Polaski, Cassidy Pierce and Courtney Stockman. The top six in the 10 to 16 year old category were Jessy Hines, Danielle Leonard, Joanna McKittrick, Will Jack, Kate Jack and Justin Wallace. The top six in the 16 to 30 year old category were Annie Ouelette, Andie Gangloff, Larry Goodsell, Natalie Pemble, Shantel Fredenberg and Ashley Palm. The top six in the 31 to 45 year old category were Brenda Vroman, Rob Beidler, Tami Moyer, Tony Penna, Candice Sweitzer and Tammy Johnson. The top six scorers in the 45 yearold and older category were Steve Funden, Chris Ouelette, Sharon Kelsey, Bob Jones, Terry Parsons and Gail Thomson.