years. Kalish suggested Winkers ride Oh boy and the pair clicked.


“I came out of the arena on him and he (Scott) said we’re buying that horse for you,” Winkers said. Winkers is somewhat able to see the barrels with her peripheral vision, but she has to be careful not to turn her body too much and confuse Oh boy with her body language.


Conny Winkers has never let her blindness slow her down and with her can-do attitude she finished inside the top 10 in the circuits to earn a spot at the finals. It would be a dream come true to earn a qualification to the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo. Photo by Marty Welter


“It is only there in the center my vision. It’s not a black spot that stops me from seeing in the center of my vision it’s a colored spot.” Winkers’ father first got her ponies to ride, followed by horses and then took her to horse shows as she became a better and more confident rider.


“He was a very busy businessman, but he always made sure he had time to take me,” she said. “My father never missed a rodeo that I was at.”


Winkers’ mother was supportive then and is now as is the rest of Winkers’


support team, which


includes Winkers three grown children Michael Cliver II, Weston Winkers and Leah Walrack. Winkers’ husband drives her to rodeos and assists her while there. Scott has a trucking business. He often drives all day, showers and then drives his wife to a barrel racing. Conny understands and appreciates the sacrifices Scott makes.


“There are times that I get frustrated with things, like if I have an appointment somewhere and I need to get somewhere,” she said. “I think the not driving part, is the biggest part (of what is frustrating about sight-impairment).”


Her husband of five years has helped her through the rough times. It was Scott who insisted Winkers buy her No. 1 horse, DHR Livin Legend, barn name “Oh boy.” She has had the 10-year-old – she purchased from Donna Kalish – for the past three


“I have to try to see them as I’m approaching and I have to ride aggressive, even if I don’t see them. I have to almost make him think I’ve seen them.” Winkers has experienced first-hand that little separates the top finishers from the rest of the pack in professional barrel racing. She recently missed out on winning a saddle by two-thousandths of a second. Winkers and her husband try to scout an arena prior to a competition, so they can be as ready as possible. Scott will stand on the first barrel marker before the rodeo, so Winkers has an idea of where it will be placed. Overall, she has done well with Oh boy so far, but there have been hiccups. Dark barrels and dark ground are tough to see and the different types of lighting at rodeos can hamper her vision. “I was running to the third barrel and my hat flipped off the top of my head and the lights overhead, like the football stadium lights, blinded me and I couldn’t find the


third barrel at all, so I had to pull up and leave the arena,” Winkers said. However, there have been lots of great runs, too. This past summer Winkers and Oh boy got into a groove and were finishing among the leaders. Winkers won the Franklin County Fair PRCA Rodeo in Hampton, Iowa in July. She tied for third place in the Iowa Championship Rodeo held in Sidney, Iowa, also in July. In June, Winkers finished fourth at the Mid- Western Rodeo in Manawa, Wis. She hopes the overall strong summer rolls into a successful fall and winter. She is looking for sponsors to help with expenses. Winkers would like to travel to some of the big winter rodeos in the south.


Conny Winkers credits her support team, which includes her parents and husband, Scott, for her success and for helping her follow her dreams. Photo courtesy Conny Winkers


No matter what happens, she has a lot of people cheering for her. Along with her husband and family, the other barrel racers have been pulling for her to succeed. She knows they are with her when she is making a run. “I can’t even begin to explain how supportive all the other competitors have been to me,” Winkers said. “I can hear them yelling for me. It brings a tear to your eye.”


NOVEMBER 2018 WPRA NEWS 43


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7