Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 26, 1992 TAG: 9203260391
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARY JO SHANNON SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
SuperMask is a nylon mesh mask designed to keep flies away from the animal's face. Robyne decided to decorate the mask that Knee High, her 49-inch pony, wore each day and enter the contest.
"I used fabric paint to decorate it with his name at the top," she said. "Then I put a big star and STAR PONY in the middle because he's a real star to me."
In June she mailed the photo and the following paragraph to Farnam Companies Inc. in Phoenix:
"I use SuperMask because it keeps the flies out of Knee High's eyes without using chemicals. He comes up in the pasture to have it put on, so he must like it."
Summer passed and school started. Robyne's attention turned to activities at Oak Grove Elementary School where she is a fifth-grader in the gifted and talented class. Soon she forgot all about the contest.
What a surprise when the letter arrived notifying her that she was a winner!
Nancy Volz of the Horse Products Division of Farnam Companies said five national winners were selected. Robyne was the only child. Her photo and testimonial will be used in the 1992 promotion of SuperMasks in national horse magazines beginning in April.
"You'd think she won the lottery," said Cindy Lorek, Robyne's mother, owner of Bridles 'N Bits, a tack shop in Southwest Plaza.
Although she received no money, the recognition and thrill of having her picture and her pony featured in a national advertising promotion is heady stuff.
Robyne has been riding since she was 5 years old, her mother said. Robyne owns two ponies and has won more tham 200 ribbons in the past three years. She and her mother follow the show circuit within a radius of 150 miles.
"Knee High is only 49 inches tall but he proved he can jump 48 inches," Cindy Lorek said. She explained that he became overexcited recently and jumped out of the show ring.
To avoid colliding with a wall, he had to stop suddenly, throwing Robyne forward in the saddle. The impact bruised her bladder and resulted in a six-hour hospital stay so she could be monitored.
"We're lucky," her mother said. "That's the only accident she's had in five years, and riding is her favorite activity."
by CNB