Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, December 30, 1993 TAG: 9312300336
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By JOHN A. MONTGOMERY SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
But most senior sports stars were at least appearing on the playing field as youngsters.
In Southwest Roanoke County, though, a saddlebred horse that has burst onto the national scene at an age - 11 - when most showhorses retire. Jatana Princess, a bay mare who bore three fillies earlier in her career, won at five national-caliber shows this summer, and was named the Adult Three-Gaited Reserve World Grand Champion in the pleasure class in Louisville in August.
Terry Bova, a lifelong horsewoman who runs Pleasant Hill Stables, is the owner, trainer and rider of Jatana Princess. It's rare for the same person to fill all three roles.
"This year has been my biggest achievement," Bova said. "It's very difficult to take an old horse and make her into a showhorse. The average age is 5.
"This is like the story of a housewife who raised a family and then went into show business."
Like Jatana Princess, Bova, 41, may seem to be a late-bloomer on the national circuit, but in fact, her success has been anything but overnight. The Bova family showed saddlebred horses in the '60s and '70s, and as a family, won more than 75 Virginia State Championships.
Traveling to regional horse shows was a weekend routine for the Bovas. One year, the family attended 28 shows.
Roanoke has been a hotbed of sorts for the saddlebred industry. Approximately 12 nationally known trainers hail from the Roanoke Valley, according to Bova, a 1970 graduate of Cave Spring High School.
With their 1993 Cinderella-like performance, however, Bova and Jatana Princess have extended Roanoke's reputation in horse circles.
Bova married at age 20 and left Roanoke, as she and her husband were employed at renowned horse farms in Kentucky and Illinois. A plane crash in 1980 killed Bova's father and two brothers, and precipitated her move back to the Roanoke Valley to be with family.
After divorcing a few years later, Bova was developing a number of young horses herself. She met Wes Hambrick, also a saddlebred aficionado, at a Virginia horse show in 1988.
Together, they developed Jatana Princess into a world champion. Hambrick rekindled Bova's enthusiasm for competition, and she credits him for sharing the necessary perseverance.
Hambrick and Bova both have careers outside the stable of horses they maintain themselves. "We don't watch TV," Hambrick said.
"I didn't break Jatana Princess to ride until she was 8," Bova said. "Normally, you do that when the horse is 2 or 3." But Bova remembered Jatanta Princess' bloodline and the promise she held before her fillies. Bova thought that entering her in shows was still worth a shot.
The pleasure class is a popular one, and often, 15 or 20 horses are showing simultaneously. Throughout this year's show season, Bova was concerned with holding her horse's concentration amidst the distractions of a crowded ring.
"It's like she and I are the only ones out there . . . and I try to put her in the right spot to keep her out of trouble," Bova said. "I keep her in the clear as much as I can, and that's a full-time job in these large classes."
Bova has not been surprised with Jatana Princess' victories. She sees it more as potential being realized.
"She's just now starting to understand what I'm asking her to do," Bova said. "She's game, exciting and expressive - and she has a presence that comes through in a lot of her passes."
It will be difficult to duplicate the storybook season Bova and Jatana Princess have experienced, posting wins at shows at Bonnie Blue, Rock Creek, Lexington, Roanoke and Louisville. But Bova has smelled the roses along the way.
"Everybody at the shows - my friends, the top trainers, the exhibitors, they've all been totally wonderful," Bova said. "They all came up to me and congratulated me.
"It's a dream of a lifetime to be doing what I'm doing," Bova said.
by CNB