OklahomaHorses Magazine January 2022

January/February 2022 • OklahomaHorses 9 A summer or two at a horse camp cou- pled with those trail rides in Tennessee first served as Simancik’s equestrian foundation. Later, she developed horsemanship through riding lessons on a friend’s reining horse. Horseback or Bust “I moved to Oklahoma mostly to find a job working with horses,” Simancik said. “I had shown with a friend in Michigan who was coming to Oklahoma for a job, so I moved as close to that friend as possible since that was the only person I knew in the area.” First riding with Steve Simon, Simancik eventually landed a job with National Reining Horse Association professional Abby Mixon which turned into a lifelong friendship. Simancik’s time with Mixon revealed an interest in and knack for the breeding side of the industry. “I thought I wanted to be a horse trainer, but I wasn’t very good at it,” Simancik said about how she found her way to Oklahoma Equine Hospital. “After Dr. [Joe] Carter offered me a job, he sent me to breeding school, and I managed that side of the clinic for him.” Simancik had fallen in love with NRHA Million Dollar Sire Whizkey N Diamonds, who happened to stand at Oklahoma Equine. He was an extra draw for an al- ready lucrative position. Horse Hobby It took a few years for Simancik to get into a groove as breeding manager. Oklahoma Equine services are used by some of the biggest names in almost every discipline related to cow horses and reining. As a result, Simancik’s free time was lim- ited, but not enough so to keep her from finding a new adventure. “I didn’t get a whole lot of days off with the breeding stuff, but that was good because I don’t sit still very well,” Simancik said. “I found myself sitting around with nothing to do one weekend when I talked to a friend about how I wanted to get into photography.” It was the only hobby Simancik had an interest in that would work with her crazy schedule. Not to mention, she had access to a pasture full of incredible equine athletes to practice on. X Baby Z, 2020 Eazee E filly, seems curious about the camera.