Trainer Puts Barrel Racers On The Flat Track To Victory At Oklahoma Track On a 30-acre spread just a few miles from Hernando, Mississippi, Quarter Horse trainer Jack Scott gets the best out of barrel horses in way that may not be familiar to many southern riders: flat track racing. Some of the colts he takes in for training at Scott's Quarter Horses wind up doing a stint as flat track racers in places like Blue Ribbon Downs in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. Scott, 52, says he has "...been doing horses" all his life. That led him to pursue a degree at Oklahoma Farrier's College in Sperry, which is just a couple hours' drive from where he now races Quarter Horses on the flat track with his business partner, Gary Lynch. He also rode bulls in the rodeo for eleven years, and his wife, Darlene, is a National Champion barrel racer and multiple IPRA Finals qualifier. They have had as many as twenty horses in training at one time, although Jack says his facility usually averages ten horses in residence. Along the way, he's earned licenses to train in Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Nebraska. Jack does most of the groundwork, which he says is patterned after the John Lyons method, and his daughter Lacey, who is making a quite a name for herself on the barrel racing circuit, handles the mounted aspects of the regimen. Jack says he and his partner had some success at Blue Ribbon Downs last year with their first partnership colt, and decided to try again with FAST DEAN, a purchase they made in September of 2006 that he and Lacey broke and trained. The young horse is currently running 360 yards, and Scott says he will move up to greater distances come September of this year. Scott says that, in addition to the training that takes place at his facility, the two-year olds he takes need a year of "seasoning" after they've been broken. He sends them home to be ridden for a year, then gets them back to start them on barrel training. The method of training depends on what the owner wants, and some barrel racers begin their education at two years old. Those horses destined for a career in flat track racing are started around age four. Scott says he still uses his farrier skills, but only on horses that have been brought to him for training. Those youngsters come from all over the southern United States and with that kind of record, he believes he's "...doing something right." He also admits that he's had "...a whole lot of good luck with horses, and good horses make good trainers." A young steed's education at Scott's place runs $20 a day, which covers everything except shoeing and vet bills. The site has a round pen, eight stalls which each have their own 30-foot run, and an 80x120 indoor arena, and a walker. For more information, you can contact Jack Scott at 901-619-6383, or visit Lacey's web site at http://www.laceyscott.com.