Bob and I met our friend Beatrice Looking Horse and her family at Canterbury Park in Shakopee for the Indian Horse Relay races. Wilfred “Wolf” Looking Horse was the rider for the Lakota Pride team from Cheyenne River Reservation. The race is run bareback and one rider races around the course and then changes horses in front of the grandstand — and repeats it with another horse for three times around. Beatrice said Wolf did not have his favorite horse since he ran into a fence or something and was injured so didn’t come.
This picture of Wolf and his family helpers was in the paper. I tried to get some good photos but you needed a good camera to get a shot like this! Although the team did not win the Championship, Beatrice said it was always their dream to come and race in a place like this.
Bob, Beatrice, Mahto and other family from South Dakota – Beatrice is always surrounded by children (her own and others) that she has raised or helped raise. She also teaches elementary school in Eagle Butte, SD
Stanley Looking Horse, Jr. and his girlfriend. They live in Minneapolis and he teaches Lakota.
a couple of nice teepees there
I was so glad to see the fry bread stand. I have tried to make it, but it never comes out as good as one made by an elderly Lakota woman over an open fire in South Dakota.
singers
another rider coming up to the start line
a shot of the exchange – quite exciting
flashy colors and proud rider
What a treat for us to see our friends, this family from South Dakota.
Very interesting. How are the markings on the horses done? Branding, shaving, paint? Does the rider have any help when changing horses? Do the headdresses of the singers mean they have a certain status in their tribes?
The markings on the horses are paint. The rider has two people each holding a horse in the area where they are exchanged. The holder brings the next horse close to the rider, then grabs the reins of the old horse and the rider does the exchange as quick as he can. “Bonnets” are a sign of someone who has earned respect in the tribe — I think… often the chief, but I think these days it can be someone who deserves respect. Beatrice or any other Lakota — help out if you are reading this 🙂