When Makenna Nastri and her pony Spotlight weren’t dressed to the nines to compete in the medium pony hunters, they were cantering up and down the hills beyond the barns at the Kentucky Horse Park.

“We’ve been hanging out and galloping up and down the Rolex field and some stuff like that—bareback nonetheless, bareback and galloping in the Rolex,” said her mother and trainer Sara Nastri. “I couldn’t find her [one day.] I sent her out to ride bareback and I was like, ‘I don’t know where she went,’ and then I went walking out there and she’s galloping around and he was perfect! As long as she’s having a good time. He doesn’t seem to care to much. He didn’t care if somebody was with him. They were having a good time.”

Makenna Nastri has spent much of her Pony Finals riding Spot bareback through the cross-country fields at the Kentucky Horse Park.

The Nastris purchased “Spot” in 2013. They’d borrowed another pony for a year, but at 28 that pony was ready to retire. So Sara was on the look out for a suitable replacement. Makenna had previously ridden a pony like liked to buck, so they needed a special new partner for her.

Then Sara got a call from a friend saying they saw an Pony of Americas-Arabian cross that might be a good fit. The friend sat on Spot, but his tendency to be quick for the first lap at the trot had Sara a bit worried. They passed on him, but by the end of the show, Spot’s owner was eager to move him and dropped his price. The Nastris took a chance—purchasing Spot at the word of their friend’s word.

“I wouldn’t trade him for the world,” said Sara. “He doesn’t look at a single thing. I haven’t lunged him ever in his life. He’s just very, very simple. He is what he is when you see him. I wouldn’t trade him for the world—he has a forever home. I’ll find someone to lease him when she’s done, but I probably won’t ever let him leave my possession.”

“He is very perfect,” added Makenna. “He loves kids. He’s the sweetest pony ever. His canter isn’t bouncy at all; he has a smooth trot.”

Makenna Nastri and Spotlight cuddle.

Spot was very green when the Nastris bought him, but with a lot of hard work, Makenna got him going well. An injury meant he was laid up for six months and Sara decided to give him some extra time before pursuing his show career.

Traveling to Kentucky for Pony Finals was the first time Makenna has showed outside of the Pacific Northwest. Based out of Battle Ground, Wash., she primarily shows close to home and previously the furthest they’d ever traveled was to Oregon.

“This is a very big trip and we drove straight through,” said Sara. “We carpooled with another friend that has horses in Bend, [Ore.]. It was 37 hours. We were pretty tired—we got in at 1:30 at night and then chilled for a couple of days.”

Since it was such a big trip the Nastris have taken some time to explore Kentucky. They went to Churchill Downs and have gone on a tour of the barns and museums at the horse park.

Compared to shows back home, Pony Finals has been quiet for the Nastris. Sara is used to having other clients to work with and Makenna usually makes herself busy helping the horse show staff when she has spare time.

“She is constantly the child that is out doing something,” said Sara. “She’s always running around helping people. She likes to do that stuff and in our home area everybody knows who she is.

“I never know where she is all day long but I know she’s off helping someone,” she continued. “She goes to barn every day with me during the summer and she has to work, she has to groom. At the horse shows she’s the kid at the back gate trying to help out.”

Ask Makenna why she does it and her answer is pretty simple.

“I just like to help people.”

Spotlight

Stay tuned to www.coth.com for all the news from U.S. Pony Finals. Read all about Bailey Lones and her Half-Arabian, Baylee McKeever who has some big fans watch from Rio, Riley Hogan who made her way to Kentucky via the hunt field and the division winners.