Jaxon Sharif is a sixteen-year-old Junior in high school living in rural Missouri. She has always been passionate about horses and has had miniature horses her whole life. In 2021, Jaxon and her family acquired their first full-size horse, an older mare perfect for learning. 

The horse was an eight-year-old Arabian named CSP The First Lady, also known as “Journey.” She is sired by Mizter President VA out of the VCP Magnifire daughter, Venuz, and was bred by Doug Schultz and Chris Wilson of Chrishan Park. In 2021, Journey was initially purchased for Jaxon’s mom, Jessy, as a trail horse. However, they quickly realized that she preferred a more fast-paced job.

In 2022, Jaxon took Journey to a local pony club event where they participated in barrels and poles for the first time. Jaxon discovered that Journey excelled at these events, and from there, the passion was fueled. She describes Journey as eager and enthusiastic to work, loving the days when she can perform patterns at full speed. Jaxon jokes and says that her least favorite gate is the walk. They have built a strong connection of trust and understanding, cultivating an inseparable bond.

Because of this bond, Jaxon and Journey have seen success in a short amount of time. Jaxon does all the training and preparation for her horses on her own. Before an event, Journey’s week starts with slow work on the pattern to ensure she can collect and bend the way Jaxon prefers. She is then given a day off before working the pattern again, this time a little quicker.

Journey is given a day off between every workout. On the day before the event, she is allowed to perform the pattern at full speed, which Jaxon jokes is her favorite training day. Jaxon shares that Journey’s favorite event is the poles, noting that her whole demeanor changes when she sees the pole pattern being set up, and she always enters the ring with a little more “fire” for this event. They have accomplished impressive times of 16.0 in barrels and 21.442 in poles. Jaxon and Jessy credit these fast times to the pack of Sour Patch Kids candy that Journey gets before each race. They are almost always the sole Arabian participant at these events, showcasing how willing and versatile the Arabian horse is. 

Looking towards the future, Jaxon is working towards getting her two futurity horses trained on the barrels so that Journey can focus all her efforts on the poles. Her ultimate dream is to breed Journey to a barrel stallion in hopes of getting a future star. Jessy, Jaxon’s mom, shares that Jaxon and Journey are remarkable to watch. She is proud of everything her daughter has accomplished and can’t wait to see what she can do in the future.