Always a Student: What Horses Continue to Teach Kole Price
Life Stage : Mature - Performance
Before the championships, before the million-dollar milestones and before he ever stepped into a reining show pen, Kole Price was simply a kid who couldn't get enough of horses.
Ask Trainer and Purina Ambassador Kole Price where his story with horses began, and he will not start with a buckle, a paycheck or a championship run. In fact, Price didn't show his first reining horse until he was 19 years old. His family had Percheron draft horses; and while he occasionally rode them, he remembers what really captured his attention was learning everything he could about them.
"I was fascinated by horses," Price says. “Not just riding them, but learning how they think.”
That fascination followed him everywhere.
As a kid, he looked for every opportunity to be around horses and spent hours paging through horse magazines. For Price, horses became puzzles to solve, teachers from which to learn and partners that demanded patience and understanding.
Those magazines are where he first discovered reining. He became captivated by the precision, athleticism and communication between horse and rider.
"The first time I got a horse to face up and turn into me in the round pen with nothing on it," he says. "To me, the fact that you could get inside a horse's brain — that was the first itch for me."
Before long, he was training horses for neighbors, hauling himself from farm to farm, committed to learning everything he could about horsemanship.
After high school, he moved to Texas to work for a reining trainer. The transition was not easy. At one point, Price recalls being told he might not be cut out for the profession.
"I remember being told I wasn't good enough to make it," Price says. "That I needed to think of a different career path."
Rather than discouraging him, the comment fueled him.
Today, Price laughs about that conversation, but it also reflects something that has remained constant throughout his career: a willingness to keep learning, keep improving and keep showing up.
He’s since surpassed his million-dollar goal, becoming a $2 Million NRHA Rider. His response when you ask him how?
"You've got to set goals each day that you can achieve," he says. "Then you've got to set your goals over a month, over a year."
What surprises people, he says, is reaching those milestones is not always the most rewarding part.
"The process of reaching your goals is a bigger high to me than the pat on the back that you give yourself when you reach that goal," Price says. "The process of learning is more fun."
It is a philosophy that applies just as much to horses as it does to people. Every horse is different. Every horse teaches something new. And every horse requires its own approach.
"You cannot look at this training business as a whole," he says. "Each horse has a specific need. You've got to know what you're feeding and why you're feeding it."
Some horses are easy keepers. Others need additional calories. Some maintain condition effortlessly. Others require a different approach to help them stay on track during training and competition. Price focuses on supporting horses long before they enter the show pen, especially since the competition season asks a lot of them.
"These horses are so much like human athletes," he says. "When you get to the mental part of it, the stress, the confidence, the wear and tear — there's a lot going on."
For horses that need additional calories or are more challenging to keep eating during stressful periods, Price often incorporates Purina® Omolene® #500 Horse Feed.
For developing horses and horses preparing for major competitions, he incorporates Purina® Amplify® High-Fat Supplement and Purina® SuperSport® Amino Acid Supplement well in advance, or even year-round, to help support muscle development and recovery as part of a long-term program.
"Those horses that are going to mark a really high score are the horses that have plenty of stamina underneath them," he says.
"I know I have a lot to learn," he says. "There's a lot I want to learn."
For someone who built a career around understanding horses, that may be the most telling thing of all. The curiosity that started with a horse-crazy, animal-loving kid in Illinois never really went away. And maybe that is what being an Animal Person is all about. Not having all the answers. Just caring enough to keep looking for them.
Curious enough to find out? Sign up to trial a Purina horse feed or supplement to see the results for yourself.
Ask Trainer and Purina Ambassador Kole Price where his story with horses began, and he will not start with a buckle, a paycheck or a championship run. In fact, Price didn't show his first reining horse until he was 19 years old. His family had Percheron draft horses; and while he occasionally rode them, he remembers what really captured his attention was learning everything he could about them.
"I was fascinated by horses," Price says. “Not just riding them, but learning how they think.”
That fascination followed him everywhere.
As a kid, he looked for every opportunity to be around horses and spent hours paging through horse magazines. For Price, horses became puzzles to solve, teachers from which to learn and partners that demanded patience and understanding.
Those magazines are where he first discovered reining. He became captivated by the precision, athleticism and communication between horse and rider.
"The first time I got a horse to face up and turn into me in the round pen with nothing on it," he says. "To me, the fact that you could get inside a horse's brain — that was the first itch for me."
Before long, he was training horses for neighbors, hauling himself from farm to farm, committed to learning everything he could about horsemanship.
After high school, he moved to Texas to work for a reining trainer. The transition was not easy. At one point, Price recalls being told he might not be cut out for the profession.
"I remember being told I wasn't good enough to make it," Price says. "That I needed to think of a different career path."
Rather than discouraging him, the comment fueled him.
Today, Price laughs about that conversation, but it also reflects something that has remained constant throughout his career: a willingness to keep learning, keep improving and keep showing up.
Success is built one day at a time
Price is known for setting ambitious goals. Early in his career, he set his sights on becoming a million-dollar rider. At the time, it seemed unrealistic, but he believes big goals only matter when they are paired with small, achievable ones.He’s since surpassed his million-dollar goal, becoming a $2 Million NRHA Rider. His response when you ask him how?
"You've got to set goals each day that you can achieve," he says. "Then you've got to set your goals over a month, over a year."
What surprises people, he says, is reaching those milestones is not always the most rewarding part.
"The process of reaching your goals is a bigger high to me than the pat on the back that you give yourself when you reach that goal," Price says. "The process of learning is more fun."
It is a philosophy that applies just as much to horses as it does to people. Every horse is different. Every horse teaches something new. And every horse requires its own approach.
Seeing horses as athletes
That individual mindset extends beyond training and into nutrition. Price manages a large program with horses of different ages, stages and needs. Many of his horses are fed Purina® Impact® Professional Horse Feed formulated with Outlast® Gastric Support Supplement. But he always adjusts feeding programs based on the individual horse standing in front of him."You cannot look at this training business as a whole," he says. "Each horse has a specific need. You've got to know what you're feeding and why you're feeding it."
Some horses are easy keepers. Others need additional calories. Some maintain condition effortlessly. Others require a different approach to help them stay on track during training and competition. Price focuses on supporting horses long before they enter the show pen, especially since the competition season asks a lot of them.
"These horses are so much like human athletes," he says. "When you get to the mental part of it, the stress, the confidence, the wear and tear — there's a lot going on."
For horses that need additional calories or are more challenging to keep eating during stressful periods, Price often incorporates Purina® Omolene® #500 Horse Feed.
For developing horses and horses preparing for major competitions, he incorporates Purina® Amplify® High-Fat Supplement and Purina® SuperSport® Amino Acid Supplement well in advance, or even year-round, to help support muscle development and recovery as part of a long-term program.
"Those horses that are going to mark a really high score are the horses that have plenty of stamina underneath them," he says.
Still chasing the next lesson
Despite the championships, accolades and milestones, Price doesn't talk much about winning. He talks about horses. He talks about learning. He talks about the next challenge."I know I have a lot to learn," he says. "There's a lot I want to learn."
For someone who built a career around understanding horses, that may be the most telling thing of all. The curiosity that started with a horse-crazy, animal-loving kid in Illinois never really went away. And maybe that is what being an Animal Person is all about. Not having all the answers. Just caring enough to keep looking for them.
Curious enough to find out? Sign up to trial a Purina horse feed or supplement to see the results for yourself.
