PREMIER - June 2024

DOING IT ALL

Lana Markway

EMBARKS ON NEW ADVENTURE IN BREEDING INDUSTRY

Horses have always been part of Lana Markway’s family. In fact, you could say she was born into it. “I was born in 1989 and in 1990 I was showing in the Leadline.” As a youth, she got her start in the paint horse industry. “Horses run deep in our family,” she says. Markway had a strong youth career, amassing multiple AJPHA titles and accolades.

Markway says she traveled a lot as a youth and had several talented equine partners. In 2003 & 2006, she was Reserve World Champion in Showmanship at the APHA World Show with her partner Zipmund Freud. Showmanship was one of her favorite classes early on, and still is to this day.

“I won my first buckle in showmanship in 1997 when we were Reserve World Champions. I was still doing stick horse classes when I won that first buckle. In 1998, I was world champion at the APHYA World Show in 13 & under. I was just a little kid out there running my heart out,” she says.

In 2017, she was Reserve World Champion in Equitation at the APHYA World Show with her partner R Kid Rock. Showmanship was one of her favorite classes early on, and still is to this day.

Markway’s grandfather had horses and her aunt was an APHA trainer. Given her family’s strong roots in the industry, Markway enjoys doing much of the work with her horses on her own. “Horses have always been a family thing for us,” she says. “I have been buying horses, making them myself, and then selling them for many years.” As an amateur in 2018, Markway earned number one amateur status for APHA and was Reserve World Champion in Amateur Showmanship with her mare CR Love Like Crazy. That year, she hauled the mare herself with the help of her mom.

CR Love Like Crazy began Markway’s appreciation for talented mares. She says, “She was only four and had never been shown when I bought her as a three-year-old. She was a cool horse.” Markway notes that the prevalence of weekend shows made the success attainable. “Looking back, I’m not sure how I made it work. My mom went with me every weekend. I worked for the state of Missouri at the time, and we mainly went to weekend shows.”

For Markway, the accomplishment fulfilled a goal she’d had since her time in youth. “At the end of the year, I was shocked I was number one. Looking back, I think, what was I doing. But we just made it work and picked the right horse shows. Plus, my horse at the time could do it all.”

After selling her horse Machromes, Markway made the decision to transition to AQHA and began showing quarter horses. After years of buying, training, and selling her own horses, Markway has decided to explore a new portion of the industry. “I’m really focused on buying mares at this point,” says Markway.

Now, as Markway ventures into this new area of the industry, she is starting a breeding program with one of her all-time favorite mares and current show partner, quarter horse mare Only En La Moonlite.

Before now, Markway says she didn’t have much interest in breeding, but after years of being on the road, having a project at home became more appealing. “At this point, I think it’s something I should do and will give me

something I can do at home without needing to be on the road by myself all the time,” she says.

“Plus, Markway adds, “I have a mare I really like. She’s reliable and wants to please. I really love her, so I think she is the one to start with.” Markway bought Only En La Moonlite or Harlow in 2022 after selling a three-year-old she’d started herself. “I needed something to show, and I kept seeing her online. She was in St. Louis. She does the all-around and has points in just about everything,” says Markway, noting that the mare excels in the all-around events including horsemanship, equitation, trail and showmanship.

What Markway loves most about the mare is her willing attitude. “She just wants to please,” she says, “She shows great. You always know what you have, and she doesn’t require a lot of preparation. I never thought I would buy something that was eight years

CR LOVE LIKE CRAZY

old that I would be able to teach the showmanship.” But Harlow was up for the challenge and together she and Markway have earned multiple accolades. “We pointed out of green very quickly,” Markway says. “We won a lot in Missouri and won a lot for year end. Together we won a triple crown event. She’s just a fun horse to go ride and show. Over the years I have had a lot that could be tricky. She’s reliable.”

Currently through ICSI, Markway has one embryo from Only En La Moonlite and Makin Me Willy Wild in a recipient mare. With four frozen, she looks forward to further solidifying her breeding plans as the year progresses.

Along with Harlow, Markway also owns a yearling mare she purchased last year by Makin Me Willy Wild and out of Journee, a Battman mare. “I’ve known I wanted a Makin Me Willy Wild baby for a while now. I bought my yearling on a bit of a whim last September,” Markway says. “Debbi Trubee sent me a video of the one mare she had left, and I bought her from the video. That’s just how I tend to do things.”

Get Your Wild On or Odie has surpassed Markway’s expectations with her great mind, movement, and trainability. The young mare made it easy to decide to do the longe line events this year. “She’s so easy. I worked with her a lot over the winter, and she came along really well. I thought, why would I not do the longe line with her.”

Markway is excited about the mare’s potential for a future as an all-around horse. Especially given the talent she’s shown for the showmanship. “She may be the best showmanship horse I’ve ever started,” says Markway. “I’ve had some really great showmanship horses in the paints, but there’s something very special about her.”

This year, the pair are competing at The Premier in Kentucky, and then plan to attend the NSBA World Show. “I like showing in Missouri as well, so we plan to do a number of those shows,” Markway shares.

Along with the two mares, Markway also owns an AQHA/ APHA double registered gelding who is in training with Cochran Quarter Horses. The three-year-old gelding named Hay Darlin or Twitty is by Hay Good Lookn and out of the mare Come N At Ya Hot. “I bought him off a video two years ago, Markway shares.” Adding, “He does the pleasure and could definitely go on to do the

HAY DARLIN

all-around. He’s beautiful. It’s hard to not love a black horse. My mom and I bought him together in the midst of selling another mare. I started him myself and then he went with the Cochrans after The Premier last year. He’s special because he’s the last double I own. The Cochrans have done a great job with him, and we are all excited to see what his future holds.”

Markway’s future likely includes focusing in on her new venture in the breeding world. “Right now, I have too many horses,” she laughs. “I have to rein it back and look at where we go from here. As a trainer’s niece, I feel like the right situation for every horse always comes along.”

Her passion for horses is evident in her years of dedication to doing her own work from the ground up. Now, she has her sights set on the next phase of her life in horses. “I have a love for watching and making horses. Living without my horses is very hard. I have to have something at home to ride. If I had more funds, I’d have way more horses. But I don’t have as much help at home as I used to, and I’d like to attend bigger shows, so I’d like to put more horses in training and keep some broodmares around home,” she shares.

Markway and her husband live almost an hour from her grandmother’s farm, and she notes that their lives involve a lot of logistics to make everything work. “My husband is an attorney in Kansas City, and he recently made partner in his firm,” she says. “He enjoys the horses because I enjoy them. He’s a big supporter and is very competitive. He’s learning about the horses and always wants us to do well. He loved

The Premier last year and is looking forward to it again.”

When she’s not showing horses, Markway works as a social worker for a community mental health organization. “I really enjoy it,” she says. “It keeps me on my toes, and since COVID, it’s been nice to be back out in the community. It’s the type of job where you really feel like you’re making a difference.”

Looking ahead, it’s clear that Markway wants to make a real difference in the industry she loves by building a strong breeding program that’s built on a foundation of strong mares.

She’s also eager to continue her strong history of building her horses from the ground up. “I’m really looking forward to showmanship with Odie. I think she’s really cool. I’ve never had a horse that paid this much attention this young. She’s giving me vibes that she’s a horse that just loves her job and loves learning. She wants to do it and that’s something special.”

Article Written by: Elizabeth Arnold

Photography by: Kirstie Marie Photography, Rachel Reilly Photography & Rachel Griffin Photography

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