Rocky Mountain Riders Saddle Club is 70

Seventy years ago a group of Columbia Falls horse enthusiasts got together to form the Rocky Mountain Riders Saddle Club.

Today, the club is still going strong. The saddle club will host its 69th annual O-Mok-See Saturday, July 27 and Sunday, July 28 over heritage Days weekend.

The Rocky Mountain Riders were founded May 25, 1949. One of the first trips they took as a group was a ride toward Cedar Lake where “they braved spring rains” noted a front page story in the Hungry Horse News.

The riders included Molly Bolsen, Cal Crouch, Mr. and Mrs. Don Doane, Ray Ellman, Al Greene, Phil Hulit, Barbara Larkin, Lewis, Arly, Carol and Earl Moody, Mrs. Norman Stringfellow, and Will Warner.

Today they host a number of events over the at their small arena off Highway 2 just west of Super 1 Foods, including O-Mok-Sees, rodeos and even chariot races. With their log cabin clubhouse, which was donated and moved to Columbia Falls after being used in the construction of the Hungry Horse Dam, the saddle club still boasts nearly 40 members and competes in competitions around Northwest Montana every summer.

“We are all about horse safety, fun, knowledge and having a good time,” club secretary Kathie Arvidson said. “It’s not all about the competition. Every week, you learn something new and everyone is very helpful and encouraging.”

Arvidson’s father Don Doane, was a founding member of the Rocky Mountain Riders Saddle Club and was its first president in 1949.

So, what is O-Mok-See? It might be best described as an obstacle course on horseback.

Riders must take on a number of challenges in a series of races, including pole bending (riding in and out of a series of vertical poles), barrel racing, rescue races (where riders have to pull another rider up on their horse and sprint to the finish), western jumping and more.

While winners sometimes receive trophies, ribbons or just a sack of grain (depending on the club’s finances at the time), Arvidson says the races are more about having fun and making friends than competition. The best thing is that the races are open to all skill levels, from beginners to seasoned riders.

“All it takes a horse that likes that kind of stuff, but it doesn’t take a whole lot of training,” Arvidson said. “They really catch on pretty quick, but it can take years to become the top dog. It just takes practice.”

The term O-Mok-See comes from the Blackfeet, who described a particular style of riding as “ oh-mak-see pass-kan” meaning “riding big dance.”

According to the National Saddle Club Association, the Riding Big Dance was principally a war ceremony. Before setting out on a mounted expedition against the enemy, the warriors of the camp performed this dance as a part of the prelude of stirring up courage and enthusiasm for battle. Warriors would dress in their finest clothes, decorate their horses and gather at a spot outside of camp. They then rode together at full speed into the great camp circle, circled around it once and then rode to the center of the camp. In the center were a number of old men and women who sang special songs and beat drums for the horsemen. The horsemen then rode their trained horses to the rhythm of the singers and drummers. If anyone fell from his horse during the ceremony it was considered an omen of bad luck.

O-Mok-See was the name the Helena Trail Riders chose to call their annual field day races in 1944, and the name quickly gained popularity.

The Rocky Mountain Saddle club held its first O-Mok-See in 1950, and drew more than 1,500 spectators, according to a Hungry Horse News article from the time.

These days, O-Mok-Sees are held across Montana and beyond and the Rocky Mountain Riders Saddle Club competes in the Western Division of the Montana State Saddle Club Association, along with clubs from Troy, Libby and Kalispell. Each year, the clubs each host one competition with one also hosting the fifth, and final competition. This year, Columbia Falls will host the finale races during Heritage Days.

The races get underway Saturday, July 27 at 11 a.m. and continue Sunday, July 28 at 10 a.m.

While there is some seating available in the stands at the arena, Arvidson recommends spectators bring lawn chairs and set up under the shade of the pines on the west side of the property.