Juanita Koth is a flag bearer for the important place horses hold in the Temecula Valley – literally and figuratively.
As a founder of the Temecula Eq-Wine Riders club, Juanita and her team often carry flags in parades, for color guard ceremonies and exhibitions. As an individual, Juanita carries a figurative flag for all who love horses and want to see them included in the region’s future.
Juanita advocates for the equestrian and rural lifestyle throughout the Valley, for places where “regular” people can keep and enjoy horses. And for the general public to have access to the joys and benefits that access to horses offer.
It’s both a lot and the least she could do given that it was horses who led Juanita to Temecula in the first place. She grew up in San Diego County’s Escondido. “My grandparents had a 20-acre ranch that now has 80 tract homes on it.”
“I know what it was like to get on your horse and ride into the mountains, out on the trails and then back home. Now going back to that area in San Diego, people would never dream that you could ride a horse through those foothills.”
She visited family friends in Temecula throughout her youth. In college, Juanita helped cover expenses by training young Quarter Horses from Wildomar horseman Clyde Morris and developing them for sale.
An Equestrian Community
It was during that time that Juanita began to dream of living in Temecula, thanks in large part to the Los Ranchitos housing development.
“It is one of the oldest equestrian communities in Temecula, and one of the first that I knew of where you could have an affordable place to live on five acres, keep horses and have equestrians as neighbors. I knew I wanted to live there some day.”
Career and marriage took her to Texas for a while, but when her husband was transferred to Southern California, Temecula beckoned.
The appeal of Temecula’s rural, horsey lifestyle is such that Juanita didn’t mind the commute to her job as a critical care nurse at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego for the past 20 years.
She joined the Rancho California Horsemen’s Association and expanded her network of trail riding friends and horse enthusiasts. For Juanita and her favorite cowgirls, galloping through winery vineyards epitomized the Temecula equestrian lifestyle. This “perfect blend” of horses and wine spurred the idea for the Temecula Eq-Wine Riders club.
As people and businesses moved to Temecula, Juanita foresaw the need to cultivate win-win relationships between the equestrian community and those propelling Temecula’s population growth and commercial development.
Looking for Win-Wins
“We wanted to form a club that would help support the business of the wineries,” Juanita explains of her proactive approach. “A lot of people would come ride in the vineyards, but then not support the business. Our idea was to come ride here, then water, feed and hitch our horses and go in and have lunch.”
Today, 17 of Temecula’s many wineries have hitching posts so visiting riders can do exactly that. They were installed by the Rancho California Horsemen’s Association that has long advocated for the equestrian lifestyle in Temecula and beyond.
That cooperative concept was applied more broadly as Eq-Wine Riders cultivated sponsors, staged trail rides at special venues including Galway Downs and the California Ranch Company, and brought their horses, drills and color guards to many charitable events.
Those opportunities and requests for public performances led to the formation of a sister organization, the Temecula Cowgirls Parade and Drill Team – again helping horses have a place in the public spotlight.
Among many appearances, the Cowgirls have ridden in the Rose Parade, performed at Galway Downs and led Temecula’s big 4th of July parade. The team has a resume of many first-place parade awards, but the “thrill of drill” is what they love riding the most.
Temecula Eq-Wine Riders Club continues to serve its core function of organizing safe, fun trail rides throughout Temecula and beyond. Training clinics, fundraisers and camp-outs are membership offerings. All Club members are automatically made members of the California State Horsemen’s Association.
TEWR prides itself on fostering “saddle pals to last a lifetime” and promoting responsible, respectful horsemanship on the trail and in the city.
A Big Umbrella
While equestrian competitive sports can seem siloed in their specific disciplines and/or breeds, Juanita stresses that all horse owners and fans “should be able to stand under the same umbrella.”
“A horse is a horse,” she asserts. “Whether it’s a Three-Day Event horse, a Western Ranch horse or a Mini, the passion for the horse and the relationship with the horse transcends the different disciplines. Everybody who ever loved a horse, rode a horse or even fantasied about a horse should be under that umbrella.”
Everybody’s help is needed to maintain a place for horses – even in such a horse-friendly area as Temecula.
“We’ve had to show up at City Council meetings and fight tooth and nail for trails that were there for decades,” she explains. “We have to protect trail easements. Once fences, gates and concrete go in, it’s very hard to get the trail back.” The same goes for safe connectors between trails throughout the area.
Temecula Valley Rural Lifestyles is a non-profit 501c3 dedicated to the preservation of Wine Country’s Trails Network. “Temecula Eq-Wine Riders have donated our money, time, support and talents throughout the years in an effort to achieve our shared goals,” says Juanita. “Multi-use trails are not only for equestrians but also for hikers and bikers to enjoy our beautiful, rural community.
Having horses in Temecula is great for tourism, too, Juanita notes. “Whether it’s me walking my pint-size Mini through Old Town, or a horse pulling a wagon for the Temecula Carriage Company, the Temecula Cowgirls in a parade or us riding in the vineyards, random people often stop to take our pictures. They see us and shout “Hello cowgirls and cowboys!’”
For more information, visit www.temeculaeqwineriders.com.
