NRHA’s Brandon Brant has excelled in two very different arenas.
The small town of Somerset, Pennsylvania, is known for its rich agricultural industry and is where National Reining Horse Association Professional Brandon Brant was raised. While his counterparts in the reining industry are well aware of his skill with a horse, they may not realize that before he became a top trainer, he was an excellent hockey player.
It all began at the early age of eight years old. A friend by the name of Chad Ziegler suggested he should try out for the hockey league. Brant was hesitant as he was not familiar with the sport, but Ziegler reassured him that his father was the coach and that they could teach him. That decision would change Brant’s life forever.
For the next four years, Ziegler would pick Brant up at 4:30 a.m. every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to go to practice for the Johnstown Chiefs. “It was incredible, Cliff was a tremendous help to me, he taught me how to play and got me started,” Brant recalled.
Over the years, Brant moved up through the hockey ranks. Once in high school, he played for the Somerset Eagles, his school’s hockey league. At that point, Brant’s talent was spotted by recruiters, and he was picked up to play in Junior A, which is the equivalent of the football league XFL, the tier just below the NFL.
Moving up to Junior A meant more than just a new level of competition; it necessitated joining a brand-new team in a new country. As a high school junior, Brant moved north to British Colombia, Canada, to play for the Merritt Centennials. (Quote about living in Canada from Brant)
While in Canada, Brant was drafted to play for the Ontario Hockey League but turned it down because by signing he would forfeit college eligibility. Brant returned home to Pennsylvania to graduate high school.
While hockey took up the majority of his time in high school, it was then that Brant was first introduced to horses. “I had always liked horses but had never really been around them,” Brant explained.
Brent Specht, who played hockey with Brant, lived at a training facility where his mother, Patti Specht, had pleasure horses. “I always wanted to be a cowboy,” Brant admitted. “Hell, I had never even ridden a horse, but I started cleaning stalls for them and next thing you know, we were starting horses.”
Soon after, Brant’s father surprised him with a horse to ride. That horse helped foster a love of horses that would continue to grow over the years.
With the intent to play Division 1 hockey in college, Findley University was a fitting choice as they had an equestrian team as well. Brant met with the hockey coach and explained he was wanting to play hockey and join the equestrian team as well, and the coach agreed; however, at the onset of the semester, the coach had changed his mind. Due to the coach requiring full commitment to the hockey team, Brant opted to continue with the Equestrian program and leave Hockey on the table. During Brant’s junior year that coach resigned and Brant joined the hockey team while continuing with the equestrian program for the next two years.
In 2005, Brant graduated from the University of Findlay with bachelor’s degrees in Equestrian Science and Business Management and plans to continue in the horse industry. As for hockey, Brant explains he “hung em’ up” and aside from beer leagues with friends, never played competitive hockey again. He honed his reining skills first by working under Gabe Hutchins and then for Jordan Larson. Brant now manages his own training facility in Columbus, Ohio, and has Brandon has accomplished many significant wins in the show pen including the 2010 NRHA Derby Levels 1 & 2 Champion and Level 3 Open Reserve Champion, several All American Quarter Horse Congress championships, and multiple other big wins and finalist finishes bringing his LTE over $646,000.
Brant attributes his passion and dedication to playing hockey. “It taught me how to be competitive, and how to work hard,” Brant explained. “When I was young playing hockey, I wanted to be the best, and I played every single day. There wasn’t a day I didn’t skate.”
Along with the mental aspect that has helped drive him, the physical aspect plays a key role as well. The years of hockey did not come without consequence. Brant remembers getting stitched up on the bench and taking ice baths to recover from injuries. He also got bursitis in his elbow from a chip that broke off, and his arm swelled to the size of a beach ball. Much like the horse industry, injuries were not an “if” situation but a “when.” He explained, “When I signed with the teams in Canada, I had a personal trainer. It was serious. Anytime you are an athlete, you must consider the proper training and recovery time. It has really helped my program. Training a horse to be confident physically.” Treating each horse like the athlete that he once was, Brant cultivates their training programs to each individual horse’s abilities. He brings them to their full potential while instilling confidence in them and paying careful attention to their soundness to perform. He continues to learn all that he can and build on the skills he has always reaching to become better than he was yesterday and NRHA Million Dollar Rider status. He is dedicated to working hard, striving for quality, and endeavor for the day that he will be looked at as ranked among his heroes, NRHA Hall of Fame horsemen. He is known for saying, “If something’s not a challenge, I’m just not interested in it.”