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Reining Champion : Horsemanship: Frank Hyde, a competition rider for 50 years and an equestrian hall of fame member, has taught the sport to thousands at his Somis ranch.

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

Frank Hyde blushed as his wife, Clara, called him one of the fastest horsemen who ever lived, then hopped on a 4-year-old quarter horse named Royal Glow and gave his wife a wink.

“Let’s see if this horse can run,” the 73-year-old Somis equestrian said.

Minutes later, after a careful, deliberate warm-up, Hyde gave the signal and the horse took off. In eight seconds, he had raced the length of a 100-yard course back and forth, crisscrossing six poles along the way.

Clara Hyde, 70, barely paid attention.

“No, I don’t get scared,” she said. “I’ve seen him do it so many times . . . but it sounds kind of callous doesn’t it? Because the horse may slip and fall, and I don’t want him to get hurt.”

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The first ride of the morning made Frank Hyde as excited as a child.

“Do you want me to do it again?” he asked, smiling. And then off he went, again and again.

For five decades, Hyde has been a fixture in equestrian gymkhana in arenas throughout California, where some of the state’s best horsemen go head to head in a series of barrel races, pole races and assorted obstacle course races.

Hyde has been around horses ever since his days on a Missouri farm when he and his friends would race to school. A half-century ago he moved to California. He’s been racing in gymkhana events ever since.

And to this day, few cowboys can outride him.

Last year, Hyde won a state competition and placed second in three others, racing against men and women young enough to be his grandchildren. In 1986, he became the oldest rider ever to place a horse in the Gymkhana Hall of Fame.

Only the top dozen or so in a field of more than 1,000 competitors make the hall of fame in any given year. Virtually all of them are in their teens and 20s, and chances are that Hyde trained at least some of them.

“With me, I never try to make a horse have fear,” he said. “I rarely use a whip, and never use spurs in training. I want the horse to want to do it, so I take my time until he knows what I want from him.”

On his six-acre ranch near Somis, thousands of youngsters have learned the sport and the ethics of horsemanship.

Until three years ago, Hyde would house his pupils in his barn, which had been converted into a 20-bed dormitory. Hyde’s five-day clinics attracted youngsters from all over the state. The waiting lists were so long that candidates had to wait more than a year.

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Some of his riding students grew up to become hall of famers and returned to Hyde’s ranch to bring their children to the clinics. Hyde’s alumni became known in horse circles all over the state as “Hyde’s Trybe.”

His students swear by their mentor.

“He’s the greatest. He’s taught so many of us how to ride,” country-Western singer Scarlett Brown said.

“He helps me a lot,” agreed her 20-year-old daughter Jennifer, who has been learning from Hyde for eight years.

“He’s an extraordinary man, best person I ever met,” said Merle McClendon, an old student who is an accountant in San Jose. “He teaches us to be patient and to be fair to the horses, to be good winners and good losers, and all the other good values Frank lives by.”

Hyde gets up every morning at 6 to feed the horses and take care of the ranch, which he does single-handedly.

“I’ve tried hiring people to help Frank, but they never last,” his wife said. “They complain there’s too much work, and Frank feels they get in the way.”

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He makes his own tools and horse gear, and he rides several hours every day. He still breaks in horses never ridden, and he still helps dozens of young riders who seek him out in horse shows, call him or visit his home in search of riding or training tips.

“Been married with him for 40 years and I still wouldn’t trade him for anybody,” Clara Hyde said.

After the morning workout, Hyde chuckled when asked if this year he thinks he can possibly top last year’s performance at the state championship.

“Sure,” he replied, “because this year I’ll be older and have a little more experience.”

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