Extremely accomplished horse trainer and clinician John Lyons is getting ready for the 2009 Road to the Horse, not by practicing and improving his training techniques but by preparing for the competition physically.  Lyons will be competing March 14-15 in Franklin,Tennessee against Tommy Garland and Richard Winters for the title of Road to the Horse Champion.

"I plan on getting in as good shape physically as I can.  Most of the guys out there are half my age.  I'm not going to do anything different training wise though.  I've trained 4,000 to 5,000 horses in my career, and this is a challenge because of the time restraint, but I have over 25 years of knowledge," said Lyons.

Using the deep well of knowledge that he has acquired over the years, in combination with his new workout plan, Lyons will surely give his younger competitors a run for their money.  Although his son, Josh Lyons, has competed at Road to the Horse, John has never before tested his hand in the competition.

"I went to Road to the Horse last year to cheer for Ken McNabb who is a longtime friend of mine.  He went through the very first trainer certification program that I taught.  Road to the Horse was such a fun thing and I thought if Tootie wanted me to, I would throw my hat in the ring," said Lyons.