Page 138 - Barrel Stallion Register 2017

LARRY LARSON
Mutual admiration and respect are a huge part of what I do on a daily basis.
by John Moorehouse
After more than two decades showing horses professionally in AQHA events, Larry Larson started feeling somewhat burnt out. Then, in 1991, he noticed a photographer at a fall show.
“Since I didn’t have any of my 3-year-old mare
on the rail I ordered a copy even then knowing the diagonal was wrong and it was extremely out of focus. My thoughts were, ‘If someone is making money selling such poor quality photographs what could I do if I actually offered a quality product?’” Larson recalled. “I wanted to remain involved in the horse industry and this was a perfect fit for me.”
Indeed, being a professional photographer at tracks and shows has become a “snap” for this South Dakota native. Larson spent a week at an equine photography clinic in the summer of 1992 taught by Don Shugart.
“I came home and photographed a five-day Quarter Horse show circuit the next weekend. It’s been non-stop since then,” Larson said.
What began as a way to avoid burnout has now become a full cottage industry. Larson takes photos and also creates promotional ads, designs websites and catalogs for customers from coast to coast. He also has deep ties to the AQHA. After 15 years as a National Director, Larson became an AQHA Director At Large in 2015. In March, Larson also was named the 2016 South Dakota Horseperson of the Year.
All this, while working as a tech and facility purchasing manager at the Black Hills Regional Eye Institute in Rapid City.
Let’s get to know more about Larson in the latest installment of our “Lighter Side” feature.
Q: Where were you born?
A: I grew up in the ranch country of north central South Dakota—a town called Mobridge on the banks of the Missouri River. It is centrally located between the capitols of North and South Dakota. I was born in Aberdeen, South Dakota, but spent many years
on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation where
my family owned a grocery store in the tiny town of Wakpala until I was out of high school. I finished my school years in Mobridge and graduated in 1972. I have lived in Rapid City since 1984.
Q: What are your hobbies outside of horse racing?
A: The horse activities and photography must be my hobbies, as I don’t have time for exploring anything else.
John Moorehouse
Q: Give an interesting fact about your family.
A: I am an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe (Lakota) in South Dakota.
Q: Do you have a nickname and, if so, what is it and how did it come about?
A: Don’t have one. I probably have many out there, but I really don’t want to know what they would be.
Q: If you were not in the horse racing business, what job would you like to have? A: My two careers are so very different from each
other and I thoroughly enjoy them both. By day, I
wear scrubs and work with a surgical team of doctors and nurses in a very busy eye surgery setting. When
I get home in the evening, my iMac comes on and
I continue on with photo editing, graphic ads, and website design. My weekends (and all my vacation days from work) involve promoting the business end of some of the most successful Quarter Horse performance breeders in the country. Mutual admiration and respect are a huge part of what I do on a daily basis.
136 SPEEDHORSE
THE LIGHTER SIDE