For 20-year-old Jumpin’ Joe Jackson, winning at Halstead Downs is quickly becoming a summer tradition, but the horses and the growing crowd of young fans are what keep him coming back to the track.
Taylor Weaver – Meridian Source
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Jackson, riding for the Poitras Relay team, captured his second consecutive championship title at the Lloydminster Extreme Indian Relay Racing event on July 26, marking his third overall career victory at the venue.
Reflecting on the victory fresh off the track, Jackson was quick to share the credit with team owner Curtis Poitras and his family.
“I’m just fresh off the championship and grateful enough that I won the show two years back-to-back now,” Jackson said. “I just want to shout out to Poitras Relay, Curtis Poitras and the family for taking me in and giving me these opportunities.”
The high-energy sport, which requires riders to jump bareback from one horse to another across multiple laps, drew packed stands to Halstead Downs over the two-day event on July 25 and 26.
Jackson, who grew up in Good Fish Lake, Alta., and now resides in Meadow Lake, Sask., to stay close to his team, noted a clear surge in fan interest compared to past years.
“The crowd was unreal. I love seeing the Lloyd crowd this packed,” he said, pointing to recent national exposure as a catalyst for the sport’s momentum. “The relay’s been growing and that’s what we like to see. Calgary Stampede broadcasted us and it’s bringing more fans that haven’t seen it all over the world.”
Despite starting his men’s relay career at just 11 years old and considering himself a “young veteran,” Jackson sees his role on the track as expanding beyond the finish line. As the sport’s popularity rises, he aims to serve as a role model for the next generation.
“What I look forward to is the young kids that look up to me,” Jackson said. “That’s the biggest thing for me is signing autographs and putting the kids first — having someone they can look up to, ’cause I never had someone to look up to besides my family.”
While the thrill of competition and the lifestyle of travelling to new tracks every weekend remain major perks of the job, Jackson emphasized that the heart of Indian Relay always comes back to the animals.
“The favourite thing about the sport is the horses,” Jackson said. “It’s the horses that bring all these people together. At the end of the day, it’s the horses that I enjoy.”
With another championship checked off in Lloydminster, Jackson and the Poitras Relay team plan to keep their momentum rolling as they continue their summer circuit.
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