Lenna goes to the Reno Rodeo

As the Reno Rodeo Wish recipient, Lenna Fagan and her family were invited to sit in the president's box, front and center, at the Reno Rodeo on June 20. Lenna spent very little time there because she was enjoying the rodeo from behind the scenes.

The 15-year-old Gardnerville Ranchos resident rode a horse into the outdoor arena of the Reno Lifestock Events Center, made a speech in front of thousands of rodeo fans and rode her horse again with the flag team in the show's finale.

"I've been on horses before so it wasn't that hard to get back on to ride," Lenna said. "It's easier staying on with two legs but I can ride with one."

Lenna was born with one leg. Her journey to acquire a prosthetic leg came after she expressed the desire to carry things in her arms instead of walking with crutches.

Lenna and her parents, Mel and Meredith Fagan, were introduced to Washoe Valley prosthetist Rick Riley, who met with the Reno Rotary and the Reno Rodeo Foundation when it was time to design a leg. The charitable foundation donated a big chunk of the $47,500 price tag for the microprocessor-controlled C-leg and made Lenna the 2007 Reno Rodeo Wish recipient.

Lenna's leg arrived last November but she is still going through an adjustment period. She hopes to be more used to wearing the prosthetic leg by the time she goes to Douglas High School as a sophomore in the fall.

"This summer I have to work on my leg and see what I can do," she said. "I'm going to try to be around horses."

She said she's willing to muck out stalls to get a chance to ride.

"It doesn't hurt when I'm around horses, so I can wear my leg as much as possible," Lenna said. "I wore it the last day of school, a half day. It still killed me but I hope to get used to it. I'm improving on the leg."

Lenna and her family rode in a car in the rodeo parade June 16 and participated in Reno Rodeo events every day afterward. The highlight event was being guest of honor in the June 20 rodeo.

"Someone did my hair and makeup," Lenna said. "We had dinner but I only had a fruit cup so I wouldn't get sick. I was so nervous."

She was in the president's box just long enough to be interviewed for Channel 2 News but it was soon time to get ready for her appearance in the rodeo.

"I calmed down but I had to breathe about 500 times," she said.

Lenna rode out into the middle of the rodeo arena on a paint horse named Little Bit, owned by Claudia and Jeff Watkins. She had been training with the Watkins' daughter Gabby Watkins and rode with her in the rodeo.

Lenna was awarded a belt buckle and the same scarf the flag team receives. She gave a speech and waved her cowboy hat in the air.

"All this wouldn't be possible without the help of Rick Riley," Lenna said as she acknowledged the prosthetist who was in the grandstand that night.

"The best part was the belt buckle," said Lenna. "When we were getting ready, I kept telling Marie (Baxter of the Reno Rodeo Foundation) that I needed a belt buckle. I think she had a hard time keeping the secret that they were going to give me one.

"The buckle says, 'The Wildest, Richest Rodeo 2007, Reno, the Biggest Little City.' They let me lope out of the arena and the crowd went wild."

What wasn't planned was that Lenna got to ride a second time with Claudia and Gabby Watkins and the rest of the flag team in the rodeo's finale.

Lenna said it was nearly 1 a.m. before she went to bed after her rodeo appearance and didn't have a hard time sleeping until the following night.

"I kept dreaming about what my future is going to be after all this," she said. "I'm going to stay around horses because then I can wear my leg more. This week I wore it five days in a row."

-- Sharlene Irete can be reached at sirete@recordcourier.com or 782-5121, ext. 217.