MIDDLETOWN – A parade in Middletown on Saturday, June 16 led to a young participant, 11-year-old Samantha McCarley, being bucked from her horse and nearly crushed beneath it.
Many bystanders feared the worst when they saw blood by her ear, but her parents, Rose and Chuck McCarley, said the blood was the result of scratches during a phone call with a representative of the Record-Bee Tuesday afternoon.
The approximately 1100 pound two-ton horse, which fell on the 85-pound girl, appeared to the crowd to have severely injured her head, but doctors determined McCarley suffered only an eye socket fracture there were no other broken bones. Immediately following the accident, the youth was airlifted to a children”s hospital in San Francisco, but she is now at home and doing well, her parents say.
Wearing a Native American costume while parading on her horse Jasmine on Saturday, McCarley is no stranger to horseback riding or parades. Samantha and Jasmine frequently participate in Jr. Rodeos, gymkhana, and barrel racing competitions.
Begininng at the age of 4 years old, McCarley has been riding and subsequently winning numerous awards for her talent. In 2005, she was crowned the Middletown Days Princess at the age of 9. She is active in the 4-H, NBHA, Barrel Racers and National 4D.
