COEUR d'ALENE — At the age of 3, Makendra Patzer decided to set aside childish things for something that would last her a lifetime.

"I woke up one day and I told my mom, 'Mom, I’m not doing dolls anymore. I’m doing horses,’" Patzer said Monday. "It’s been horses ever since."

Now, at 18, the new Coeur d'Alene High School graduate has a dazzling display of plaques, belt buckles, trophies, saddles, stirrups and ribbons that reflect her success when it comes to showing quarter horses.

And she, with the help of a brown quarter horse named Charliesgothappyfeet, did it all in one season.

"Charlie’s really where I got all my success for the last year," she said. "I only leased him for a year and we showed from April until the first week of October, and I think I did OK."

Although Patzer has loved horses her whole life, she didn't start taking riding lessons until she was 9. Patzer was active in 4-H through school and met some wonderful mentors along the way.

With high school graduation looming and thoughts of university not too far off, Patzer made the decision to dedicate her senior year to showing quarter horses.

“I made every ride count because I had to,” she said. “I think it really paid off."

Patzer said while she enjoyed 4-H, she was ready for the next step.

"I really wanted to go competitive because I really liked being up at that higher level," she said. "It’s the littlest things that counter your points and what placement you are, and it’s about the refinement of your skills. Everybody (at competition events) has the same set of skills; it's all about the little things, the little movements in the saddle or how the horse looks, things like that."

Of the many facets of showing horses, Patzer said she particularly enjoys "trail," where horses and riders in Western attire navigate obstacle courses, and "hunter-under-saddle," which is all about a horse's movement and manners.

"Trail is all about obstacle courses with the different gates, and it’s about smoothness and how many times you hit the pole," she said. "That was where Charlie really shined, those two events. Even though he’s a short horse he still did really good."

At the 2015 American Quarter Horse Association Level 1 Championships for the West in Las Vegas last fall, Patzer brought her training and passion to a new level and did exceptionally well. She competed in nine events — she made it to the finals in six of them and placed in the top 10 in four of the six. In two of the final events, she placed sixth.

She said a mentor told her how difficult it was going to be — "'It is tough competition and don’t get your hopes up, but you’re probably not going to make it into the finals or anything because this is the best in all the states,'" Patzer said. "Well, I kind of wanted to prove her wrong. That’s me. You give me a limitation or a challenge and I go for it. I don’t like being held back," she said with a smile. "I did OK. The competition down there, very very hard, but it was truly worth it."

Patzer is also active with the Mountain States Quarter Horse Association and the Idaho Quarter Horse Association, both of which surprised her with awards for her tremendous rookie show year. She earned the all-around first place youth and novice youth awards and two saddles from Mountain States and she was awarded youth reserve (second place) and novice youth reserve with the IQHA.

She also claimed the Idaho Intermediate Rider of the Year for Youth award, "which basically means I’m the No. 1 rider in Idaho for 2015 for youths."

"They sent me a belt buckle, they had our names in the magazine,” she said. “That was one of those awards that I didn’t even know I was eligible for. It just kind of happened. It showed up one day and it was pretty cool."

Along with having a great 2015 showing season, Patzer also graduated fifth in her class.

"Not only is she an outstanding rider, she’s also an outstanding student. Her dad and I are both very proud," said her mom, Jena Patzer. "It’s her work ethic and her love of horses that came through. This kid bugged me from the time she was 3 until it finally worked, and it definitely worked. The love of horses that she has, it helped her grow as a person. It gave her that confidence. To see her in the saddle, the poise and the grace, to be able to get up in front of 150 riders and be the first one out, and to hold your composure — that’s maturity, that’s the growth that I saw and that was outstanding."

Makendra said when you have an opportunity in your life, "you should take it."

“The opportunity presented itself for a reason and I am so glad I took this opportunity to go do it because I learned, as myself, I can really count on myself to pull through — competition-wise, work ethic-wise, having a dream and going for it. That is the coolest part, I’ve learned confidence in myself in that respect.”