Jon Marc Skunkcap, Indian Relay rider, reflects on 22-year racing career
Jon Marc Skunkcap (left) and Adrien Honena collide during the Fort Hall Indian Relay Association National Championship races on Thursday, September 4.
By LIZZIE BOYD
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL — It has been 22 years since Jon Marc Skunkcap started relay racing, he recalls starting his career racing at the young age of 11 years old starting with a chief race for Mountain Timber relay team.
Skunkcap is now 33 years old and said he remembers starting relay racing when he was thirteen years old.
Jon started riding relay horses cause his dad James was also a jockey, Jon looked up to a few mentors, his dad James Tone, his uncle Hardee Skunkcap, Alonzo Coby and his main idol was Willie Kirkaldee from Montana, and wanted to be like him and mimics his style by riding with no hands when coming into the finish line.
Today Jon is a jockey for White Knife relay team, he recently competed at the Eastern Idaho State Fair National relay championships. On Thursday during day three of the races, Jon was in the lead during the second exchange of heat one and was clipped on his way out of the exchange by another horse and rider, the horses both rolled throwing the jockeys off and onto the track. Jon only recalls waking up in the ambulance and stated, “I thought I got kicked in the head cleaning my horse’s feet out before the race, and thought I still had to race. But my family explained what really happened.”
After being taken to the hospital, Jon received four stitches across his nose and was cleared by the doctors to go home and compete if he chose to race in the final two days at the fair. Jon said, “I felt I could still get it done, and make some money so I chose to still compete in the last two days of the EISF relays.” Jon explained his head really hurt when he competed, but he pushed through and his horse he competed on in the accident was ok but was sore, Jon said, “We took care of him, gave him medicine and some time off.” He said jokingly, “My horse was probably in better shape than I was.”
Jon would like to encourage the up-and-coming riders to stay off drugs and alcohol, get a good education and a good job to support their relay endeavors. “Never try to make relay the only thing, always have something to fall back on to support yourself.”
“Always try to do as many sports as you can growing up, stay active and healthy. Take care of your body, stretch, do yoga”. Jon also said, “Sports is what helped me out a lot, I use to run track when I was younger and it kept me going and kept me active, there’s not a lot of riders my age or younger that still ride because they didn’t do the things needed to take care of their body.”
Jon would like to take the time to thank his entire family so much, especially his wife Linda, his grandma Marlene, his mother Jamess, his father James and JM Mechanical for their Eastern Idaho State Fair sponsorship.
Jon will compete in the Chief race and Relay races in conjunction with the Pendleton Roundup and PRCA Rodeo starting September 10 through September 13. Jon spoke about their horses they will use, he said, they pulled some horses together, White Knife will be using a couple new horses while they compete in Pendleton, Oregon.
Jon also believes in prayer; he wants to thank everyone who prayed for him and sent well wishes.
