We'd like to welcome our New Ambassador Pedro Baiao!

February 7, 2022

Mane ‘n Tail is proud to announce our partnership with Pedro Baiao, the Award-winning NRHA professional. Throughout his career, Pedro has had many accomplishments including L1/ L2 Champion 2012 at NRHA Futurity, 2016 NRHA Futurity L2 Championship, NRBC L3 Champion 2018, and L2 Champion Senior Reining AQHA World Championship Show.

Image by Jen Kasper

What’s the Mane ‘n Tail Connection?

In the reining world, keeping your horses clean can be a full-time job. No one appreciates great grooming more than Pedro Baiao! He describes himself as “very picky” about grooming when he gets himself, his gear, and his horses ready for a show! “My wife Ana is the one that usually makes sure our horses look show-ready and for that, it’s all about Mane ‘n Tail,” Pedro told us. He continues, “We have been using the products for a year, but when we tried the Ultimate Gloss Shampoo and Conditioner it made our horses’ coats beyond soft and shiny, like never before. The Ultimate Gloss Conditioner was especially important for extremely dry tails, which happens a lot due to the arid climate! Then the finishing touch, right before we get into the ring, a final spray of Shine On…to catch the light during the performance. Everything needs to be as perfect as the performance you are about to give!”

Why Reining?

We already know that Pedro strives for perfection, but how did he get to where he is now, and why reining? Pedro grew up in Brazil until about the age of 16. His maternal grandfather had a cow farm and when Pedro was about seven or eight years old, he spent every summer there. He learned how to ride a few of the horses on the farm and it was then when he realized that he had a passion for riding and connecting with the horses.

Image by Gerson Verga

At 15 he had secured his first internship with Franco Bertolani in Brazil. That internship is where he first fell in love with reining. He went there to learn more about horses and absorbed as much as he could about reining from Franco, the head trainer. A year later, he came over to the states to do an internship with Doug Milholland, helping to train 2-year-old horses. Doug noticed that Pedro had the drive and spirit to become an expert reiner. Pedro had also learned a tremendous amount about the sport while working with Doug. His chops weren’t quite there yet but in 2005 Doug entered Pedro in his first NRHA Futurity. That was the turning point for Pedro Baiao. With the faith of a champion reiner behind him, competing in the Futurity was one of the most memorable days in his life!

A Dream…a Career

Reflecting back on his first competition, Pedro was so happy about what he experienced. He never got discouraged, even if his score wasn’t the greatest. That show changed his life and made him decide to pursue his unrecognized dream…a career as a professional reiner!

After a brief stint back in Brazil, Pedro decided to come back to the U.S. and follow his dream. In his late teen years, at 18, he worked with another legend Tiago Boechat, who gave him the opportunity to learn all about breeding and training quarter horses on Tiago’s ranch. With the knowledge he acquired, Pedro was encouraged by Tiago to learn and concentrate on becoming professional reiner with trainer Casey Hinton.

Pedro accredits Casey as a mentor and for teaching him, not only to speak better English (Pedro said for a long time he could only understand Casey, not anyone else!) but immeasurable insight and techniques to become the reiner he is today.

Throughout his career, Pedro has been a quick learner when it comes to riding, training, and developing his reining technique and picked up different parts of the business from everyone he has come in contact with. So, it was natural when he met Jim Blumer at Double J. Ranch and started working with him, that he would “get noticed”. One of Jim’s clients (Bob Anderson) that owned a horse named Wimpys Cable Lena (whose sire was Wimpys Little Step) decided it was time for Pedro to go back into the ring. Pedro was Wimpy Cable Lena’s first and only trainer and they formed a special bond. That bond and Pedro’s expertise and confidence got them the win for L1 and L2 (which was their goal) 2012 at NRHA Futurity! They came in 3^rd in L3 and in the top 10 in L4! Pedro couldn’t believe it and that night, he was "walking on air."

The Horse to Human Bond

He had achieved his dream by becoming a professional championship reiner! Since then, he has competed and brought home more championships over the years. He has had two horses in his career that have greatly touched his heart, certainly Wimpy Cable Lena and another horse Spooksgottachicolena, with whom he won the 2018 National Reining Breeders Classic L3 Open and tying for the Reserve in L4. He says that Spooksgottachicolena and he were the "perfect fit" for a horse and rider.

What is Life Like Today for Pedro?

Today Pedro has upped his game and competes regularly. He opened his own business Pedro Baiao Reining in Cave Creek, Arizona, and heads up the breeding and training program at Gordon Quarter Horses (owned by Marc & Kathy Gordon). Competing is what he loves most, and when asked what his favorite maneuver is, he answered:

"I enjoy the stop into the slide as a reiner! It is the most dramatic move that impresses the audience and it sometimes has to be done 3-4 times in a competition. The challenge is to put your signature on it and do it well!'

Friends Come to the Rescue

Speaking of challenges, Pedro and his team were faced with a pretty big one this past May. Wildfires raged across Arizona and particularly right in Cave Creek, where Pedro Baiao Reining is headquartered. What did he do? The minute Pedro heard about the fires, it seemed as if they were right in the middle of it within minutes. As luck would have it, a local show in Scottsdale was going on that weekend for Mother’s Day. Many of Pedro’s friends were attending and extremely busy. He called one of those friends anyway for some help. That friend called a few friends and so, on, and so on. Within 20 minutes Pedro had 8 or 9 horse trailers on his property and folks that were willing to help in his dire time of need. Even the town sheriff got involved to help escort 30 horses to safety in less than 30 minutes! Luckily, none of Pedro Baiao’s horses were injured and his buildings were all standing when he returned. If that doesn’t say something about the camaraderie between horse people, then what does! Pedro realizes that the community, even those he competes against, come together in a time of need and he is forever grateful.

Two essential Mane ‘n Tail products Pedro (and Ana) rely on is the Pro-Tect Shampoo and Pro-Tect Wound Spray. In reining, horses will have scratches from time to time. Mane ‘n Tail’s anti-microbial shampoo and wound spray help heal and prevent skin irritations. Both products are always great to have in the barn at all times, in case of emergency situations. Luckily, Pedro’s horses were not injured during the evacuation, but he always kept those two products in his tack room.