Western Shooting Horse

Living The Dream of Western Skies

Diane Holmes-Purcelli’s college dream came true—and then some. It was back in the ‘80s, and a young lady from the Midwest was competing in the College National Finals Rodeo in Bozeman, Montana. “And I told my girlfriends, ‘Someday I’m going to live out here.’”

So remembers Diane Holmes-Purcelli, the Ladies 5 shooter who has been a major player in the sport for more than eight years. And, oh, yeah, she now lives in Darby, MT.

How she got there is one interesting road trip.

Diane spent her early years in and around Madison, WI. Her grandparents owned a farm outside town and had lots of horses. Her mother had a dressage background, her father was into rodeo. And her family hosted a rodeo at the farm for more than 40 years.

Some of Diane’s earliest memories come from that event: “I had my first horse when I was about three, and it was a big white horse named Meadows. My parents got me a beautiful white saddle with a silver horn, and they would introduce the families back home at the rodeo we all would ride a lap around the arena.   Meadows only knew one speed—and that was loping. So maybe that’s where I acquired the desire for speed.”

That desire didn’t diminish over time. She competed in barrel racing, breakaway roping and was an Intercollegiate Goat Tying Champion through college, and when she graduated in 1987 Diane turned to team roping. She kept her day job as an accountant.

She married Ernie Purcelli in 1993, and owned a place northwest of Chicago where they could ride horses and live a quasi-Western lifestyle. But Ernie shared the dream about moving West.  And everything fell in place. In 2005, Ernie sold his printing business, giving the couple a bit more freedom. They found Darby, MT, on a vacation and fell in love. A realtor approached them about selling their Illinois place—and it sold in just two days.

But true to their natures, Ernie and Diane’s move was more than just traveling from point A to point B. “We stopped in Rapid City, South Dakota, to compete at the Nationals while we were moving. We had two trucks and trailers, six horses, two dogs, two cats and were trying to stay ahead of the moving vans.” She won L3.

Let’s backtrack a bit. Diane and Ernie discovered mounted shooting back in 2001 via a demonstration in Wisconsin. And like so many others, they were quickly hooked. 

Unlike many others, Diane had almost immediate success, winning her first World L2 championship in 2002 aboard a big grey horse called Grey.

The Purcellis like to compete in a variety of events (not to mention their involvement in equine assisted therapy for people with disabilities). That means they demand a lot from their horses. “All our horses rope, run barrels, and shoot,” she says. “We compete in Super Horse competitions. We work them on the ranch as well as trail riding in the mountains.  Also all of the horses are used for the therapy riding programs with the kids. We believe that diversity helps the horses keep their minds balanced.”

Diane has a bit of versatility in her competition horses as well. Her main mount since 2004 has been Dottie, a 10 year old registered Paint. Diane’s success with Dottie has been nothing short of remarkable. But when Diane tore up her knee in 2006, Dottie had to adjust. The Purcellis asked Kenda Lenseigne if she’d ride Dottie. At 2006 Worlds, they placed in Pro Class and won the SIP Maturity. In 2007, the pair won the Easterns Pro Class and set a new record in the Eliminator. 

Diane now finds herself transitioning to another horse—Dottie’s half-brother Slider, also a 10-year-old registered Paint. Slider now goes to most of the major events (with the same kind of success enjoyed by his half-sister).

And just to make sure, Diane has got another shooting horse in the wings. She’s ready for the future.

Diane Holmes-Purcelli is one busy person. Pretty much everybody in mounted shooting knows that. But what you might not know is that for the past 20 years, she’s done everything in the face of multiple sclerosis. Occasionally, she goes through what she calls her “spells”—general fatigue and numbness on the right side. Several of her CMSA friends help out when she’s not feeling well. And she’s used her own experience in a positive way with her WAHL Dare to Dream shootouts across the country.

So she’s living that college dream, residing in the West (now part-time in Arizona) and riding horses. Sometimes, wishes do come true.