Meet Kaylee!
Hi, welcome to 2K Performance Horses located in Clemons, lowa. Here is where I get to provide great horses to great people.
My name is Kaylee Kapraun. I grew up in central Illinois where my family had a horseback riding stable. My childhood was spent trail riding, hunter jumping and breaking naughty ponies to ride and drive. I always knew that I wanted to work with horses full time.
After high school, I was privileged to move to Texas to learn how to start colts, ride with legends in the reining horse industry and sale fit high quality horses for auctions. My time spent watching how top facilities operated taught me so much more than just how to ride and train a horse. It taught me about barn management strategies, equine marketing, pedigrees, conformation of the horse, work ethic, patience, compassion, long nights, and early mornings.
After my time in Texas, I decided to move back home and put what I had learned to the test by competing in an Extreme Mustang Makeover. Gus was my first mustang. We had 100 days to go from untouchable to the competition in Fort Wort, Texas where Gus would be auctioned off to meet his forever family. It was a success! W did it and he got an outstanding home. Looking back, if only I had learned how to show a horse and stay on pattern we would have made the finials. So, I did 5 more Mustang Makeover competitions. Each 100 days. Wild and untouchable to competing against talented horsemen and women.
In the following years, I started my breeding program with a son of Smart Chic Olena. Smart Sanlena Fox was a stallion I fell in love with and purchased. He was very broke but came with some baggage. “Mr. Fox” taught me the importance of putting the relationship first even if it meant sacrificing your immediate goals. During that time, I started showing in AQHA ranch riding and qualified for the world show on a horse by my stallion, Freck O Lena Fox “Dan.” I absolutely loved the babies of Mr. Fox. They were diverse, athletic, willing and had dispositions that fit many different people. I continued to show his offspring and knew I needed to become a better showman for them to be successful.
To gain a deeper understanding of scoring and what judges want to see, I scribed for a while, put on a couple open ranch horse shows, and went to an American Ranch Horse Judges seminar. I spent countless hours studying with flashcards so I could remember all the penalties for each class that the American Ranch horse association has to offer. I took my judges test and became a carded ARHA judge. In the few years that I judged shows, I was able to watch a lot of horses and riders. That opportunity was exactly what I needed to become a better showman. However, judging horse shows was not what I wanted to do full time.
I was training horses for the public, giving weekly riding lessons, running My family's boarding stable, raising colts, and selling a few horses. Of all the things I was doing, getting to play "match maker" when helping customers find their perfect horse, brought me the most joy.
In 2020, my family and I sold the riding lesson facility in Illinois. I moved to Iowa to pursue my dream of riding my own horses and offering them for sale.
I am now privileged to make horses for people every day! I have several brood mares and raise a few babies each year. Mr. Fox is still with me but is no longer able to reproduce. He has the easy life and still enjoys being ridden. His legacy will live on through a select group of his daughters I plan to keep and show. As I grow my breeding program, the plan is to offer horses for sale that I have taken start to finish.
Through my journey, I have learned if you tap into your heart, you will tap into the horse's mind. My goal is to be able to provide people with safe, versatile horses with winning dispositions. If you would like help finding your next equine partner, please reach out. I am happy to take your call and look forward to speaking with you personally about finding the right horse for you!