Frank J. Buchman

Cowboy • Horseman • Writer

Fun Loving Windom Cowgirl Most Diversified Successful

Halloween is generally the time kids want to be all dressed up in scary and fun
costumes.
Some adults like to get in on the excitement too, and TallyAnn is one of them.
Likely first recognized as a cowgirl, TallyAnn Klitzke is much more. A diversely talented educator, youth counselor, coach, pharmaceutical salesperson,
and most gifted artist.
Artistic creativity is partially where costuming for Halloween comes in.
TallyAnn combines her energetic art talents with her fondness for everything
horses to have fun and a good time.

Halloween is a special time for TallyAnn Klitzke who enjoys costuming her horse and herself with Elvis here dressed as Mini and Mickey Mouse.

“It’s been a tradition to design and make Halloween costumes for my horse,”
she said. The most recent ones include Minnie and Mickey Mouse, Charlie Brown
and Snoopy, and Maleficent Fire-Breathing Dragon.
“Diversified” is likely the only encompassing description for the ambitious
woman who’d probably be satisfied with “TallyAnn is a cowgirl.”
Raised in western Kansas, TallyAnn graduated from Quinter High School and
then received degrees from Fort Hays State University. She has a bachelor’s in
education and a Master of Science in school counseling.

Presley heads for the finish line with TallyAnn Klitzke aboard stopping the clock with a winning time.

Now making her home on an 80-acre farm near Windom in McPherson County,
TallyAnn is a fulltime pharmaceutical sales representative.
“I have three dogs that greet me with happy tails when I return from work each
day. I love them to pieces,” she said. “I also have some loyal beef customers in
which I enjoy feeding out black Angus steers for butcher.”
Horses have always been close to her heart. “I’m often accused of being ‘born
on a horse,’ however my riding didn’t begin quite that early,” Tally Ann said. “My
mother Karen Stewart was raised on a horse ranch being an accomplished rider and
competitor. I was seven when I started riding.”
Riding her neighbor’s sorrel stocking-legged, blaze-faced feedlot gelding
Ponch, TallyAnn participated in her first horse show. “That was the beginning of
riding at Kansas Western Horseman’s Association (KWHA) shows as a child and
teenager,” she said.
For her eighth birthday, Tally Ann got her very own horse. “Mom came home
on a frigidly night with a great surprise, a tri-colored Paint weanling named
Thistledown,” TallyAnn reflected.

Elvis carries TallyAnn Klitzke to win the western jumping at Verndale, Minnesota.

After Thistledown, TallyAnn rattled off more than a dozen horses she’s owned
and ridden throughout decades. “Stub, Ranger, Booker T, Slammer, Blondie, Jim,
Bear, Pride, Flaxxy, Cactus, Elvis, Ace, Wasp, and more,” she counted. “That leads us to where I am today with Presley and Fleetwood. It would be nice to have
another horse for visitors to ride.
“Elvis was my super star for years and I was heart-broken when he passed away
about a year ago. Ladies and gentlemen Elvis has left the building for the very last
time,” TallyAnn said.
“Training my childhood mounts to compete certainly lent a hand to the rider I
am today,” she added.
Horses are expensive hobbies and even more so for young cowgirls. “I aways
had farm jobs lined up for money to buy winter horse hay,” TallyAnn said.
Highlight of the cowgirl’s college years was being crowned Miss Rodeo Kansas
1996. She swept the competition including Miss Congeniality, public speaking,
horsemanship, modeling and more.

An all-around cowgirl, TallyAnn Klitzke proves diversity riding Elvis to a third-place finish in bareback barrel racing. She was one of the oldest competitors in that division.

TallyAnn finished in the top five at the Miss Rodeo America pageant during the
1997 National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. She placed high in state promotion
display, photo album, and speech competitions.
Attending Fort Hays State University, TallyAnn was a member of the rodeo
club. “But I did not compete on the rodeo team because I was working every
weekend, putting myself through college,” she pointed out. “I was in my 40’s
when I made my final student loan payment, but the struggle was worth its weight
in gold.”
TallyAnn served as art and tech instructor as well as track and cross-country
coach at Lyndon and Holcomb school districts. “I implemented a discipline-based
curriculum motivating students to excel,” she said. "Coaching strategies
highlighted the value of athletic competition in future careers.”
For several different companies, TallyAnn has worked in pharmaceutical sales
the past 15 years earning numerous awards. “I have sustained success with top 10
percent performance,” she said. “I have a tenacious drive, passion to make-a-
difference, corporate integrity, and unwavering ethical behavior.
“I currently work for Idorsia, a new company to the United States.” TallyAnn
noted.
She’s competed in the Central Plains Rodeo Association, Kansas Professional
Rodeo Association, National Saddle Club Association (NSCA), and team sorting.
Among standout memories for TallyAnn is winning the NSCA champion
saddle at Verndale, Minnesota, in 2011. She won the barrel racing at both the
Marquette and Brookville rodeos a few years back.
After an eight-year hiatus, TallyAnn returned to KWHA competitions this year.
Riding her chestnut mare Presley at the 2022 KWHA Show, TallyAnn won the
highpoint women division 18-50.
She also placed in the top five at the 2022 NSCA Kansas O-Mok-See patterned
horse racing.

Arena successes have not been without setbacks. “I hold the record for a history
of being involved in some of the most unbelievable ‘freak’ accidents,” TallyAnn
said.
“Yes, it takes an athletic well-trained horse with a will to run competitively at
the state and national levels,” TallyAnn admitted. “However, equally important is
the horse be sound minded, able to quickly change gears between speed events and
judged classes.
“Presley is one of the most even-tempered, no-nonsense horses I’ve had the
pleasure of swinging my leg over,” TallyAnn continued. “I have yet to find
anything she isn’t willing to do with a smile upon her muzzle.”
A big buckskin gelding called “Fleetwood” has been on the “backburner,” but
TallyAnn looks forward to his arena competition.
“Everywhere we go, Fleetwood brings his big bright personality too. His antics
crack me up on a daily basis,” she said. “My plan is to finally have him going
strong by the upcoming season.”
Reflecting importance of horses to her during her youth and adult life, TallyAnn
is eager to help others with their horses. “I give riding lesson to a few kids each
summer,” she noted.
“I’m competitive no matter what I am doing, and this doesn’t hurt when your
career is in sales” TallyAnn said.
“Aside from riding, fishing with my dad, Steve Klitzke is absolutely my
favorite thing. I cherish every second, catching or not,” TallyAnn insisted. “Here,
we fish for largemouth bass and go to Colorado for trout. I plan to come back as a
fisherman in my next life.”
Looking to her future, TallyAnn assured, “I will own and ride horses for as long
as I’m well and able.”

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