Lila Owens and Best Made Machine Double Down at the 2025 APHA World Show
Double down – (phrasal verb of double): strengthen one’s commitment to a particular strategy or course of action, typically one that is potentially risky.
Lila Owens has owned Best Made Machine, aka “Marshall,” since he was two years old, and since that time, not only has he become a phenomenal horse, but he has earned some other terms of affection.
“Marty, Marshmallow, Martian – he has every name under the sun,” says Lila about the chestnut overo gelding by Machine Made and out of Beyond My Best.
Marshall has earned his place in everyone’s hearts at the Simons Show Horses, and definitely in Lila’s. “He’s reliable, he wants to work with you all the time, and he loves his people dearly. We all treat him like gold – he knows he’s the king, and we remind him every single day.”
Those were just a few of the reasons Lila wanted to go for a new goal – winning the second year in row in two events: Amateur Showmanship and Amateur Trail, won first in 2024 by the team at the APHA World Championship Show.
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- The 2024 champions! The duo won Amateur Showmanship and Trail at the 2024 APHA World Show.
Since Marshall is thriving in Sara Simons’ program, Lila and Marshall set their sights on winning the two classes again, which included the Non Pro Trail Sweepstakes, at the 2025 APHA World Championship Show.
And they came through with flying colors, winning the Amateur Trail, including the Non Pro Trail Sweepstakes, and the Amateur Showmanship. Lila says she had the confidence to win because she knew that Sara’s amazing program is the right fit for the gelding, who works incredibly hard for them. “He likes to feel like he’s doing well for us and he likes to make his people proud.”
Read Lila’s EC interview from 2024 after their showmanship win:
Lila Owens and Best Made Machine win Amateur Showmanship | Equine Chronicle
See complete results for 2025 Amateur Showmanship:
See complete results for 2025 Amateur Trail:
See complete results for 2025 Non Pro Trail Sweepstakes:
