“I'm your human buddy, I'm your new best friend,” says Saunya Bolton as he stares inside the
mustang’s pen.

Just hours after getting her mustang home Saunya is fully aware of the challenge ahead of her--the physical of course, but there is also an emotional one as well

“They see a wild horse they think they are beautiful, but until you handle them you don't really get how intense a relationship the two of you develop,” says Saunya.

But those emotions are going to have to go on the back burner. That's because Saunya needs to concentrate on the tasks at hand with the mustang-- working on ground skills with the horse so that once she gets on his back, it won't be traumatic.

Ground driving starts in a matter of days.

“It helps desensitize a horse, they have the ropes around their back legs, they learn things wrapped around them or under them or beside them, its not going to hurt them. I teach them to stop, back up, turn,” says Saunya

She'll also need to teach mustang 4518 how to trailer load so that he can get to Ft. Worth Texas with her for the Extreme Mustang Challenge.

“The trailer rattles and its not a situation a wild horse would be caught in,” says Saunya.

On this day she will pony the mustang. For that she'll commandeer her big Quarter Horse Presley for some help. He's well trained and very intimidating.

While the mustang is scared at first, Saunya says he's ready for this big step.

“Gets use to having a horse close to him, gets him use to having me up above,” says Saunya.

Down the street and into the desert, the mustang forgets his fear and starts to tire as Presley and Saunya work him back and forth at a canter. Walking home, he's much more calm, and soon he'll be ready for the big step.

Saunya gets help from Nick Lenz who after riding the mustang with Presley and Saunya leading in the round pen, takes the horse by himself----with no incident,

“They are such trusting horses, once they trust you. He's brilliant, he's smart, he's kind, he's coming along really extremely well,” says Saunya.