“Why mustangs?” mustang buyer Kate Logan was asked.

She and her husband Bruce have purchased four mustangs — Peaches, Gus, Jackpot and Maloca — over the past several years at the Meeker Mustang Makeover.

Kate said they bought the mustangs because they love horses and they like to rescue animals.

“The wild horse population is a problem with so many in holding pens, so we thought, ‘Hey, let’s do something to help with that problem rather than going out and buying a registered horse,” she said. “We want to be part of the solution, and similar to any rescue animal, these animals need a permanent home.”

Kate said the Mustangs are confident and beautiful, and other than their size, they are very similar to her quarter horses.

“I’ve never had to shoe my mustangs thanks to their strong feet,” she explained. “When I do take them through rocky trails and through trees, they are very sure footed. They can both follow or lead — they are confident sturdy horses for almost all areas of riding.”

Started by a group of citizens from Meeker five years ago to help find homes for mustangs in captivity, the annual event has grown every year, adding more horses and a youth division with 10 yearling wild horses. This year’s makeover will be Saturday after an opportunity for introductions on Friday.

The event has attracted many area trainers over the years, and this year the area is being represented by 12-year-old Jakob James of Oak Creek.

Working with his mentor Rouven Krauer at the Chalet Ranch, James said he has “fallen in love.”

“Training a mustang is a different type of relationship,” he said. “Nothing can describe what I learn from them.”

During the Meeker Mustang Makeover, the once wild horses will show off their training as they compete through an obstacle course, move cows and put on a freestyle show that each trainer invents with his or her own creativity, a highlight of the event that can include other animals, obstacles and surprises.

Each youth participant who satisfies the obstacles receives a $500 scholarship check. All trainers receive half the proceeds of their sale, with the remainder going to the next year’s event. Two clinics are provided for each set of trainers to help them through the challenges of training a wild horse in only 120 days.

Steve Mantle of Mantle Ranches is an experienced mustang trainer, and he takes sometimes up to two hours with a trainer to help them through the important first steps, haltering, loading and lunging.

“I’m involved in lots of mustang events, but I especially love this one because it’s all about the ultimate success of the partnership between the horse and the trainer,” Mantle said.

Longhorn Video Auctions, owned by partners Kail Mantle and Denise Dodge, provides the auctioneers, with support from Level Head Audio for the livestream along with Cimarron Communications, so that the public can both watch the event and bid on the horses at the end. The feed will be available on facebook by searching @MeekerMustangMakeover.

According to organizers, the livestream helps the event reach viewers and bidders around the world, and horses have sold from $150 to $10,000, giving every buyer a chance to take home a horse with 120 days of training.

Transportation can be arranged for buyers who are unable to attend the event, but buyers must register in advance. Applications for bidding can be found at MeekerMustangMakeover.org.

Beyond that, this year’s event will include activities for all ages, face painting, pony rides, photo ops with an authentic old stagecoach, roping stations to learn to rope and costumes from the 1800s. There is a party for the public the night before called the Mustang Mingle, featuring Mustang Margaritas from the local Lion’s Club, and Western dancing, music and a competition for the best Western outfits. All events are open to the public.

A wide variety of trainers with different backgrounds come from all over the West.

This year Lucia Vanoplinus, 16, of Boulder is training a 1-year-old mustang, after training another one when she was 14.

“I love working with mustangs,” she said. “They are good at so many things, and working with an untouched mustang is so special.”

Her horse this year is Cedar, a little sorrel yearling with a blonde mane and tail.

In the past, the event has drawn 20,000 views on the auction site and attracted 67 buyers. For more info, go to MeekerMustangMakeover.org.