Crash jeopardizes Winton girl’s hope of competing in Draft Horse Classic

A 14-year-old Winton girl known for her work with rescued wild birds and horses may not be able to show her draft horse at an upcoming event after her family’s truck was totaled in a single-vehicle crash over the weekend.

Audrey Esau was on her way home from the Stanislaus County Fair on Sunday night with her mother, Jessica Esau, and her 9-year-old brother. About 11:45 p.m., the 2007 Toyota Tundra her mother was driving crashed into a telephone pole on Walnut Avenue, near Chestnut Lane, in Winton, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The cause of the accident is under investigation by the CHP, but Jessica Esau said she was forced to swerve to miss an oncoming vehicle that had crossed into her traffic lane, causing her truck to overturn.

Audrey Esau suffered head injuries and was transported to Memorial Medical Center in Modesto. Jessica Esau sustained back injuries and was flown to Doctors Medical Center, also in Modesto, the CHP said. Audrey Esau’s brother was not injured.

Jessica Esau on Tuesday said she and her daughter are home and doing better. She is thankful everyone is OK, but she is upset that Audrey will not be able to make it to Nevada County in September for the annual Draft Horse Classic. Without a pickup, there is no way to transport Jake, Audrey’s 10-year-old Percheron she planned on showing.

The accident also leaves many expenses, and traveling to Nevada County, where they’d have to stay for a few days, would not be cheap, Jessica Esau explained.

“Financially, we won’t be able to do it,” she said. “We’re already on a shoestring budget.”

The teen had been preparing for the draft classic for more than a year. The night of the accident, she had been working with horses at the Stanislaus County Fair.

Audrey Esau had been doing weekly training sessions to work on her showmanship. This would have been her second year attending the classic and she was hoping to score some Junior Awards.

“It breaks my heart that she won’t get to go this year,” her mother said. “We’ll just have to put all our efforts into next year’s (event).”

This story was originally published July 14, 2015 at 12:34 PM with the headline "Crash jeopardizes Winton girl’s hope of competing in Draft Horse Classic."