When Gina Plantz was graduating from the junior divisions, she had a tough decision to make. She’d always been a rider on a budget—in fact, she’d never even owned a horse as a junior.

“I was a working student during my junior years,” she said. “I never actually owned my own horse until I was 31. I was always a catch-rider.

“Probably like a lot of juniors right now, I struggled in thinking about whether I wanted to ride as a career or go to school. When I went to school, I just gave up riding. I was so into riding that I knew I couldn’t balance the two things well,” Plantz said. “And I knew I wanted to get back to it. I always knew in my heart that if I was going to get back into it, I was going to do it and try and be competitive.”

So, after she graduated from Widener University (Pa.) with a degree in chemistry, Plantz spent 10 years working at her career without horses in her life. “I spent the time to build up my career and my budget so I could start riding again,” she said.

Then, about 10 years ago, she ran into some old riding friends from her junior days at a restaurant. “They offered to have me come ride, so I started out again riding friends’ horses,” she said. And Plantz, now 42, was back in the saddle. Now, she balances a thriving career as an environmental engineer with showing her horse Coming Up in the high amateur-owner jumper divisions. “I’m at a high point in my career right now, too, and to be doing that alongside riding at this level is just great,” she said.

After years without horses in her life, Gina PLantz is back showing in the high amateur-owner jumper division with Coming Up. Photo by The Book LLC

After she’d been back riding friends’ horses for a bit, Plantz took the plunge and bought the first horse she’s owned. “I bought a 2-year-old for $1,000. She was a Dutch Warmblood and I backed her and brought her along,” she said.

She ended up showing up to the 1.20-meter level with that mare. In 2011, Plantz decided to take the mare to ride with Chris Kappler, who is based at the former Hunterdon—now Va Pensiero—in Pittstown, N.J. She’d known Kappler from her junior years, and knew he’d be able to help her achieve big goals. “I got bitten by the bug big-time again when I started showing at the bigger shows. I said, if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it right,” she said.

She sold that first mare on to a junior rider and used the profits to buy another mare, “It was the same process of catch-riding, buying something with a very limited budget, working my way back up again,” she said. “She really got me back into the ring, being competitive at the 1.20- and 1.30-meter level. It was selling her that helped me buy Coming Up. Without having her and selling her, I wouldn’t have this horse.”

By the start of 2015, Plantz knew she wanted to show in the high amateur-owner jumper division and some small grand prixs, but she didn’t have the budget for a horse with experience at that level. “The only reason I was able to get a horse like this was because I had the time and wanted to help develop the horse,” she said.

“I’ve been lucky enough to sit on a lot of different horses in my life, and when I tried him, it was instant love. He is such a neat horse. I love developing horses; that’s the one thing I loved doing as a junior rider, bringing them along.”

Gina Plantz and Coming Up, the horse she describes as “my perfect one.” Photo courtesy of Gina Plantz

Coming Up was an 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood at the time with some mileage at the 1.35-meter level. Plantz spent 2015 getting to know the horse she calls “Pi” (she bought him on March 14 and “I’m a bit of math nerd,” she said) and showing just five times, ending up in the low amateur-owner classes.

During the 2016 Winter Equestrian Festival (Fla.), Plantz and Pi moved up to the medium division, and ended the circuit in the 1.40-meter highs, even earning a ribbon in one class.

“Then when we went to Old Salem [N.Y.] in May, the goal was to do the classics, so he did his first 1.45-meter at Old Salem. It was unbelievable. It was one of the highlights of my career,” she said. “Then qualifying for the $250,000 junior/amateur class at HITS Saugerties (N.Y.] was one of my big goals for the year, and to make it to the second day and get a ribbon, I was really happy with him.”

Gina Plantz and Coming Up showing in the Black Barn $250,000 Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Prix at HITS Saugerties. Photo by Corryn Schenkel

Plantz doesn’t get much time to show—she works from home Clinton, N.J., when she can (and can be found on her laptop in the barn aisle frequently) but also spends a lot of time commuting to California for her job. She works with utility companies to help them clean up contaminated sites.

“I tend to tell people that my home base is wherever my dog and horse are. I do spend more time in San Francisco than anywhere else,” she said. “If I’m home on the East Coast, the nice thing about working for a client in California is that with the time difference, I have my mornings free. So I can go to the barn and ride, then work later.

“This is absolutely kind of a dream right now, the way I’m able to do it and balance it with work,” she said. “My work and career are pretty darn stressful. But when I ride and when I’m around the horses, that’s the only time I’m not thinking about it. So it’s so nice to have that escape.”

The hectic schedule of work on both coasts and riding keeps Plantz busy and doesn’t leave room for much else. “I have a lot of great friends in both places, but you do make a lot of sacrifices to have a full-time career and try and ride at this level,” she said. “I’m happy with where I am right now.”

The team at Kappler’s helps keep Pi at his best while she’s jetting from coast to coast. “The program at Hunterdon and with Chris is absolute love and respect for the horses. So, I never worry when I’m away. I know my horse is in wonderful hands,” she said. “Chris loves riding him, so he’ll trail ride him all week for me.”

This year, not only did Plantz achieve her goals of showing in the high amateurs and having good trips in the $250,000 HITS Saugerties class, but she and Pi also jumped around their first grand prix together—the $25,000 Grand Prix of Princeton (N.J.) in August.

After showing at the American Gold Cup (N.Y.) in September, Plantz gave Pi a vacation from the show ring. “We’ve been trail riding and having fun and he’s getting fuzzy. We won’t do anything until we get to Florida. I’d really love to keep competing at the higher levels and do some smaller grand prixs,” she said.

“He definitely has it in him. His full brother was a successful 1.60-meter horse, so the plans are to do some 1.50-meter classes this winter. With one horse, it’s tough to have grand visions!” said Plantz. “I like showing—don’t get me wrong, I’m very competitive. But the real fun of it for me is really seeing the horse develop. I love that about the sport.”