The “horse bug” is tenacious. It afflicts all sorts of people; it often runs in families, but sometimes it just appears out of nowhere.

When someone contracts its chronic form, only regular doses of being around horses seem to keep that vague, empty feeling at bay. If it’s competition that really “has you hooked,” it often becomes a consuming passion.

Sadly, the “price of success” in our discipline has an increasingly literal meaning. Open any issue of the Chronicle, or any other magazine, and you will read about all the incredible (and incredibly expensive) equine superstars�”as well as riders (juniors and amateurs included) who are lucky enough to devote much of their time to riding and competing. It’s impossible to dispute that the most direct path to the winner’s circle requires significant financial wherewithal. But, can it be done any other way?

In years past�”a far less sophisticated era-he answer was a resounding yes. Nearly all of us “old guard” managed to learn our craft without the benefit of attending six- or eight-week-long show “circuits,” or having strings of experienced winners to ride into the ring every day, or even full-time help from the finest trainers. Learning often required more initiative than arriving on time to “get a lesson” at home or “be warmed-up” before every class.

In my own case, learning to negotiate a 3’6″ course (at least somewhat consistently) required a two-year process of trial and error. This was out of necessity, not choice, since professional trainers were not available where I lived�” even if my family could have afforded it.

Instead, when I was about 13, a friend and I embarked upon a program of reading everything available and helping each other several days each week. In this way we managed to teach our two “Heinz 57” horses to jump around a three-foot course well enough for each of us to win a statewide “horsemastership” competition (a great concept from the old days that deserves a column all to itself someday). This goal accomplished, we set our sights higher.

My friend, Joy, went on to win championships in Western trail classes, while I became proficient enough to qualify an-nually for the AHSA Hunter Seat Medal and ASPCA Maclay finals the rest of my junior years. The financial hurdle of actually traveling east from California being just too high, my opportunity to actually participate in the finals had to wait more than a few years. And it came as a judge, not as a rider. But that’s ancient history. The question is, today, are there any alternatives to the full-time trainer, attending 20 to 30 shows a year, and riding a “made horse” in one of the highly competitive sections for junior or amateur riders?

Especially at our big shows, it often appears that this is the only way it can be done. A rider selects a trainer, and then almost every aspect of participation-he showing schedule, training and lesson program, choice of horse(s), sometimes down to the color of the riding shirt�”becomes the trainer’s decision.

Certainly, a top profes-sional will direct you along the quickest route to competitive success. And I fully understand the necessity for any trainer with a large clientele to have some hard-and-fast rules to keep a complex business functioning successfully. But, if going the big-name trainer route is simply not realistic for you, I believe someone with the “horse bug” can still find a way to achieve satisfaction and success from competing. I discovered when I was still a junior that there are two aspects of competition: competing against other riders-o earn a ribbon�”and competing against yourself-o improve on your previous performances. With horses, it’s often possible to win one and lose the other.

That’s why it’s always worth considering both aspects: While beating your competition means the fun of a nice ribbon, it’s possible that regular improvement of your own performance might be far more important in the long run. Are you one of the lucky ones who can get as much enjoyment from the feeling of making real progress as you do from bagging a hefty “ribbon count” at a show? But are you frustrated about not being in a position to afford the kind of horse required to be truly competitive in your classes?

If so, the relatively new competition for young horses might be something you should consider. Roughly comparable to the medal classes for junior riders, the Young Jumper Championship program gives young horses the chance to compete against their peers (5- and 6-year-olds) and qualify, through producing clear jumping rounds in qualifying classes, for league and national finals.

While the league finals have been a part of the Hampton Classic (N.Y.) and the All Seasons Summer Classic (Calif.) for a couple of years now, the new national final will be inaugurated next fall at the Kentucky Horse Park in conjunction with the first edition of the multi-discipline American Equestrian Games. How is competing a young horse different from a “made” horse? In my experience, younger horses don’t necessarily have to be with the biggest-name professional rider. In fact, since these riders tend to have the least time available to spend on a single “prospect,” it’s often a less well-known professional, or even an experienced junior or amateur, who’s more likely to invest the kind of time and patience needed to develop any young horse’s natural abilities. In fact, many of the 5-year-old winners in the YJC Finals to date have been ridden by or received much of their training from amateurs or professionals who don’t make regular appearances in the grand prix arena. I’m certainly not recommending that any novice rider go out and buy a young or green horse to learn how to ride. This is never a good idea. But a reasonably well-trained and experienced rider can provide basic training to most any willing and relatively uncomplicated horse.

The difference between this approach and using a very experienced rider tends not to be the final result but only the time taken to get there. But taking a bit more time is usually not a bad thing for younger horses. For a non-professional with the right mindset, and regular supervision by an experienced horseman, bringing on a youngster can be a fun and rewarding process.

One of my favorite true stories involves the horse declared “Best in the World” in 1990. Gem Twist was bred by consummate horseman Frank Chapot and purchased as a very young horse by Michael Golding. When it came time for owner and trainer to make a decision as to which rider to involve in “bringing along” this gifted but very careful horse, they chose a local junior rider by the name of Greg Best. Greg was willing and able to put lots of time into riding and then showing “Gem”�”always under Frank’s watchful eye.

It takes careful training and enough of the right kind of experience to transform that natural ability into sustained competitive excellence. Too much, too fast could have been a recipe for disaster�”especially for an overachiever like Gem Twist.

It was great timing that the horse was at the stage to need some sophisticated courses, over lower fences, right when Greg was in need of a USET Medal horse. He didn’t win the finals that year (he easily could have, except for a costly error in the gymnastics phase), but that disappointment faded when he garnered a silver medal in the Olympic Games with his “equitation horse” a few years later. If you choose the young horse route, your competitive goals become long-term rather than short-term. Instead of yearning to be champion at three shows this month, you might concentrate on venues that provide the most valuable mileage for your youngster. When considering what you want your horse to become in two or three years, the color of ribbon he wears out of the ring today might not matter all that much.

Sometimes a “win” is when your spooky colt suddenly goes as confidently and happily in the competition arena as he does at home. Should a minor injury, or a shortage of funds, dictate a break in your show schedule, it isn’t the end of the world. Greenies need occasional vacations, and training is often the most valuable thing you can do. As an owner or rider of a young horse, it wouldn’t hurt to bone up on your horse’s ancestry and that of his competition. It’s not by chance that Europe has been supplying the world with superior sport horses for so long. They’ve learned that, while bloodlines are no guarantee, the odds do improve dramatically when the performance you want is already “in their blood.” Some special horsemen have a depth of knowledge of bloodlines, along with a keen eye for real quality, giving them an uncanny ability to recognize future championship material at an early age.

Europeans also know the importance of a solid and comprehensive education, for the horse as well as the rider. Those riders with a special knack for bringing out the best in young horses are as valued for this skill as grand prix riders are for their ability under pressure.

Selecting and developing jumping prospects in this country has almost become a lost art since the influx of so many “made” horses from overseas. But I believe that interest in this aspect of the sport can be rekindled and the skills revived over the next decade.

Our own breeders really do produce so many quality young horses each year. Today, far too many of them grow up without finding the right opportunity to be developed into all they could be. If you have a full-blown case of the “horse bug” and love competition, but are tired of competing in those divisions where it sometimes feels like money is everything, give a thought to this new angle. Hunt around for a professional who has the knowledge, time and a real interest in young horses. Then do an honest evaluation of your own riding skills to see with what level of greenness you can cope.

Or, here is another idea: Link up with a young rider from your area who has an abundance of talent and desire but lacks resources. This rider could become our next Greg Best or Margie Engle with a little help and a lot of their own hard work. As you may know, a very special feeling comes with watching your green and bumbling “baby” blossom into the seasoned and capable competitor that you knew was waiting to emerge. And there’s always the chance that you’ll be really lucky and come up with the next Gem Twist.