I teach a few kids year-round, but I see a lot more of them during the summer months, when school is out. I love teaching kids—they are funny, goofy and ambitious. You can tell them to do anything, and they’ll do it. They don’t get scared like adults do, don’t overanalyze like adults do, and seem to have a lot more fun than adults do. There’s a lot to be learned from kids.
Next up on our competitive calendar is the Youth Team Championships, an unrecognized show that USDF sponsors in every region. Riders compete on teams, but at all levels, from Intro to FEI, as well as on mixed teams. My first show, age 11, was one of these, and having participated in them in three different regions, the Region 1 show is quite a sight. There are awards for Most Colorful Pony, a tack room decorating contest, a crafts table in the show office, and volunteers who can’t help but catch the contagious, youthful energy that bounds around.
I coach the team from my local GMO, the Commonwealth Dressage and Combined Training Association, every year, and we have a pretty slick track record: two years, three teams, three Championships. It says a lot about the quality of the horsemanship that my girls have, which says great things about the Pony Clubs they belong to and the trainers they work with on a daily basis. My job is easy-peasy: I swoop in at the last minute and get to take all the credit. Great gig, no?
In all seriousness, to get ready for the show, we have a coaching session at my place a week before the show, where we just work on tests. Each one of them rides through the tests once or twice, and we pick ‘em apart. What is the correct size of a 20-meter circle? Where, exactly, do the center loops of a three-loop-serpentine cross the centerline? When told to pick up the canter between two letters, where should the rider ask?
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Of course, if there’s some glaring problem we talk about it—more forward, less inside bend, whatever—but these guys come very well-prepared, so we can just talk shop and get the job done.
It’s a great day. Most of these riders are eventers, because that’s what most kids ride in this part of the country, so working in a 20×60 ring is new information for them (in eventing, most tests are ridden in a 20×40 ring, up to the highest levels). And no matter their base discipline, sitting down and dissecting a test isn’t always the first thing that comes to mind as they prepare for a show, so it’s fun to watch them soak it all up.
They all look great, and they all look prepared. Fingers crossed for the weekend!
