United States Eventing Association

Ocala, Fla.—Jan. 2—The premise of Day 4 of the USEA Emerging Athletes Under 21 (EA21) National Camp was simple. After a quick morning lecture, head down to the show jumping ring and warm up as if at a show with one of the EA21 coaches. Ride one show jumping course without any input or instruction then ride it a second time with feedback from David O’Connor, EA21 Director of Coaching.

For 12 riders, odds of it being 12 different versions of the same feedback was low. Yet consistently for every rider, it was a quiet remark of “use your gaps” and “create the shape.”

When O’Connor said, “use your gaps,” he was referring to the stretches of the course where the fences are far apart. In that space, what he called ‘the gap,’ he encouraged riders to connect what they had done on the flat on Days 1 and 3 to their show jumping ride; transitions of lengthening and shortening within the gait and making sure their lines of communication were open and working with their horses. If a rider asked a question of their mount, did they get a response? Was it the correct response?

“Create the shape” was what needed to happen in those gaps. Different types of show jumping questions called for a different canter shape. A double of fences such as a vertical to an oxer asked for a different canter then an oxer to a vertical. An oxer with a liverpool underneath needed a different shape from a vertical with a gate as fill. The shape of an approach may be different for a line then a single fence.

For Gabriella Ringer, attending National Camp for the first time and cross-selected for the 2026 USEF Eventing Development U25 Program, every day has been a new experience with a new catch ride three out of the four so far. “I have gotten to ride a few horses that are all very different from one another, which just adds to the learning that I came here to do,” she said. “That makes it a little bit different than building a relationship with the catch ride. But I think ultimately, it's just as valuable to learn on multiple different horses and see where I can transfer the skills that I'm learning about in the lectures.”

Her mount today, a catch ride generously provided by Sara Kozumplik, was a different ride from her own back home. “This horse today was quite keen, and he was a good jumper! He was pulling me to the fences, and it was a challenge. My horse at home is a little bit more of a physical ride, and I have to do a little more supporting. It was a learning experience to sit there and allow the power and the energy and stay out of his way, then immediately on the landing side, go to packaging him up again.”

Attending also in her final qualifying year, Ringer feels the weight and excitement of the moment. “This is a huge deal to be able to come out here and to do this,” she said. “Only so many girls
get selected, so it's a huge honor. There's just a bunch of things that I can now take and implement; from even from our first dressage lesson on a horse that is so different than my own. I immediately want to go home and ride my horse on the day I land back in California and practice again.”

Riley Zgrebnak, also attending for her first time, is finding the experience just as fulfilling. “I'm having a ton of fun, and I think I've learned a lot,” she said. “Definitely some things that are different from what I normally do, but some things are the same.”

Zgrebnak brought her own horse to the week and found some breakthroughs in the ride today. “He had a little bit of a break, and now he's back in work, I've been struggling with his connection. David was really able to help me with that.”

Competing in a fast-paced sporting event is not always conducive to bringing together communities of like-minded individuals, but the opportunity to slow down and spend time thinking and working on the same things has been a boon for Zgrebnak. “It's a lot of fun getting to know everybody. Normally at the shows, you don't have a ton of time to just chat with people, but we've really been able to do that,” she said.

Max Corcoran, who has served as USEA President, USEF Eventing Elite Program and Team Facilitator, and worked as a longtime five-star groom, including to O’Connor and his wife Karen O’Connor, generously came yesterday and today to give her own talks on horse care and management. Conversation spanned the gamut from nutrition to emergency vet kits to travel tips to barn management systems. Questions came fast and relentless as participants took advantage of her wealth of knowledge.

As the finale of the day, David borrowed one of the participant’s horses who had some concerns about ditches to both help prep for tomorrow’s cross-country riding and to provide a demonstration of groundwork. Participants learned how to communicate on the ground and how to watch the horse’s thought process, discovering where horses solved the problems on their own and how they could support that while riding. He credited Gene Lewis with helping him learn the importance of working the horses on the line. “[Lewis] said to me, ‘if you ever get stuck, put them on a line, and you’ll see it.’ All that is is a puzzle to solve of who’s causing the problem. And he was right.”

Quick Links:

• Meet the EA21 National Camp Athletes
• 2025-2026 EA21 National Camp Fast Facts
• Learn more about the USEA EA21 Program

About the USEA Emerging Athlete U21 Program (EA21)

The purpose of the USEA Emerging Athletes U21 Program (EA21) is to identify and provide consistent quality instruction to the next generation of elite event riders. The aim is to create a pipeline for potential team riders by identifying and developing young talent, improving horsemanship and riding skills, and training and improving skills and consistency.

The USEA Emerging Athletes U21 Program was launched in 2022 with a model of five summertime regional clinics taught by carefully selected USEA Eventing Coaches Program (ECP) coaches, leading to a winter national camp consisting of selected Young Riders from the regional clinics. Athletes who are 21 years or younger, are current members of their USEA Young Rider Area program, and are established at the Training Level or higher, are eligible to apply for the EA21 program. Click here to learn more about the USEA EA21 Program.

The USEA would like to thank ARMA, Bates Saddles, GGT Footing, Horse Illustrated, Kerrits, PulseVet, Ride iQ, Schneiders Saddlery, Sidelines Magazine, WeRideTogether, and YETI for sponsoring the USEA Emerging Athletes U21 Program.