United States Eventing Association

Ten weeks ago one of my students and her boyfriend came up to my wife and I and asked if they could ride out around our cross-country course together. My immediate thought was this guy has never ridden before…this could be a disaster. I thought for a few minutes then said I’d make a call to one of my other students to see if she minded him riding her old mare. She said yes and so the adventure began.

I lent him my britches, helmet, boots, and half chaps and showed him how to tack the horse up. We then went up into the dressage arena where we went through the basics and he got on the horse. I should say that he had been out to the barn many times helping Debra Moon, his girlfriend, and watching us ride. He rode around for a little while practicing what we had gone through.

To say this guy was a natural and easy to teach would be an understatement. After about half an hour I felt they would be okay to go out back for a romantic walk together. He asked if I was going to came out and watch, and I thought, ‘This is strange, why would I want to watch a couple walk around our cross-country course?’ I said, “Why do you want me out with you?” and he said “I want you to teach me how to jump.” Well, I have heard of jumping in at the deep end, but I thought I was the only idiot that did that. But he was serious, so off we went.

We started off over some logs on the ground, then just as I was about to say ‘Why don’t you try the Beginner Novice log?’ he was coming straight at it. My heart came up into my mouth but he just sailed over it like a pro. We progressed on to do a variety of Beginner Novice and Novice fences, all of which he did perfectly. At the end I said right you are now ready to go to a local schooling show next weekend. That show he won. So I said he should do the Pat Burgess clinic (who was coming the next weekend--that went great and she couldn’t believe he had only been riding a couple of weeks, let alone won a competition. We then entered him for another schooling show the following weekend…well he won again.

“Right now you are ready for the big time,” I said. “Join the USEA and enter Briar Fox at the end of May.” He went out bought all the clothes and practiced every day. He won that event. His next event he wasn’t so luck--he finished 5^th and qualified for the AEC. So to everyone out there, it just shows you what can be achieved in a short time if you put your mind to it.

(Photos courtesy of DeMarc Lyons.)