United States Eventing Association

IEL Team East Coast Eventers Uses Social Media to Bring Team Members Together

Sixteen-year-old Izzy Lenk (Clarksburg, Maryland) loves eventing and absorbs any opportunity she can that allows her to be further involved in the sport. She recently just wrapped up a month-long working student stint with her trainer Woods Baughman in Lexington, Kentucky, and participated in the Young Rider Mentorship Program at the Young Rider Eventing Championships. She is especially proud, however, of her ongoing efforts of supporting the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL) Club that she founded, the East Coast Eventers.

“I wanted to form a group of my own where all of the members could feel really close together,” noted Lenk. “So I thought, ‘Let me just post to my Instagram story and see who wants to be on an IEL team!’ and a lot of people responded.”

Now at 20 members, the East Coast Eventers has new members joining every year. While some IEL clubs are formed within barns or schools, it is not a requirement to create a club. The East Coast Eventers opted to create a friendly team atmosphere for riders all up and down the East Coast to join. While they may all be in the same vicinity as one another, even if they only get to see their teammates in person once or twice a year, the club’s virtual presence has created friendships that will last a lifetime.

“It is such a great group of girls,” said Lenk. “It was just really me running it, but now everyone is starting to play a role in helping out. It is the perfect number too. We are small enough that we know one another and can realistically be friends with each other, but we have enough representation that we almost always have at least one member at a show in our area!”

Lenk’s hope was to just bring like-minded young riders together, no matter their zip code. Newer member Peyton Frankovich is the perfect example of how the East Coast Eventers makes that possible and still facilitates a supportive team environment. Frankovich resides in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and is a bit further away from some of her teammates, but the club’s active social media pages and group chat keeps her involved all year long.

“We have a huge group chat and all of the members of the team are always chatting in that. We are always wishing each other luck at the events. And me personally, when I know one of my teammates is competing at an event, I am constantly stalking the live scores, so I can cheer them on!”

When Frankovich and Lenk both qualified for the 2024 USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) presented by Nutrena Feeds (Lexington, Kentucky), they immediately knew they had several people in their corner thanks to the club’s connections.

“It was my first time doing the AEC and it was so nice actually knowing someone in those huge divisions,” noted Frankovich. “It can be stressful to be in a huge division of strangers, but having someone you personally know in there that supports you and cares about you and wants you to succeed as well was super. It truly made me feel like I could do it!”

In total, there were five members of the East Coast Eventers competing this year at the AEC: Lenk, Frankovich, Gretche Wolfe, Claire Allen, and Sophia Stolley. The AEC was the perfect opportunity for the club to get together in person. They wanted to hype up their time together, so they created a social media strategy to support one another during the event.

“After each division, we would do a recap on that phase and how it went, that way all of our team members could follow along and really see what was happening at the Kentucky Horse Park,” said Lenk.

Lenk, Frankovich, and Allen all had top-10 finishes at this year’s Championships, which was the icing on the cake of an amazing opportunity to be together with their teammates in such a huge championship atmosphere.

“It was the best experience ever,” said Frankovich.

About the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL)

In August 2020, the USEA Board of Governors approved the creation of the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL) as an official program of the USEA. The mission of IEL is to unite junior riders who are in the 5th—12th grade and provide a supportive community through which students can continue to pursue their riding interests. A group of junior members in the 5th—12th grade who share a common bond, such as the same barn, school, Pony Club, or other connection, can register with the USEA as an IEL Affiliate. The second annual USEA Interscholastic Eventing Championship will be held alongside the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship at Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, on May 3-4, 2025. Click here to learn more about the Interscholastic Eventing League.

The USEA would like to thank Bates Saddles, Horse & Country, Kerrits, Nunn Finer, Sidelines Magazine, U.S. Equestrian, WeRideTogether, and World Equestrian Brands for sponsoring the USEA Interscholastic Eventing League.