Nealia's Articles
A Personal Perspective: Inside Equitation
By: Nealia McCracken
Equitation instructors to me always seemed to be a small, elusive group of people. How people got in this group was always a mystery to me. There didn’t seem to be a test or standards or any kind of initiation to get in, but those people were there nonetheless. Occasionally a new trainer would be in there and a person that had been in that club would be out. This group always seemed to me to be very trendy with clothes and styles of riding and they seemed to move from one trend to the next in unison without the average trainer seeing any clues or hints of how they operated as a group. In other words, they seemed to be on a different level and very unapproachable to the trainers on the outside. In early spring 2001 Stephanie Sedlacko came to our barn in her last year of equitation with the goal of competing in all three finals; ASHA Medal, Good Hands and UPHA. While I have had successful equitation riders in the past my business only allowed me to take on a limited amount of riders at one time. One of my proudest accomplishments was having Amy Schwartz winning two of the three Pleasure Equitation Finals in one year and having my name below Lillian Shively’s on the winning trainer’s plaque for UPHA. Even though it’s been several years, I was going to have to run with the big dogs again. I had always heard second hand that the DeLovely equitation riders spent a lot of time on lesson horses practicing their skills. I have seen many of the equitation stables bring practice horses to the shows, but it was not until a show in July of this year that I witnessed Cricket Hill’s Miss Piggy patiently giving countless lunge line lessons to their students (equitation and performance). This really attracted my interest. This was the first time that I had seen a glimpse of what really goes into some of the top equitation riders of today
Lisa Richardson and Kristin Spann spent hours of patient quiet teaching on their school horses with all of their riders. Lisa’s teaching style attracted my interest as well as my daughter Jessica’s. At that show a decision was made that Lisa would evaluate Jessica to see if her desire to ride and compete on a top level was as intense as it needed to be and equal to her desire to show performance. Secretly I hoped maybe she would not go into this seemingly cutthroat division. This is how my current introduction to the inside of the equitation instructors group came to be. The Cricket Hill family opened their arms to Jessie even though we did not have an equitation horse at this point.
With Louisville right around the corner Jessica was sent to a camp for Cricket Hill students (many other equitation stables hold these camps). I envisioned Jessica going to something similar to a “boot camp” for equitation riders where the head instructor would stand for hours instructing the children holding on to a riding crop. The instructor would whip these kids into shape for Louisville. She might even have a slight German accent. (You vill ride like this!!) [I have learned that most all equitation instructors are dictators when it come to details like clothes, hair, cleanliness, etc) In reality while the camp did work intensely on equitation, the kids were encouraged to develop friendships and camaraderie among the same kids they would be competing against. They also were required to get their horses ready for a small show they attended at the end of the camp. The kids were even allowed to ride in the truck with Michael hauling the horses to the show. They feel that this allows the kids to be appreciative of the people that put in all the work that allows them to be successful in the show ring. Oh by the way—my daughter has done this a million times so she decided to ride in the car with Lisa. After camp Lisa said she would like to see Jessie show equitation with her at Louisville and would make arrangements to have her share a finished equitation horse. I couldn’t believe my ears at how this stable worked together to even share a horse at Louisville. It was unbelievable. I do not think I ever heard of this before. This caused me to read the ads in the magazines a little differently and I noticed some equitation stables have customers sharing horses. I didn’t know that this type of camaraderie existed in the equitation world.
After Louisville Lisa wanted Jessica to show in the 11 and under finals in Lexington. I of course worried about having a horse for her to show that was equitated enough. Lisa just told me not to worry and she would work it out. You could imagine my surprise when I was asked if I would not mind Jessie showing He’s My Type owned by the O’Keefe family. Amanda was showing the mare lightly at that show and agreed to share the mare with Jessie. After I picked my jaw up off the floor I got to thinking about the generosity and the spirit of teamwork at this barn to allow all their riders to succeed. The Fall Classic was my first time ever to be a parent/customer and not a horse trainer. The horse trainer in me did come out though as I felt it would be a good experience to see the inside of the equitation world today and learn from this experience. While at Lexington to see Jessica’s transformation from a little girl into a winning equitation look was nothing short of amazing. Everything had to be perfect. Earlier at Louisville Lisa already proved to be a little general when she chose the new suit and look for Jessie to compete at Lexington. Having gotten to the tailor early she already went through hundreds of swatches of cloth to have a complete look ready for us to see. Knowing that I didn’t rank as high as a general in this army, her decision was final. I could not believe my own eyes at Lexington when Jessie came out of the dressing room with her new suit. It was absolutely stunning. The second phase of the transformation Lisa, Kristin and Amanda worked as a team to make sure everything was perfect, the hair; makeup, accessories and down to the boots being spotless clean. I thought I was demanding this tops me!
While I was watching Jessica I had a flashback to last summer with another equitation instructor. Last summer I asked Ellen Beard if she would not mind putting one of our other daughters Erin in an Adult Equitation class, as I had several classes to coach back to back. Ellen said she had no problem. What amazed us was that Ellen, for that one class, took Erin under her wing as if she had been instructing Erin all season. There was the check over of the clothes and hair followed by instruction in the warm up ring. All of a sudden Ellen stopped Erin and asked my husband to go get a towel, water and a toothbrush. Mark had no idea what to expect. Ellen took the stirrup apart, scrubbed the stirrup pads and finished off by re-cleaning her boots and all crevasses. Mark was amazed thinking that Ellen was originally going to brush Erin’s teeth. Ellen put Erin in the ring, coached her on the rail with an intensity of a seasoned team and completed the class with a good ribbon. At this point I began to realize that all equitation trainers had super natural eyesight and were able to see dirt and imperfections that no normal person could see. Back to the Fall Classic. It was at Lexington that I watched not only the inner teamwork of a stable to be supportive, but also the other equitation instructors complementing Jessie on her new suit and her rides at the show making Jessie feel like she had always been part of the equitation world. I can remember thinking; it cannot get any better than this!
Louisville not only proved to be the most successful for my stable, but also it gave us the opportunity to sell Stephanie’s equitation horse. This was Stephanie’s last year in equitation and while it was not the most opportune time to sell the horse we felt it was the right thing to do at the time. Never wanting to let kids down, I pledged to Stephanie that she would be able to go to the three finals (her dream) and I would find her a horse to show. After a few shows of trying different horses I decided to let her show my daughters current show horse for the finals in New York and Kansas City.
Due to the September 11th tragedy getting into Madison Square Garden was somewhat more complicated this year. In talking to Scott Matton I found that Lillian Shively had coordinated with Bud Willimon, as in previous years, to made arrangements to have many of the riders horses come together on one van and she also acted as a liaison with the office and the saddlebred people. While she did not have to, Lillian always took the time to keep me informed. We hauled in our horse Thursday evening as everyone did and had the time to talk quite a bit with my old friend Scott Matton. As we only live an hour and a half from the Garden, I went home to work horses on Friday. On Friday I came back into the city and first checked into the hotel as we couldn’t work the horses in the ring until 3 am, our allotted time. Imagine my surprise as I left the hotel and on the street in New York I see some familiar faces, Ed and Denise Thordsen. With concern they asked if I had spoken with Scott Matton, as he was trying to get a hold of me. I had not seen or spoken to Scott that day so I quickly went over to Madison Square Garden. Unfortunately the look on Scott’s face told me that all was not well. Scott was standing with his horse, CF First Light of Dawn (a.k.a. Forbes), which was in cross ties, with one hoof bandaged. It was obviously sore. Scott’s horse apparently developed an abscess in a rear hoof. They say timing is everything and this could not have happened at a worse time. Scott asked if I knew a top vet in the area. After making a few calls we got a hold of one of the best vets in the area who specialized in racehorses. After a conversation with the vet there was not much hope that the pressure from the abscess could be relieved, it might just have to work its way out. It was at this time that I said to Scott I feel so bad for Sara to have come this far and not be able to show in the finals. I told Scott that if they would like I would bring my daughter’s older 10 and under pleasure horse for her to show. I felt apologetic that I could not bring in a better horse, but it was the best at hand that could do patterns. Scott and the Thordsen's not only agreed to use the horse, but also acted as if I had just offered a World’s Champion equitation horse to them. They were very grateful. Scott took Sara aside; visibly upset, and told her that there was a good chance she could not show her horse on Saturday. I do not know what Scott told Sara but when they came back she had a determined attitude to ride my mare Rosy and try to win the finals. I could only imagine what kind of person it would take to concentrate on trying to be the best you can ever be rather than feel sorry for yourself in a time like this. Scott made a promise to the Thordsen's that he would do everything in his power to relieve the pressure and have Forbes useable for the competition. I had Rosy shipped in to have her on standby for Sara. With prayers and determination Scott soaked and poulticed Forbes’ foot most of Friday night. Earlier Friday evening a hunter-jumper exhibitor had given Scott a poultice, which they used for their horses to relieve pain in their feet. Upon arrival early Saturday morning to get my horse ready I was greeted by a smiling Scotty holding Forbes to get his shoe replaced so he could be used in the competition instead of Rosy. Sara was such a trooper through all this; one wonders what powers were at work that ultimately rewarded her good sportsmanship. In my mind while Sara ended up showing Forbes and winning the Final maybe the greater test was not the finals but how in the face of adversity she rose to the occasion and was preparing to give her personal best even with the handicap of a new horse and she did this without having a temper tantrum, feeling sorry for herself and making those around her miserable. If competing in the equitation division puts you with people that teach their riders those types of values, than I know that I am doing the right thing in letting Jessie compete in the equitation division. I made sure to point out to Jessie how Sara handled herself and behaved, as that was a person she could admire.
At the Garden all the saddlebred people were stabled together in one section of the building. As stalls were very limited no one had tack stalls. Everyone chipped in, shared and made do with what we had. Since no stalls were assigned, by the luck of the draw we took a stall next to DeLovely. What good luck for me! Here was my opportunity to sit on the outside and view the DeLovely team in action and secretly spy on them to steal their ideas. You can imagine my amazement when Lillian set up shop right next to me to do her riders’ hair. I watched as Lillian effortlessly transformed various current popular hairstyles into a contained signature style that is a must for this division and then I began to imitate it on my rider, Stephanie. Although I felt like I was putting up Rapunzel’s hair and my fingers were made of stone, I did manage to get Stephanie’s hair finished. Even though it was not as perfect as that of Lillian’s I was headed in the right direction thanks to her example. After my brain had stopped spinning worried about getting Stephanie’s hair just right, I began noticing the DeLovely riders interact with each other. The four DeLovely girls acted to me as if they were getting ready for a team sport by going through their patterns together, discussing their ties and overall preparing for the event that was to come. Just when I began feeling sorry for Stephanie, as she did not personally know many of the riders, the girls started including Stephanie in their group.
As the competition started each of the thirteen riders went in to win the class and to do their personal best. Their work paid off as all thirteen riders were asked back for the late afternoon final performance. Later that afternoon, as the equitation riders were again preparing for their finals, the girls all acted more as team players again including Stephanie. As Lillian was doing her riders’ hair one more time, this time she also included Stephanie as if Stephanie were her own rider. My guess is Lillian felt sorry for me due to the stress it caused me in doing Stephanie’s hair. As the girls prepared for their finals mentally, Lillian talked to the management of the show and arranged for every rider competing in the finals to receive a National Horse Show ball cap. After the second rail work was completed each rider went back in to do his or her workout. Scott’s rider and mine were two of the first to do their patterns. While we waited for the results I made mention to Scott that it was evident that Stephanie’s horse was not seasoned enough in equitation to help her in the finals. In fact Stephanie had to carry the horse through the finals. Scott immediately asked if we were going to Kansas City and said that he would have a horse at the show that Stephanie could use for the remaining two finals. By now I am beginning to understand that this elusive club of equitation instructors is not so elusive after all as they are just like me, hardworking people that try to do the right thing.
Fast-forward one week. Here we were at the American Royal and I was a little unsure of how much I could help Stephanie with a horse I have never seen. As we walked to Knollwood’s stalls in the morning with Stephanie’s saddle, Scott welcomed her with opened arms and they immediately went to work with his horse Priscilla Vanilla. Even though Scott had a full show string of his own he never made us feel that practice time was an inconvenience. He gave Stephanie 100% of his attention and expertise. After a couple of practice rides, we were coming to the day for the UPHA finals. On the day of the UPHA finals all I could think about was –OH MY GOD I have to do Stephanie’s hair again. Seeing my obvious stress about doing hair, Julie Anne Arnston volunteered to prepare Stephanie’s hair all at the same time that she was getting her own rider ready. During this time Julie Anne was cheerful and upbeat helping Stephanie calm her nerves to a reasonable level. With her hair done it was now time to get the pattern for the UPHA finals. While walking the pattern, Scott once again took over and patiently worked with Stephanie how to negotiate the pattern with a strange horse. During the class I noticed not only Scott but also, Carol Matton was coaching Stephanie on the rail. As the class came to an end Scott was extremely positive and continued to make Stephanie feel as if she was part of their team and not an inconvenience.
It was after the UPHA finals that I witnessed something that I thought was very special. Every one of the DeLovely riders came to Knollwood Stables to congratulate Sara Thordsen for her win. As I commented about this to Carol Matton, she said a lot of the equitation riders come back to the stalls after the class to congratulate the winners. I have always practiced good sportsmanship at North Wind and promote this by teaching my people to be a good winner and even better non-winners. It was nice to see this done on such a large scale within the equitation ranks. As it was the final day of the American Royal it was time once again for the Medal finals. This brought me to the same stressful situation that I had been at before—how to get Stephanie’s hair just perfect. At this point I heard a little voice, my daughter Jessie say, “Oh Mom, Cricket Hill can make her hair perfect.” Off went Rapunzel with caboodle and hair to Cricket Hill. I short time later a beautiful equitation rider with hair perfectly done arrived back at North Wind Stables (complements of Kristin). The generosity and unselfishness of Scott and Carol Matton was again evident as they prepared Stephanie for her last final in equitation. The Medal final went well for Stephanie and even though she did not fulfill her dreams of winning she did give her personal best and it was a very positive experience for her. Once again I realized the people that helped make Stephanie’s experience positive were the very same people that I had dubbed elusive in the past.
Just when I think I have seen everything, as I prepare my last horses for a class at the Royal I witnessed just how early good sportsmanship can start. The Walk and Trot-only finals were just coming out of the ring when the second place rider, Gabriel Flynn, came out of the ring and got off her horse and stood very proudly congratulating every rider as they came out of the ring until the first place rider came out at which time she also congratulated her. All of this was done with a smile on her face and not with the least bit of resentment. I was so surprised by this that I mentioned it to customers of mine who were friends with the Shivelys. Their comment was the Shively’s believe good sportsmanship was very important and you cannot begin too early. It’s no wonder that the DeLovely riders act as a team as opposed to guarded competitors. Its no wonder that Stephanie’s final year of equitation she felt positive and enjoyed being at the finals and does not feel like a loser. It’s wonderful to see that sportsmanship is promoted highly in other stables other than my own. It’s wonderful to know that my daughter can go into the equitation division and make friends instead of feeling estranged from her competitors. In the equitation field without good sportsman ship and camaraderie between the participants it would be very easy to have one winner and a bunch of losers in a class. To me we may have one overall winner in a class, but what makes every competitor a winner is the fact that each are giving their personal best, striving for perfection and anxious and eager to compete another day. There are no losers in this scenario.
One element that I have not mentioned in this equitation puzzle of trainers and riders are the parents. As I look at the picture of my daughter showing at Lexington in the background you will see Tim North (Rachael’s Dad) cheering enthusiastically for Jessie. He can be seen observing almost every equitation class whether his daughter is in it or not. He has been supportive of all of my riders by taking pictures and giving words of encouragement after their classes. So I guess it should not have been a surprise to me when Karen Cox (Betty’s Mom) complemented my rider Stephanie on not only how well she rode but also how much she enjoyed being around her in New York. I cannot talk about anybody’s parents without mentioned Ed and Denise Thordsen and how supportive they were of Stephanie even when she shared Scott’s time with Sara preparing for the finals in Kansas City. This makes me watch the parents on the rail and observe them cheering on each and every equitation rider as they complete their patterns. Two thumbs up for those parents that are good to all the kids regardless of how their child placed in a class!
In looking back at that elusive club I now see that the equitation people work for perfection from start to finish and want everything to be perfect from the largest detail to the smallest to where most people would not even notice. It’s good to know that this group of elusive people are also taking the youngest members of the Saddlebred world and teaching them life values, like good sportsmanship, taking responsibility, camaraderie and also doing your best regardless of the situation.
Note: This article I wrote at the beginning of my daughter's venture into equitation. Now that its been 7 years later and she has now aged out into the adult competition I do need to do a follow up article to cover my view of the current state of the sport, our experience in World Cup and what I thought Jessie got out of the years she dedicated to this competition. This will be my view and maybe she will not share all my thoughts, but I need to do this piece. Nealia
