Intercollegiate Saddle Seat Awareness

Many young Saddle Seat riders no longer have the opportunity to show when they head off to college. Paying for college becomes a priority or the college is too far away to ride and compete.

The Intercollegiate Saddle Seat Riding Association (ISSRA) was founded in ____ as a way for college students compete at low cost. Teams pair up with a coach at a host barn and practice on the lesson horses there.

At shows, riders compete on randomly drawn horses. The different teams host a show, and there are divisions for beginner riders to advanced riders. Because the horses are drawn at random, there are two equitation classes per show: a rail class and a pattern class. The level of horses and the difficulty of the patterns change as the levels move up.

The required ISSRA show clothing is an academy outfit: dress shirt, vest, tie, jods, boots, and gloves.

Currently, the only intercollegiate Saddle Seat teams reside in Kentucky. The few teams that were out of state did not have enough people to keep travelling to shows. 

Please take this brief survey to help us learn more about intercollegiate Saddle Seat awareness, areas for improvement, possibilities, and rider interest. Thank you!

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World’s Championship Horse Show Date Change Proposal: Why it Shouldn’t Happen

I came across a news release, World’s Championship Horse Show (WCHS) Date Change Proposal to be Discussed, published by the American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA). To sum things up, the WCHS, an eight-day horse show for Saddlebreds, Hackney Ponies, and Road Horses which takes place during the Kentucky State Fair, is looking to move their show dates up in 2018 to start before the fair, so only the last 3 days of the show would take place during the fair.

Here’s my two cents:

If the show goes forward with the date changes, there will be even less exposure than there already is at the fair and the show will lose more potential to bring new people into the Saddlebred industry.

Let me start with the show as is.

Freedom Hall just before the 2016 WCHS kicked off.

The only close up interaction for fair goers is the barn tours. Since this is the biggest show of the year for Saddlebreds, barns will go all out with decoration. While this is fun sight for fair goers, they don’t get to be up close and personal with a horse. The decorations aren’t what people join an industry for. It’s for the love of a horse.

During work hours for the horses, the gates to Freedom Hall are closed. I’ve often seen parents holding their young kids up to get a small glimpse of these high stepping horses during these times. Now what does a closed gate say? It says do not enter. It says you’re not welcome here. I understand not letting spectators into the ring for safety reasons, but why can’t they take a seat in the stands to watch horses work if it catches their eye?

One nice thing is that admission to upstairs is free for morning sessions. However, this doesn’t seem to attract anyone. Fair goers most likely don’t schedule in the horse show when they show up. They probably don’t know anything about free admission upstairs, and even if they find out there’s no pamphlet or spokesperson to explain what is going on. All the fair goers know is that they are watching horses go around in circles, then get bored and leave.

The downstairs section is ticketed in both the morning and night, but is never crowded in the morning until late in the week. I sat down in a section completely empty, surrounded by similar sections, one morning and was asked to move because I didn’t have a ticket. There was no one around me who could possibly want the seat I was in. If there was, I would happily move. Most of those people buy the tickets so they have a close view in the evening, but they don’t come to many morning sessions. Wouldn’t it make more sense to sell morning tickets separately and make them cheaper, if not free earlier in the week? You might even get some fans who normally sit upstairs to come down for a closer view.

One method to draw people in for both morning and evening sessions would be spokespeople. There could be people around the outside of Freedom Hall advertising the show and more people in the stands to answer questions for those watching. They could even point out the previous year’s champions and learn background information on them.

Think of a regular fair goer who probably doesn’t buy tickets in advance. It’s $10 per person at the gate (except for children five and under and discount days for certain groups) and $8 to park. More ticket info is available here, but let’s consider an average family of four. The family pays $40 to get in and $8 to park. The kids, who are 12 and under, want to go on midway rides, so $12 each and $25 for the one parent who rides with them. The other parent sits out. We’re already up to $97, not including food, drinks, or other items bought.

For WCHS tickets purchased at the state fair, most of the evening sessions are $18 per ticket, or $25 the last two nights of the show, which are the biggest nights. Groups of four or more can buy tickets for $8, or $11 the last two nights. If you’re this family, and you’re wrapping up a long day and see a poster advertising a horse show you know nothing about but think the high stepping horses are pretty, will you be willing to spend $8 or $11 per person more to go see an event you know nothing about? Doubtful. And the price is higher for groups or families of two or three. I think it’s fair to charge admission for evening sessions, but not a price that quickly adds up after people already spent a lot of money. The upper level seating is closer to empty than full anyway, so what does it hurt to lower the price and bring more people in?

With the WCHS currently during the fair, they have the potential to expose people to the Saddlebred industry and try to get them involved. Granted, I don’t know what’s allowed and what’s not allowed, and I know there’s limited time in between sessions to work horses, but in order to grow the industry, people are going to have to give up some of their personal comfort. Saddlebreds have the personality of a celebrity, so why don’t people act like that’s what they are to outsiders? Instead, these horses are treated like a fragile object people can’t get within five yards of.

What if certain local barns were given special permission to bring in lessons horses and do pony rides in Freedom Hall or right outside in the warm up ring? There could be instructors from local barns with pamphlets to explain what Saddle Seat riding is, what makes the Saddlebred so unique, and contact information. Also, barn tours could be expanded. People who are taken on the barn tours need a reason to be interested besides pretty flowers for decorations. Some barns and owners need to step up and offer to showcase their top horses. They don’t need to work them or let a group of people come up to them, but if a horse could be presented in halter to a crowd and someone explained the horse’s accomplishments, their personality and funny traits, and said when they are showing, that might get people interested in watching the WCHS.

Again, I don’t know all the logistics and rules between the fair board and the WCHS, but I firmly believe the WCHS should not move their dates ahead of the fair. I’ve grown up in Kentucky and would not mind seeing the entire fair moved to earlier in August, but that’s a more personal note for kids in school here. There’s already very little horse access to fair goers. Yes, they can buy a ticket or go for free in the mornings, but even that’s not advertised well. The WCHS should stick with the fair and figure out a way to reach out to people besides hoping they read a poster.

I want the Saddlebred industry and the WCHS to succeed instead of continue to shrink, but the industry has to decide if it’s willing to change and expand from its comfort zone.

There’s my two cents. What’s yours?

Life with a Retired Show Horse: Regaining Confidence

If you read the title and thought “regaining confidence” was about Bella, I’ll let you know that Bella is still full of herself and feeling great. She enjoys having the attention of the horses she is turned out with and has an extra boost of energy with the onset of cold weather.

Bella thinks she is a fire breathing dragon. This was after Saturday's ride.

This blog post is actually going to be more about me trying to regain some of the confidence I lost in my riding abilities. To be honest, it’s probably going to end with how awesome my horse is and how she takes care of me, etc.

So here goes.

Most Saturday mornings I am out at the barn with Bella. Yesterday was just one of those days where I did not feel like tacking up. Instead, I hopped on bareback with a rope and halter. Bella is still learning how to guide without a bit, but she’s picked it up pretty well. However, if something catches her eye and she wants to go a different direction she “forgets” what guiding is.

Back when Bella was in training as a show horse, she would get the winters off for vacation. The last couple winters I finally became brave enough to hop on her bareback, but with a bridle. I used to only walk and canter because of her quick step trotting, but I gradually worked my way into trotting on her bareback too. When doing so every weekend, I became much more confident on her and got a lot stronger as a rider. Even when she was full of energy, it didn’t faze me to hop on bareback and go around at a show trot.

Riding bareback with confidence late in 2014.

When I pulled her out of the stall yesterday, I could tell she was feeling frisky. I had made my decision to go bareback with a rope and halter and I wanted to see it through, to show myself I could do it, but the nerves got to me when I climbed on.

Bella never took off, but she did have a bounce to her step. I held onto her mane (or what we equestrians sometimes call an “Oh, shit!” handle) so hard that my hand was cramping. The energy she had made me nervous. I had been on her bareback with a rope and halter over summer, but that’s when the heat had zapped everyone’s energy.

Now in the cold on a frisky mare, I was nervous. At the end of my junior year in college, I picked up a second job while heading into finals and projects. I didn’t take lessons for about two months, and only slowly got back into them over summer.

There were times I would ride and I felt out of shape. My endurance in the saddle was not what it used to be. A few weeks ago I even said, “I feel like a washed up, out of shape, adult amateur.”

So there I was, sitting on Bella bareback, holding on for dear life and afraid to do more than walk. Andrew was at the barn with me, and with some reassurance from him I finally did trot and canter.

Bella didn’t run off with me, she stopped when asked, and I didn’t fall off. Instead of keeping my legs frozen in place to grip, I began to relax and used them to help guide Bella around the turns of the indoor arena, which is a pretty nice aid when you have no bit.

No bit? No problem. Getting confidence back in yesterday's ride.

As I trotted and cantered, I began to feel more confident in my ability. I wasn’t at my peak, but I rode around just fine. I even posted above Bella’s tall withers without a problem.

There’s been times when I haven’t put the effort in to get my riding back on track to where it was. I was frustrated with myself and sometimes slightly embarrassed. I now realize it’s okay if we lose ourselves. It doesn’t matter how good of a rider you are; it matters if you push through your challenges.

I think I want to spend more time this winter bareback on my frisky mare. I need to not only trust the horse who has never brought me harm while on her back, but I need to trust myself too.

Thanks to my readers for letting me ramble, thanks to my friends and instructors for supporting me through the years, and most of all, a big thank you to Bella for continuously teaching me for more than nine years. I owe her the world.

Life with a Retired Show Horse: New Achievements

Turns out you can teach an old horse new tricks after all. That is, you can teach your sassy retired 16-year-old Saddlebred mare to jump over a fallen tree limb.

It’s been about a year and one month since Bella hit the show ring for the last time. Since then we’ve been learning new things just for fun, and I appreciate that she lets me learn with her. We’ve learned galloping through fields is a great activity when we’re feeling extra energetic. We’ve learned ground poles and other obstacles are not so scary in the ring, and we can walk, trot, and canter over them. We’ve learned how to hack around the farm and not spin around at every single new sight. Today we learned not to be scared a fallen tree limb on a trail path.

And today I learned Bella wants to take on cross country as a second career.

Last weekend Andrew dug out all sorts of poles for Bella to do ring work with. He made a zig-zag path to walk through with “scary” obstacles (a small, fake cow used for roping practice and a tire) outside the path. Bella not only had to stay within the path, but walk past obstacles on the sideline. We walked, then trotted, into an octagon shaped by poles and went around an obstacle in the middle. We also managed walking and trotting over three ground poles surrounded by other poles and obstacles.

The lesson seemed to prove helpful today. After pattern practice for tomorrow’s intercollegiate show, Andrew suggested I trail ride Bella around the farm. We set out with Andrew following on foot and went by the pond, down a fence line, through some trees and a field. Bella calmly went past places she had formally tried to turn around in. As we came to the trail path that leads to the very back field, we noticed something new — a fallen tree limb.

This is where plans changed. Bella wanted nothing to do with the fallen limb. She wouldn’t even stand and look at it. She only wanted to turn around and go the opposite direction. The funny thing was, all it took was Andrew stepping over the fallen limb. Then Bella followed like she hadn’t just tried to turn and run.

And here is where our fun began. After Bella stepped over the fallen limb just fine from both directions, I wondered if she would trot over it too. Well, Bella didn’t just trot over it. She jumped it. And then we went over it at a trot again. Then a canter. Then Bella decided she wanted to be a cross country horse. She tried to take off like she had never taken off in her life. With her ears pricked forward, she was ready to run faster than she ever had before. It took me a few seconds before I could rein her back in.

We walked back to the barn after that. Bella kept her head held high, proud and feeling full of herself. Andrew and I cleaned her off before turning her out to go harass some poor soul of a horse. I’m forever grateful Bella still lets me learn with her in retirement. She doesn’t make everything easy, but she takes care of me and teaches me new things with every ride.

Bella enjoyed jumping so much I could barely rein her in. Maybe we should try cross country? 😂 Check out my latest blog on our adventures! Link in bio. #irideandiwrite #itsnotthatconfusing #missbelievin #asbdreams #asbproud #asbversatility

A video posted by Christine Oser (@starsandbells) on Nov 5, 2016 at 4:26pm PDT

#ridelikeagirl

The other day my friend Mary Kate Fahy posted a picture on Facebook of her four-year-old Western Saddlebred Rachael Renee. What you see at first is a beautiful black mare, a nice looking rider, and flashy tri-color championship ribbons. If you read the caption, it starts with “I have a story to share…” before Mary Kate launches into all the struggles she had in bringing this mare to where she is today. (Read here)

Mary Kate & Rachael Renee. (Photo from Mary Kate)

Since men dominated the equine industry for so long, a lot of the older horse icons we look up to are men. And there is nothing wrong with that! Over the years though, the dynamics changed and in came more women. The female gender is the one that dominates most aspects of the industry now. Racing is still mostly men, but there is a much greater rise of women there now too. And I think it’s time we started giving more praise to the women out there now.

Mary Kate’s story not only made me realize that the drive to succeed is extremely important, but it also made me think of some of the women in my life that make me proud to say #ridelikeagirl.

Not only is Mary Kate an inspiration, but so are the ladies of Kismet Farm. Bella and I finished up our last years of showing at Kismet under the direction of Alex Gravett (which I will refer to as Trainer Alex), and Alex Jett (I’ll call her Jett) also came along as an assistant. Trainer Alex started off with Pleasantview Farm, and I came along as she was making the transition into her own operation of Kismet. I was able to see her string of show horses grow as new clients came in and I saw a bunch of kids begin riding in the academy program. There’s enough of them now that Madelyn Palazzo has taken on teaching the next generation there. Trainer Alex was so worried when she moved into her own stable without Pleasantview because the barn seemed so empty, but in no time at all the barn began to fill up and now it is practically full of horses.

Alex Gravett on the left after Bella's last show. (Photo by Show Horse Magazine)

Trainer Alex saw the importance of embracing #ridelikeagirl. In a world where girls already face so much insecurities from societal pressure, we need to be proud of what we are achieving in and out of the show ring. If you’re around the Kismet group long enough, you can’t help but notice the strong connection of dedicated and hard working women out there.

After Bella retired I moved her down the road to Dark HorseTraining Center where I could go out on my own time and play around with my mare while she figured out this whole retirement thing. There I met Mary Rose Cissell. I came from a Saddlebred background and she mostly worked with stock horses, green horses, horses from Eastern Kentucky with little human interaction, and breaking young horses. While the activities from the barns I grew up in looked different from what I watch Mary Rose do, it’s amazing to see the transformation she makes in horses with all her different techniques. I recently read a Facebook post from her (read here) where she talked about all the hardships she has been experiencing with a stallion from Eastern Kentucky. While the stallion has been a challenge, her perseverance has made a world of a difference. It may be a long road ahead, but I know Mary Rose is dedicated enough to see the tough horses through.

Mary Rose on OTTB Good Street "Grayson" at a ranch show. (Photo from DHTC Facebook page)

Deveau Zubrod-Kreitzer is another great woman in my horse life. She is an instructor at Zubrod Stables and also coaches the University of Louisville Saddle Seat team, which I compete on. Deveau has kept me in gear for Equitation after I was no longer showing it in the performance world. She goes from riding in a double saddle with beginner riders to standing in the same spot even when us college kids almost run her over trying to stay on our pattern lines. At the intercollegiate shows, we perform patterns on horses we don’t know that well, if at all, and the patterns may contain difficult elements. As someone who loves pattern practice, even I dread the circles on diagonal lines. Deveau excelled at Equitation in her junior exhibitor years and now passes that on to us. She can even kick butt riding with no stirrups after not being on a horse for a long time.

Deveau and me after an intercollegiate show.

The phrase “like a girl” has had a negative connotation for years. Lately there’s been a push to reclaim the phrase, and the equestrian world is a good place to start for me. There’s so many women who do hard, physical work for long hours but still keep their womanly appearance. Strong doesn’t have to look like bulging muscles throwing hay bales around, it can also look like someone with flowing hair and mascara controlling a 1,000-pound animal and shoveling loads of shavings into 20 stalls.

The women listed here are only a few that came to mind, but they certainly prove that “like a girl” is something to take pride in, and I hope that my fellow female equestrians continue with the movement of #ridelikeagirl.

New York Trip Summer '16

July 6 I flew up to New York for the third time to visit Andrew for just over a week. I'm gracious his family has allowed me to stay with them during my visits, as I have really enjoyed the times I've been there.

Friday, July 8 Andrew and I took a train into Manhattan. When he does date night, he goes big and goes home. He bought Wicked tickets and made dinner reservations at Trattoria Dell'Arte, which has the best Italian food I've ever eaten.

When we first got into the city, Andrew had a surprise for me. I had told him I wanted to make it to Central Park this time around since we missed it the last two trips. It seemed like we were going to run out of time again, but as we made our way out of Times Square, Andrew led me right to the entrance of Central Park.

Central Park is not amazing just because of its beauty alone, but also because you don't have to go very far in to block out the sound of the city. The trees make it hard to hear the cars and horns and shouts. It's cool how you get the serene setting with grass and gorgeous trees along with the skyline above the leaves.

Oh, and I also found Frank from Men in Black (if you get the reference).

As a huge Home Alone fan (the first and second movies), I enjoyed playing out the Plaza craziness in my head as we walked by. That's probably partially why I think the Plaza is so cool. Plus, LOOK AT IT. So pretty.

The next stop of the night was at Trattoria Dell'Arte. Andrew found the place last summer and we went before seeing Mamma Mia!. The food was so delicious we wanted to go back again this year. I couldn't help myself and ordered the same dish, Lobster Carbonara, because of how much I loved it. Andrew and I also had the tiramisu and it was above and beyond expectations.

Following dinner we walked to the Gershwin Theatre to see Wicked. It had been on my list of musicals to see, and now I know why everyone who sees it becomes obsessed. I will never look at the Wizard of Oz the same again. I've also been playing the soundtrack non-stop since I got back Louisville. Defying Gravity is basically my new theme song.

The following day, July 9, was my first time at Belmont Park.

Not only did I go for a good day of racing for their Stars & Stripes Festival, but I got to meet the two-year-olds Andrew has been working with.

Avail Ekati is a very handsome colt. He is also a big ham who can't control himself when cookies are around.

Speighgal became my new best friend. She is a cutie who loves to take naps and looks adorable with all the shavings stuck in her mane and forelock when she wakes up.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Highland Sky, who flew home in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational to be second by a neck to European invader Deauville. Highland Sky is one of the most beautiful horses I have laid eyes on.

Seeing Effinex get a repeat win in the Grade 2 Suburban Handicap was great as well.

I finally got to see Catch a Glimpse run! It was even more exciting than I hoped it would be. Her win in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational was a special one, beating out European horses and proving she could go a longer distance than some thought.

Friday and Saturday were our two big days during the trip, but I also got to enjoy time with Andrew's family and go out with them. Andrew and I also went to see Finding Dory and I was super happy the movie had a Beluga Whale in it (they're one of my favorite animals). Spending time with this cute fluff ball, Shea, was also fun.

So until next time, New York! Thanks to the people (and animals) who made it great.

Life with a Retired Show Horse: New Obstacles

Lately I’ve been taking advantage of the trail obstacles in the outdoor ring with Bella. The more she is around them, the more comfortable she gets, but it’s still a learning process. After getting used to the poles that were laid out in one spot, we had to relearn that they were not scary after being moved to a different spot with a different set up. Bella started feeling at ease walking, trotting and cantering over them, but we had to repeat the process again with them in a different spot.

That’s when Bella decided, “Hey, it might be fun to jump over that pole!”

My favorite view

So now we are not just trotting and cantering over the obstacles, we are jumping them. For an almost 16-year-old Saddlebred who was never taught to jump and for a rider who has never taken a jumping lesson, I’ll consider it an accomplishment. The goal I had was to get Bella used to some new obstacles, and it worked. If she wants to occasionally jump over a pole on the ground, have at it. It means she finds it fun and not scary. As long as she’s not shying away or backing up, I’m happy. She started showing at age three and retired at 15. Eight of those show seasons were with me on her back. She fully deserves to have fun in retirement. Plus, I would rather her jump a ground pole than jump out of her paddock like she’s already done twice. (Thanks for taking part of the fence with you, Bella).

Once we got comfortable with the poles in a different area, we had to learn that the wooden beams set up were not scary, especially the ones that formed an enclosed box. With some snorts and a little encouragement, Bella also learned that these were not so bad. We could even stand in the box and not be scared of it. We can walk, trot, and canter over the wooden beams, and Bella figured out those are fun to jump too. I think I’m just letting her have fun how she wants, but maybe I’m unknowingly creating a monster. It’s been a while since she jumped out of her paddock though, and hopefully it stays that way.

Conquering the scary box in our cutback saddle

So not only does my retired Saddlebred still like to trot around like a show horse, but she likes to gallop in open fields, hack around the farm, and jump over ground poles (even if that was taught by accident). No, I’m not experienced in Jumpers or Western. I don’t claim to be in the least bit. What I do know is that I’ve seen Bella experience new things and become comfortable with them. It’s not always easy for a horse who grew up with show ring training, and I am thankful she trusts me enough to learn along with her.

Keep doing you, Bella, because you’re the best.