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1
Horse Shows andTraining
H
orse ownership oten extends ar beyond the careand companionship o an animal. We want to learnnew things, reach goals, put our skills on horse-back to use. Bi-weekly lessons become semiweekly les-sons; buying a young horse warrants proessional training;and beore long, a trip around the ring at a local schoolingshow has you chasing points on a national circuit. Lessons,training, and showing can develop into the most expensiveparts o owning a horse, so this chapter addresses ways tosave some money while still being competitive.
Lessons 
Unless your horse alls under the category o pastureornament or trail companion, chances are you will want(and need) some riding lessons. Private lessons are, natu-rally, going to cost more. Consider taking lessons with agroup, and save up or a private lesson once every monthor so i you have specic goals or issues you want to work on with a proessional. Furthermore, group lessons oeryou a chance to learn rom what an instructor is tellingother riders, and develop skills you wouldn’t necessarilydevelop riding alone. Proessional help is key to improv-ing your riding skills, but ask yoursel i you really needall the training you’re paying or. Sometimes we become
too
dependent upon our trainer’s guidance, and it doesn’thurt to veer away rom the mindset that you can’t work onsomething yoursel.At a show, “it is nice to have a trainer warm you up,but riders need to learn enough independence to be able towork their horses on their own,” says Jennier Bryant, edi-tor o the United States Dressage Federation’s
USDF Con-nection
magazine and author o 
Olympic Equestrian: ACentury of International Horse Sport 
. “This is why alwaysriding under a trainer’s tutelage can be counterproduc-tive. Even i your trainer can come to the show, there maycome a day when he/she has a confict with another studentwho’s competing at the same time as you, and you’re goingto have to do it on your own.”I private lessons are beyond your nancial reach, or i you’re looking or ways to supplement your current costlyinstruction, turn to local groups such as 4-H, Pony Clubs,and breed and discipline associations that oer educationalactivities at a reasonable price. Otherwise, i you currentlypay or semiweekly or weekly lessons, try switching to bi-weekly lessons. It will positively aect your bank account,but chances are it won’t aect your riding — just be sureto get the most out o each lesson. Audit clinics and les-sons and take notes (or have someone tag along and do thescribing or you). Do your homework so you can practiceproductively at home.“Spend your training money wisely,” advises Bryant.“Keep a training journal. Have a riend videotape your les-sons and clinics so you can review your rides and reinorcethe lessons learned. Take advantage o Web-based trainingopportunities such as (or dressage riders) DressageTrain-ingOnline.com. Rent, borrow, or buy training DVDs andread equestrian books and magazines.”Equestrian magazines can hold a wealth o training in-ormation, but there’s no need to splurge or subscriptions.Gather a group o boarders or equestrian riends and eachsubscribe to a dierent magazine to share among your-selves. Also take turns videotaping each other to reviewyour riding between lessons. It’s a great way to visualizewhat you eel and what you don’t eel when you ride, andto track your improvement between increasingly inre-quent lessons.Another way to gain valuable experience without shell-ing out more cash or one-on-one training is by oeringto exercise other horses. I you’re a good enough rider orboard at a large barn, inquire about exercising horses inexchange or, say, a lesson on one. I nothing else, ridingdierent horses is an invaluable learning experience.
Creative training 
Bryant oered suggestions or cost-ree learning meth-
 
HORSE SHOWS AND TRAINING
2
ods, but you can also take a hands-on route to training.I you keep your horse at home or don’t board at a large,upscale acility, try building your own practice jumps orarena markers. Some cheap, unbreakable cones rom alarge discount store such as Wal-Mart can be used to mark patterns. Your basic arts and crats supplies will do the trick or arena markers and dressage letters.A little PVC pipe, paint, wood, and some tools will al-low you to build your own jumps. You can also pick up aew bunches o articial fowers at your local dollar storeto school over at home beore acing them at shows. I yourhome-made jumps end up a bit ugly (albeit still sae), thenwho cares? At least it will serve as great preparation oryour horse beore encountering the embellished jumps athorse shows. I you ail as a jump engineer, check out dis-count jump retailers such as NextDayJumps.com.
Work With Your trainer 
Less requent and less expensive training may improveyour cash fow, but there’s one undamental element o thepicture that’s going to be negatively aected: the trainer.These proessionals are also trying to get by in the horseworld, so you may need to brainstorm with your instruc-tor about cost-saving training trends that will benet youboth.“While clients cutting back on regular lessons will im-pact trainers’ income, those trainers oering creative op-tions or clients needing to cut back may prevent an evengreater loss o business,” says Elizabeth Clarke, a Massa-chusetts equine lawyer and head o the Equine BusinessInstitute. “In this climate, trainers and stable owners needto stay alert and be aware o which clients are under nan-cial or other stress.”To maintain a good working relationship with your in-structor and to help acilitate some less-costly training al-ternatives around the barn, discuss ways he or she couldoer more options or clients eeling the nancial squeeze.Clarke suggests such things as discount lessons or stu-dents who pay a certain number up-ront, incentives orbringing new clients into the barn, or un events or clientscutting back on horse shows.“Plan an in-house schooling show where the ‘entry ee’is a dish or a pot luck aterward, so clients save moneywhile they’re working on skills to succeed with less mile-age away rom home,” says Clarke. “Make sure ridingstays a sport and an escape rom other pressures rather thanan additional pressure.”In a slow economy, clients and trainers need to main-tain good communication and approachability beore theyboth become “stuck.” Clarke’s recommendation to instruc-tors: Even i it means helping a client move to a lower-costprovider, or guring out other ways to reduce their costs,you’re much better o i it happens beore bills go unpaid.Talk to clients who are even just a little late in paying andbe willing to oer alternatives regarding how services arepurchased.
PLanning ahead 
At the start o the year or the show season, sit down withyour trainer (or your bank statements) and lay out a sched-ule o which shows you want to compete in and where. Setrealistic goals based on what you can aord, try to stayclose to home, and determine which cities are less expen-sive or which showgrounds have lower ees and expenses.Deborah Boeh, dressage trainer and judge based outo Cincinnati, Ohio, conducts a barn meeting early in theyear with her boarders and students to plan out their horseshow schedules. “We discuss each person’s yearly goalsand what shows will help get them there. We plan on whattests are the most suitable or their horse and allow themto show at their best. We plan the ones close to home, i possible, to limit some o the traveling and lodging costs.Some o my students are beginners and need condenceand miles — they can go to the local circuit doing one-dayshows. They have a year-end award or these series so they
Don’t become dependent upon frequent, private lessons.
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HORSE SHOWS AND TRAINING
3
eel a sense o accomplishment and yet haven’t spent all o their money.”Location and lodging will actor into your decision, soi possible, try to stay close to home and avoid overnightstays. I you don’t need to chase points this year, save somemoney, soak up the experience o showing locally or aseason, and then reevaluate your goals and nances the ol-lowing year.“Schooling shows are a great way to gain experiencewithout the expenses o sanctioned events,” says Eastman-Lawler, eventing instructor and owner o Apple Tree Farmin Hollis, New Hampshire. “Try day tripping versus stay-ing overnight i a competition is only a ew hours drive.”Also plan ahead to determine whether you will competeenough to warrant paying or the various memberships as-sociated with “recognized” or “sanctioned” horse shows.“Nonmember ees add up,” says Bryant. “I you plan toenter more than one or two shows per year, it’s less ex-pensive to become a member o those organizations thanto keep paying the nonmember ees along with your showentries.”Once you have determined how many shows you canaord this season, it pays to be picky when selecting theones you will attend. Choose quality over quantity. Browsethe prize lists to determine who is judging or managingeach show — a preerred judge or ecient show managermay weigh heavily your decision. I you can aord a horseshow sponsorship, as they are oten the backbone o an en- joyable event, pick and choose wisely which competitionsor classes you want to help sponsor, and which oer themost perks or bang or your buck.“Look at past show records to see how many entrieswere at each one,” advises Lorelei Menke-Ross, an Ameri-can Quarter Horse Association exhibitor. Ater 15 yearso showing, she has discovered several ways to save onshow entries and get the most out o an AQHA or APHAcompetition. “Some shows reduce entry ees or enteringmultiple divisions. Or you may get a ree halter class entry,or instance, i you show in a perormance class. Most im-portantly, look at what prizes are being given away. AQHAshows are great or nice prizes such as blankets, coolers,bridle bags, saddles, chairs, hay bags, cash, and so orth.”Many competitions oer so-called “schooling” roundsto practice in the ring beore your division. Bypass theseclasses, as tempting as they may be, and pocket the $20entry ee it would have cost you. Spend more time in theschooling ring and try not to rely on a proessional to haveyour horse warmed up and show-ready.“As or classes at the horse show, does your trainer reallyneed to ride your horse in the low class beore you everyday or does it just make you eel better and is somethingyou have always done? Ride in the class yoursel and getmore mileage and experience,” says Sally Collins, trainerand owner o Collinswood Farm, a hunter/jumper acilityin Stanwood, Washington. “Do you ride well enough to dosome catch riding? Sometimes we don’t need a trainer toride; we just need someone to kick the school horse around,take one on a trail ride, help with the early morning hacksat the show, or jump one to see i it is quiet enough beorethe less experienced owner gets on.”I you’re an experienced rider, picking up extra rides andexercising other horses will not only lighten your trainer’sload, but may allow him or her to knock a ew dollars o your bill. Also go the extra mile to nd out i there arehorse show volunteer opportunities (such as ring stewards,scribes, tabulators, event volunteers, oce help, etc.) avail-able to discount your show expenses.“Call the oce and ask i there’s something you can doto help the show in exchange or reduced entry and/or sta-bling ees,” says Clarke. “Show managers and secretariesare always overworked, and you won’t know unless youask.”
transPortation and Lodging 
As i division entries, ground ees, and show eesweren’t enough, there are still transportation and lodging
Bypass warm-up classes and spend more time schooling.
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Eclipse Press

New free chapter from Thrifty Horsekeeping: Horse Shows and Training

reply10 / 23 / 2009
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