Showing

[GraceLikeRain]

One of the pros/cons of COTH is that it isn’t easy to wipe a thread. I’m sure this feels like a pile on but there is a lot of wisdom in this group. The median age is likely mid 40s so you’re stepping into a space of people who have a very different perspective and are quite removed from what you are currently experiencing.

The note about desperately wanting to be super good at a few things really struck me. That’s such a relatable feeling. Especially with social media it’s so easy for your meaningful hobby or passion to pale in comparison to the massive achievements of the 1%. You are doing a lot of great things. Developing yourself into a well rounded person is so valuable. You have a lifetime to deep dive into any one area. Horses are something that you can enjoy through your lifetime. From your family ties you are likely positioned to have a competitive career and will probably have more financial means than many of us on here.

Chase the short term dream or don’t. There is no right or wrong answer. All I’d say is to take time to explore your motivations and how you may feel about this season of life ten years from now. It’s hard to predict who you will be in a decade but it’s a good thought exercise.

[DownYonder]

@julia.eq.h

It’s not a bad thing to show, as long as you spend time with your horse. I personally trail ride, do ground work, braid, and pamper my horses on top of showing.

It shouldn’t always be about you. You have plenty of other opportunities in your life to test yourself - no need to put that unrelenting pressure on your horse, too.

And I repeat:

Also, if your horse could talk, it would tell you it much prefers the trail rides to the near constant grind of training, trailering, living in cramped show stalls, competing, etc.

I can’t help but think that someone so intensely focused on showing, showing, showing is really more into the social aspect of it than in spending quality time with their horse. IOW, your perspective on competing is much more important to you than the horse’s quality of life. Stop putting that kind of pressure on your horse and on yourself and be content with competing in school, competing in music, etc. Your horse will thank you for it.

[BostonHJ]

OP, I know you were looking more for logistics guidance, so I will briefly chime in with a bit of that. The shorter the lease, the more you will pay. I’m guessing most 6 month leases are going to be about 75% of the cost of an annual lease. If we’re putting the local 3’ finals in October, that would be a May-October lease which sounds like it would work well with your schedule and school. If you’re focused on showing and qualifying for these things, sure, this is a viable option. If you’re simply looking to improve your riding as much as possible with an eye towards showing more in the future / building a great foundation for riding later in life, I think you’d be better with a full year high quality half lease or a care lease. If you really like the idea of showing itself, IHSA is a great option.

There isn’t a right or wrong answer here. Showing at rated shows is a very uneven playing field so to me it isn’t a great measure of how much you’ve progressed until you’re to the page of really fine tuning things (aka, you need to be getting solid distances almost all of the time, easily making it down the lines and smooth changes as a baseline to be competitive - from there, it’s the smaller things sorting out the placings). You can get to the point of riding like that without showing at all, or certainly on a much more limited budget with schooling shows. Showing frequently is IMO actually a hindrance to progress unless nerves are the only issue since it limits how much you can jump at home.

[julia.eq.h]

Thank you for this advice, it’s exactly what I was looking for.
I didn’t know that short term leases are more expensive, wow! Also the point that showing often and then stopping all of a sudden might not be good for long term.

Thank you

[KBC]

@julia.eq.h

Hello! I am wondering how I should precede with horse showing and completing my horse goals: but… as someone with a very busy academic life.

My goal is to do the 3 foot medals next august. IMO this is pretty achievable talent and money wise because I’m doing the 2’9 now and my family is willing to let me lease for 6 months of the year and take me to rates shows as much as I want.

Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of time in the day but this is something I’m super passionate about so I’m going to make it happen. I’m super duper academic and take a lot of more advanced classes and APs, which leave me with 2 or more hours per day of homework. I am working on a coding project for horses that takes like 6 hours a week. I play piano + oboe competitively and play for 4-5 hours a week. I do robotics, engineering club, French, Romanian, Spanish, etc. I also hang out with friends a bunch. I also play tennis during the sunset if I have time.

Somehow I always have like 3 hours of free time during the weekdays and my weekends are free when I don’t work. I genuinely don’t understand how I have so much free time. My parents are willing to drive me 2-3 times a week during school to the barn (30 min away) and every day during summer.

I was thinking that I just take lessons and go to shows on the lesson horses (they’re pretty nice lesson horses) until maybe April. I study all of February, March, and April for AP exams. Then I get a competitive lease and show legit every weekend until medal finals.

I know this is weird and ambitious.

Tell me if you think I should lease earlier or my plan is ok. Or, if I should do something else like take multiple lessons a week instead of leasing,.

Just quoting for posterity….

[KBC]

@julia.eq.h

I honestly just wanted an honest advice

Then why try and delete…you are getting what you ask for.

[julia.eq.h]

Thank you for posting what I deleted? I guess?

What is the point of that?

[julia.eq.h]

Because some of the advice I’ve gotten isn’t relevant. I’m asking about logistics because of my busy schedule and I’ve gotten a lot of responses that don’t think showing is important, I don’t care for my horses, I’m a narcissist, etc.

I don’t really care if someone thinks I’m lying about the activities I do because it’s not relevant to what I’m asking.

I’m very thankful to the many people who gave me great advice !

[BostonHJ]

Oops, I meant IEA - IHSA is college. One thing to keep in mind is lots of colleges have IHSA teams and it can be hard to get a competing spot on the team. IHSA has different divisions and how you are placed in the division is based on how much you have shown before. Typically it is way easier to get a showing spot on the team (believe 2 per team per division) in the lower levels than the higher levels. You may find showing less now sets you up for more fun showing in college.

[julia.eq.h]

I didn’t realize IHSA was so competitive!

[Djones]

If you want to be really good at riding, you catch ride anything that will stand for you to climb aboard. The getting better isn’t in the expensive showing, it’s in the doing with good eyes helping develop and push you.

[Simkie]

@julia.eq.h

Thank you for posting what I deleted? I guess?

What is the point of that?

Because a thread titled “deleted” tends to draw a whole lot of people wondering what the drama is all about. This isn’t Facebook where you can just disappear a whole conversation when you don’t like the direction it’s going.

Thanks, @KBC!

[julia.eq.h]

Yes! I catch ride horses often to get better. Is there a way to do that more if my leasing plan doesn’t work out? Do you think I can post on Facebook that I can help catch ride or become a working student?

Do working students do chores or also ride horses for their trainers? I tried to be a working student once but it requires riding with them for 3 months and leasing, which I couldn’t afford.

[findeight]

@julia.eq.h

I’m asking about logistics

Logistics we cannot give you without specifics and logistics that might include showing horses in 3’ medal classes might be better long term goal then a six month project since you are currently at 2’9” without your own horse and, from what you tell us, very limited time for serious practice. 2 hours a week riding for six months won’t get you there. 3 hours a week starting now increasing when school breaks for summer might get you competitive enough to qualify for Finals. But you have to get the hours in the saddle.

How many hours have you ridden so far this month?

[Scribbler]

Yes. Going up in height isn’t just being able to stick an extra 3 inches. The courses get more complex, the jumps get more complex, things like oxers etc. Well I guess hunter courses don’t really get more complex!

At the moment you are trainer shopping and no horse to ride? And you want to start off showing at 3 feet and qualify for some kind of medals final in August? Are you thinking Maclay regionals? Or some other local finals run in your area? I would not expect that you could walk into a new barn in May and suddenly be showing one of their horses at 3 feet. There’s going to be a learning curve.

[clanter]

I’m asking about logistics

maybe get out of the traditional school system? There so much wasted time in the traditional school setting

Our kids who are now in their forties showed and competed across the country as teens, two we homeschooled the other two were on an approved modified schedule that allowed them to be gone for weeks without a problem.

All had zero issues with college/university entries, three were on scholarships (the one that wasn’t is now a very well off who at one time had most of his college class working for him)

They chased their dreams finding out how to overcome failures all are successful these days

[KBC]

@julia.eq.h

Because some of the advice I’ve gotten isn’t relevant

Such is the way of the internet, a lot of advice you receive will not be relevant, but some might be helpful. The survival trick is to take what helps, ignore what doesn’t, BUT, you still should read it all, just don’t respond to what you don’t feel helps….

[dmveventer]

@vxf111

Would I pick that path? No. I’d rather have an enjoyable life than be the greatest rider I’m physically capable of being.

1000x this.

OP, not everything in life is about being the best. You’re allowed to do things just because you find them fun. You SHOULD do things just because you find them fun. The desperate need to be good at things is just going to undermine your ability to enjoy them. If your measure of success is tied to very specific accomplishments that are always going to be at least partly out of your control (competing in a specific finals, getting into a certain college, getting a particular job out of school, etc) then you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment. Having goals is great but they should not run your life.

Have you considered talking to a guidance counselor or a therapist about any of this? The amount of overthinking and overanalyzing you’ve been doing in your past few threads is a lot for a 15 year old to be worrying about. You honestly sound really stressed, and having a neutral person to talk to may help you organize your thoughts and work through the anxiety in a healthier way than posting for advice online. Take care of yourself so you don’t burn out before you get to enjoy all of these goals you have for your future.

[Simkie]

@julia.eq.h

Yes! I catch ride horses often to get better. Is there a way to do that more if my leasing plan doesn’t work out? Do you think I can post on Facebook that I can help catch ride or become a working student?

Do working students do chores or also ride horses for their trainers? I tried to be a working student once but it requires riding with them for 3 months and leasing, which I couldn’t afford.

Your trainer is your connection into everything you’re looking for.

But it’s not like you just roll up and say “yes, I’ll take that $100k lease on the 3’ medal horse, and by the way I’d like to catch ride everything.”

Getting those ins takes cultivating relationships and proving yourself and time. Time that it doesn’t sound like you have, or want to free up. So sit down and think about what’s really important to you in this endeavor, and find a trainer that can sketch out a reasonable path to that goal and advise you of how realistic it is. It may still not materialize…because, well, horses. But wanting to be a working student and ride everything and have a fancy lease and catch ride all over on a couple few hours a week, especially when you don’t even currently have a trainer now, is not in the least little bit realistic.

[julia.eq.h]

I’m riding 3 times per week now, and I still ride at my barn that I’m planning to switch from. I don’t want to not ride so I’m waiting to switch until October.

I’m thinking more like the 3 foot medals, like the NorCal. Honestly it doesn’t even have to be medals. Just a bigger class at the 3 foot level or near that. I definitely won’t be showing higher than that anytime soon.

Outside of the saddle I work in strengthening my leg and core!