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A blast from the past, food deprivation, and of course an excess of riding, this is IEA! In late February, I helped host and participate in the Stanford Red Barn and Priory School IEA shows. The IEA limits our shows to fve days a season so everyone can have a chance to go to regionals, and so I wasn’t able to compete both days. That was ideal because our coach was completely swamped and I was able to help out. He defnitely appreciated the extra hands!

The frst day I chose to help out instead of show. I arrived at the Red Barn at 7am in order to set up the arena with the sound system and horse-holding area. After getting the arenas ready, I rushed back to the barn and tacked up the horses that need to be warmed up. As I stood by the ring getting all of the riders on, the coach realized that we were short of warm-up riders! He pointed to a white pony named Tara and told me to mount up. As I was riding around, I realized that I’d ridden this horse before! She used to be at McIntosh Stables, the barn I show on the A circuit with, and I had ridden her about three years ago. The blast from my past was an unexpected surprise, but I defnitely appreciated it.

After warm-up riding, there was much work to be done to get our riders into the arena and looking presentable. I barely had enough time to grab a bagel for breakfast, the only food I got at the show, before running back to the arena to hold the horses that wouldn’t be used until later. One slobber-covered jacket later, my coach told me that he was going to grab some lunch, so it was up to me to coach the riders in the fat class. This was my frst experience with coaching, and I was a little nervous. Luckily I had the support of one of the other team’s coaches. With a little help, the two riders I was coaching placed frst and ffth. After a successful day of showing for our home teams, it was time to clean up and get ready for the next day.

The next morning at 7am, my friend greeted me with a cup of coffee and we tacked up the horses for the warm-up riders. Even though I was showing that day, I still helped to run the show. Once all the riders were mounted and entering the ring, I watched attentively in order to discern which horses I hoped to draw. As we lined up at the draw table by height, which put me toward the end, I hoped that none of the people before me would draw the horses I wanted! Wistfully, I watched all of my top choices being called out by my competitors. By the time I fnally reached the table, there were only a few horses left. For my jumping class, I drew a large lazy hunter, one of the hardest rides for me. But luckily for the fat, I drew one of my favorite Stanford ponies, Chalky! I put in a solid effort for the jumping round, but even though we cantered into the line, the horse somehow landed in the trot… Needless

to say I didn’t place in that class, but I still had my fat class to look forward to.

After much running and racing to keep the show running smoothly, the time for my fat class fnally rolled around. I mounted up, feeling anxious, hoping my nerves wouldn’t transfer to the pony I was riding. She would not stand still as we awaited our turn to enter the arena. Once we were walking around inside, silence fell as the spectators watched the most advanced fat class compete. When we picked up the trot, my horse spooked along the side of the judge, I could only pray that she hadn’t noticed the blunder. While working at the canter, I had a little trouble keeping the pony calm. She kept trying to pass all of the horses! After a couple of circles, riders were fnally called into the center of the arena. The judge announced the results and all of the competitors exited the arena one by one. It was getting toward the end when I heard my number being called – I had won! I was flled with excitement because I had qualifed for regionals with two more days of showing left. The last regular show of the season will be coming up and hopefully I will qualify in the over fences division as well.

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