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FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE SIDELINES JUNE 2011 15

nice quality horses, the Junior Training Scholarships are awarded according to criteria designed by Marcia on a point system that evaluates the rider. In other words: winning a horse trial isn’t the decider to receive a weeklong “training camp” complete with board for horse and rider with a top professional.

“A lot of thought went into this,” says Marcia. “The emphasis is not a point system that rewards kids for winning a ribbon. It rewards kids for riding better. Say you have a qualifed junior riding a Quarter Horse/Paint cross that isn’t going to score as well in dressage, but it goes clear cross-country and the rider does the job well. I want us to be able to reward a talented, dedicated and ambitious kid with a scholarship and not just someone in a position to ride the best horses.”

All three phases come into play. A panel of three PRO judges will award points in dressage for the rider’s knowledge of the test, understanding of “connection” and use of the aids, knowledge of test, and turnout; in cross-country, the PRO ‘judges’ score the warm-up (rider’s position, balance, timing, level of confdence, maturity and composure) as well as the cross-country itself (pace, correct use of speed for course conditions and ability of both horse and rider), and how the rider ‘behaves’ if things go wrong. For show jumping, again safety in the warm-up area is a factor, as well as position, balance and timing, and how well the rider sees a stride. There are also opportunities to earn bonus points. “There aren’t any points for prizes, whether you’re frst or 15th,” says Marcia. “It’s all about the rider. What’s great is that all of our professional PRO riders have agreed to participate in the judging. For the frst year, we decided to keep it small and we have a group of four professionals who have committed to provide the actual training camps: Jan Byyny, Amy Tryon, Hawley Bennett-Awad and myself. We have people on the East and West coasts who are willing to commit to getting this program off the ground. I’m really excited about this program.”

No doubt it’s the opportunity of a young rider’s lifetime. One of the best benefts is that it will increase any scholarship recipient’s life skills, because participation requires dedication and commitment, setting goals, and exhibiting good sportsmanship and good behavior (cursing a naughty equine or screaming with joy over a jump will impact negatively on a participant’s score). Networking is another substantial bonus: scholarship recipients will fnd themselves on the radar of the top professional with whom they spent that week. That could be very signifcant if the rider’s looking for a horse, working student position or just needs some help at an event. The connection, the bridge has been established by the junior’s drive to win that scholarship: every PRO professional knows that part of the future of eventing is with mentoring junior riders with the focus and desire, even if they weren’t born with silver spurs.

“I think that PRO is a good organization,” emphasizes Marcia. “The riders know they have to put something back into the sport and help to cultivate the future of eventing. It’s not just about fnding better riders and making riders; it’s about how we can

develop people to their full potential. The attributes of top event riders – physical skill, mental determination and the ability to overcome obstacles – are skills that will be benefcial in any walk of life.”

The program takes place at designated events associated with PRO on both coasts: Galway Downs and Twin Rivers in California; Southern Pines II in North Carolina, SureFire in Virginia; Millbrook in New York; Richland in Michigan. Juniors must be members of PRO in order to participate in the PRO Junior Training Scholarship program.

PRO Showcases Eventing as Entertainment

The recent PRO DerbyCross brought a different kind of action to the main arena at the Wellington Equestrian Festival on March 5 during Nation’s Cup weekend, the world’s biggest equestrian weekend in the month of March. Five teams, each with three event riders, one show jumper and one polo player, navigated the hybrid course of cross-country and show jumping obstacles against the clock.

The crowd loved the entertainment that certainly showcased three-day eventing in a whole new light at a powerful new venue. The event also raised money for Operation Homefront, a national non-proft which provides emergency fnancial and other assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors. PRO’s decision to partner with Operation Homefront is quite ftting: eventing’s roots are in the Cavalry and three-day used to be called “The Military” until it opened up to civilians in 1952 upon the disbanding of the horse troops.

Marcia Kulak, upper level international event rider based in Florida, came up with the idea for the Junior Training level scholarships. Shown here at the 2010 American Eventing Championships, dropping into the Preliminary water with Yoscha Bosche Photo by Mark Lerner