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Wednesday, August 07 2019 / Published in Sidelines Feature

Celebrating the Power of Pony Riders

Sidelines cover girls jumping for joy.

By Britney Grover

Portraits by Shawna Simmons

Pony riders share a bond and a smile, left to right, Maddie, Allison, Vivian, Alexa, Olivia and Emma.

Standing by the pony ring at a horse show can give you a glimpse into life as a pony rider. It’s a world of young riders who are talented, determined, fearless (or at least they seem to be) and who are paired with pint-size equines that often have big attitudes and challenging personalities. But the pony riders take it all in stride, whether their ponies are sweet, wonderful and adorable or tough as nails and giving their equally small riders a run for their money. The pony ring is where many top riders embarked on their equestrian careers, often forming a bond with a pony that’s remembered for a lifetime. Sidelines caught up with six pony riders at the Devon Horse Show, to find out more about life in the pony saddle. Each rider shared their journey and love for ponies. While we celebrate our six riders — Maddie Tosh, Alexa Lignelli, Emma Hechtman, Olivia Sweetnam, Vivian Golden and Allison Coleman — we also celebrate pony riders everywhere and, of course, the power of ponies.

Maddie Tosh

Maddie Tosh 

From Milton, Georgia, 13-year-old Maddie Tosh has been riding her entire life — thanks to her trainer and the rider she most admires: her father, Hunt Tosh. Though she started riding at a young age, showing didn’t exactly come easily to Maddie. “Something people don’t know about me is that when I started out showing, I would cry all the way around the course,” she said. “I was terrified, but I really wanted to do it so I kept showing — but I cried a lot!”

Now, Maddie is a successful pony rider with her sights set on the junior hunters and equitation and hopes someday to be a professional, just like her dad. When she’s not riding, Maddie likes to hang out with friends, play with her puppy, Maggie, her miniature horse, Whoopie Pie, and her two goats, Flip and Flop.

Alexa Lignelli

Alexa Lignelli

Alexa Lignelli has been riding since she was 4 years old. Now 12, she lives in New York City, New York, where she trains with Stacia Madden for equitation and David Belford of New Hope for hunters. Her favorite showing experience so far was her very first Pony Finals on Knee Deep, but when asked about her favorite pony, Alexa replied, “I don’t have a favorite — each is special for different reasons.”

Though she’s deciding what her riding goals are along the way, horses have already taught Alexa perseverance, discipline, courage, kindness and trust. Outside of riding, Alexa likes to play tennis and wants to travel to Italy, where her family is from — which may explain her hidden talent: She loves to cook!

Emma Hechtman

Emma Hechtman 

Emma Hechtman is a girl who knows what she wants. At 13 years old, she’s already making plans in and out of the arena — she hopes to be a hospital CEO someday. After she’s finished successfully riding ponies, Emma hopes to advance through the junior hunters and then the jumpers. Living in Tampa, Florida, and training with Ali Sweetnam, she’s well on her way to achieving her goals. So far, her favorite showing experience was walking out of the conformation hunters at Devon with a score of 87, but she knows things don’t always go so well.

When asked what she thought the hardest or scariest thing about riding is, her answer was simple: the ground. Horses have taught Emma sportsmanship that will help her in all her goals. “Always support your friends,” she said. “Hold your head high when you lose, and low when you win.”

The girls enjoying cotton candy between showing their ponies.

Olivia Sweetnam

Olivia Sweetnam 

Ten-year-old Olivia Sweetnam is a pony rider born not to one equestrian parent but two: her mom, Ali Sweetnam, rides and trains, and her dad is Irish grand prix rider Shane Sweetnam. Like her parents, Olivia is all in when it comes to horses: When Olivia grows up she wants to be a professional rider and take over the family business, Sweet Oak Farm in Wellington, Florida.

Training with her mom as well as Danny Arendt, Olivia’s accomplishments already include winning Small Pony Over Fences at the 2016 Pony Finals when she was just 7 years old — a year after she began showing small ponies. But showing multiple ponies isn’t easy. “In my opinion it’s hard to switch ponies or horses because no pony rides the same and it’s just hard to transition!” she said. When she’s not riding, Olivia likes to do gymnastics and play on the trampoline — both of which will help her in the saddle, too!

Vivian Golden

Vivian Golden 

Pony Finals is hands-down Vivian Golden’s favorite show to go to, and she’s worked hard to get there. From Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, 10-year-old Vivian trains with Amanda Lyerly and has been riding for eight years. “Dressed To Go is my favorite pony because he is sweet, friendly and always tries his hardest for me,” Vivian said. “Horses are always teaching me new things, but probably most important is that they’ve taught me humility.”

Horses also brought Vivian another four-legged family member in her favorite showing experience, the Middleburg Classic, where she adopted her dog — not to be confused with Pitbull, her surprising favorite singer — from Danny & Ron’s Rescue. Someday, Vivian would like to be Champion at Pony Finals and then go on to become a Grand Prix rider. But the lesson of humility shined through when she admitted the hardest part of riding is “for sure getting bucked off — it happens a lot!”

Allison Coleman

Allison Coleman 

For Allison Coleman, horses are a way of life. Even when she’s not riding her small and medium ponies, Allison simply enjoys being around horses. She’s been riding for four years and is now 10 years old, training with Ali Sweetnam in her home town of Wellington, Florida.

Also a theme in her favorite horse book, “Black Beauty,” Allison says horses have taught her to be gentle to animals. But it was “The Wizard of Oz” that made her own favorite horse show experience when she, Olivia Sweetnam and Lily Stoughton jumped to victory in the Small Pony Hunt Teams dressed as characters from the classic. Allison’s goals are to become an equitation rider and show a horse in the George Morris Excellence in Equitation. Though she admits putting her life at risk to ride can be scary, in the end she thinks it’s worth it — after all, there’s no place like horseback.

Photos by Shawna Simmons, www.sasequinephotography.com

The pony riders show off their moves at Devon. Left to right, Allison Coleman, Vivian Golden, Emma Hechtman, Maddie Tosh, Emma Hechtman, Alexa Lignelli and Olivia Sweetnam.

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Tagged under: britney grover, pony, pony rider, shawna simmons, usef pony finals

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Marie Meyers has been around the world because of Marie Meyers has been around the world because of dressage, but it’s her farm in Moorpark, California, that has captured her heart. The farm and the business that thrives there represent Marie’s lifelong journey—a journey made up of good friends, spectacular horses and relationships made to last.

Marie was raised in Southern California, and spent her childhood playing just about every sport under the sun, but she didn’t discover riding until she was 14 years old. “I loved animals so much, so I started taking lessons. I did jumping at first, but I was very bad at that, for sure!” Marie laughed.

After some time, Marie moved on to take lessons at Foxfield Riding Academy and began riding dressage. “I fell into dressage by accident,” Marie said, “At the beginning, I thought it was extremely boring, but then I got hooked. By the time I graduated from high school, I had plans to travel to England to work for Franz Rochowansky, a former head of the Spanish Riding School.”

In 1988, Marie’s hard work paid off, and the pair was selected as alternates for the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. “They didn’t take the alternates that year, so we didn’t go to Seoul, but the experience, the training and the European Tour afterwards set me up for the 1990 World Equestrian Games in Stockholm, Sweden,” Marie said.

In addition to having success representing her country, Marie was busy with her life—marriage, a business, teaching lessons and clinics. 

Learn more about Marie in this month's edition of Sidelines Magazine. Click the link in our bio for more 🦄

📸Photos by Lindsey Long Equine Photography, www.lindseylong.com

#dressage #equestrian #horse #horses #horsesofinstagram #dressagehorse #equestrianlife #showjumping #horseriding #equine #pony #pferd #instahorse #dressur #horselove #eventing #equestrianstyle #cheval #dressagerider #horselife #horselover #pferde #love #riding #jumping #pferdeliebe #horseofinstagram #horsebackriding #paard #dressurpferd
We are starting a ‼️new series‼️ here on o We are starting a ‼️new series‼️ here on our socials where we share some of the lovely stallions, and their breeders featured in each month's magazine. Our first feature on this #STUDSunday is...

 ✨ALVESTA OWAIN✨
Thistledown Arctic Lore x Alvesta Fairy Lustre
13.1hh, Welsh section B
Stud Fee $750 (plus collection)
AI only and EVA negative
Fairfield, VA

Contact Cheryl Maye at (703) 431-9096 for more information
https://www.mayeshowponies.com/more-info/stallions

You can find ALL of the stallions featured towards the back of the magazine in the equestrian gallery. Keep a look out EVERY Sunday for a new handsome STUD muffin🧁 and don't forget to subscribe to get your very own edition of Sidelines Magazine, the magazine for horse people, about horse people 🦄

📸  SAS Equestrian
‼️ROB JACOBS COLUMN‼️ The purpose of this ‼️ROB JACOBS COLUMN‼️

The purpose of this month’s column is to help the young equestrians of our sport develop and maintain healthy friendships within the industry. Cultivating healthy relationships with other members within the industry is not as easy as one may think. As a young equestrian, it may be difficult navigating friendships at the barn and at horse shows. Typically, kids have friendships within the barn they ride at but also friendships with others from different barns in their area. 

Initially, it may seem as though making other friends in the sport would be easy and ideal; after all, there is the common interest of horses. However, because of the natural therapeutic benefits of horses, the sport has a history of attracting all types of people, with a wide range of personalities. This can be both an advantage and a drawback. We are now in an era that acknowledges the growing need to discuss and manage one’s mental health. 

One thing I have learned is that we are likely to notice mental health challenges at an age younger than most people may think. Some of the friendship dynamics I have observed over the years have caused me to pause and really think about the future of our sport. Without looking for a source to blame for the cause of this, i.e. social media, parents, school, teachers, etc., I think if all adults involved worked to encourage, affirm, love, and respect our youth, the likelihood of them developing authentic friendships with their peers may increase.

Both humans and horses were designed to have connected relationships. These relationships allow a greater sense of security when one experiences challenges in life. Cultivating the quality and authenticity of these relationships requires intentional work. 

Thank you Rob for providing your helpful insight on developing healthy relationships. Check out his tips in his column you can find in the link in our bio.
Never miss a story by subscribing to Sidelines Magazine🦄 

Photo by Blenheim Equisports

#horse #horses #horsesofinstagram #equestrian #horseriding #equine #hunterjumper #equestrianlife #horselove #dressage #sidelinesmagzine
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