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WATCH: Horse and rider are perfect dance partners

Local show jumpers back in the saddle

  • Hunter/Jumper Spring Classic
  • Attracts locals and some from Alberta
  • Full weekend of events and prizes

A weekend full of show jumping and spending time with friends and family is what one event is all about.

For the first time in two years, the Kelowna Riding Club (KRC) Spring Classic Hunter/Jumper Horse Show is underway over the May long weekend.

It’s a bronze (local division) show that brings in mainly local talent, but also attracts riders from the Lower Mainland and Alberta.

“It’s the start of show season so it’s good to see everybody back out and see all the other trainers, all the kids, and start to create a little more of a community,” Megan Dalton, a local rider and coach told Kelowna10. “The riding club is doing a great job getting it together, rallying everyone, and they’re making it a very positive experience.”

It’s comprised of two sections called hunters and jumpers. Riders in the hunter category are judged more on how the horse jumps, their rhythm, and the overall look of the riding. Jumpers are focused on speed and getting over the jumps as quickly as they can.

Riders in both skills will be competing throughout each day and have a shot at winning hundreds of dollars on Monday during the final events.

“[The horse] is an animal that needs you, it needs your help, and they rely on you,” Dalton said. “It’s a cool partnership because they rely on you day to day, but you rely on them when you’re in the arena.”

Another local rider, Bryn Cox, echoed Dalton’s notion about the relationship with a horse needing plenty of time, but one that pays off once trust is built.

“You have a dancing partner who speaks a different language,” she said. “It’s not their innate nature to want to dance with you, but then you do it and it’s really special.”

Both riders are competing at various events throughout the weekend and Cox said being around the animals is something she loves.

“I feel like when I’m at the barn, there’s nothing else going on in my world,” she explained. “It’s really nice to just be present [and] there’s something therapeutic about mucking stalls and cleaning tack even though that sounds boring to most people.”

Cox took a bit of a hiatus from riding while she was finishing high school, but now she’s excited to be back, especially at an event that hasn’t happened for a couple years due to the pandemic.

“There’s lots of memories here for me with my friends,” she said. “I don’t even know how many horses I’ve ridden at this specific event.”

Published 2022-05-21 by Jordan Brenda

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