April 2022 Issue

The News East Coast Horse Owners Need To Know OUR TH YEAR 1 3 - PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT 280 LANC., PA 17604 Vol. 29 No. 3 April 2022 (Continued on page 22) By Marcella Peyre-Ferry Racing over fences is back in full force this spring with longstanding events joined by a few new dates on the racing calendar. In most cases, both point to point races and Na- tional Steeplechase Association sanctioned steeplechases include races for junior riders on horses and ponies. “They are in a lot of places this year. We’re pretty excited that a lot of race meets have decided that pony racing adds something fun and exciting to their event. And people like them,” Alissa Norman, director for the Temple Gwathmey Stee- plechase Foundation said. The goal of the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foun- dation is to get young riders interested in racing to build the pool of future jockeys. “Whatever we can do to give young riders a chance to be in a racing environment is our goal. We’d like to get them some experience and some enthusiasm for racing so this is something they want to do when they grow up,” Norman said. “There’s a decent crop of American jockeys right now, but a lot of our jock- eys are Irish and English simply because we don’t have enough people who want to be a pro- fessional jump jockey. We need to grow the field of jockeys and the most fun way to do that is to start when you’re a kid, racing ponies.” There are many benefits to getting young riders interested in racing at an early age. Pony rac- ing is another way to get young riders out of the ring and into the countryside where they are faced with a new set of riding challeng- es that require new skills. “Fox hunting and pony racing, hunter paces, trail riding and paper chases; all of these For Kids Who Don’t Enjoy Riding in Circles, There’s Pony Racing Erin Tallarico gives Olney Quick Draw McGraw, owned by Imogen Weaver, a pre-race kiss before her daughter, Libby Tallarico, mounts up for a pony race at the Howard County races in 2021. Photo credit: Robert Keller things are so good for kids be- cause it’s not always just round and round in circles. You’re not always on flat ground. You need to know how to control your pony in all situations,” Norman said. “Yes, pony racing is fast and probably a little scary for the kids, but especially for the kids who like the adrenalin rush it’s right up their alley. They do have to have control of their ponies, they need to know how to steer, they need to be able to pull their pony up, they need to be able to control their pony at the start when everything’s all exciting and the ponies are raring to go. They need to have control, and this is a nice way to teach them that.” Looking at a pony race pro- gram you may find familiar fam- ily names. Often the pony riders come from racing families, where racing is a familiar experience. Norman points out that pony rac- ing is not for every child. She has observed that the interest seems to rise and fall in waves as one crop of riders ages out and new faces come in. At a recent clinic it appeared to her that about half of the riders were new, which is very encouraging. “There’s new blood and that’s exciting,” Norman said. “Maybe they’ve done Pony Club, or they think it’s fun. If your kid thinks the show ring is a little uptight and boring, pony racing is not uptight and boring. Then there are the kids who can do both.” There is a wide variety of ways for the racing community to involve youngsters. It can begin with the very youngest children in lead line races where the de- ciding factor in the victory often is the speed of the person leading the pony. Racing quickly becomes more serious as the riders move up to pony races on the flat. The race distances typically increase with either the pony size or the rider age, depending on the race condition book. Some meets offer racing over fences in either a short- ened and lowered course or in the field master’s chase format, which follows traditions from the hunting field. The entries must follow a field master, who takes them through the course of low fences. Passing the field master could be cause for disqualifi- cation, or a penalty to drop to the back of the pack. The riders must demonstrate good hunting protocol, typically following in a pack. The riders’ goal is to jump well, follow at the pace set by the field master and remain in good position until reaching the final stage of the race. Here the field master pulls aside and lets the field turn their attention to racing for the finish line. Inside... PA Equine Council spring newsletter … pgs. 26 & 27 Feral mare captured on WV strip-mine wins Rescued to Stardom … pg. 28 …and much more! Equine Health Care, Nutrition & Therapy feature pgs. 6-19