Pony power! We are celebrating ponies of all breeds on YourDressage through the month of June!
Did you know dressage riders who choose ponies as their mounts are eligible for many Adequan®/USDF All-Breeds Awards, as there are several pony organizations on our Participating Organization list?
Here, a rider originally from Region 1 tells us about the Sport Pony who helped her recover from the loss of her previous dressage partner, ease her show ring anxiety, and find happiness in the sport again.
By Caitlin Allen
Entering at ‘A’ and trotting down centerline has always been anxiety-inducing for me. It doesn’t matter if I’m riding Intro A at a barn-wide schooling show or debuting in my first recognized competition at First Level. The second I start my lap around the arena, as I’m waiting for the bell to ring, I start to struggle to breathe and become a tense mess. I’ll remind myself this isn’t the Olympics and to breathe all the way through my toes; however, that only works until I start to feel nauseous.
At the beginning of 2017, I lost my then-to-be-dressage partner, Playdate, affectionately known as “Monkey” around the barn. His sudden passing due to colic destroyed me. We were finally feeling confident in the show ring after a fantastic final schooling show. Above all else, he was my best friend. I thought no horse could fill the void he left.
My trainer was seeking out another schoolmaster when she came across two ponies: Silver Lining and Crown Royal. Crown Royal, also known as “Roy” or, as I call him, “Royboy,” was the confidence booster that I needed. Roy began his life in Canada, where he was loved and adored by a junior rider. Roy, known then as “Whiskey,” was helping bring his rider up the levels and even brought her to the pony classes at Dressage at Devon.
Roy eventually made his way stateside, landing at a farm in Northern New Jersey, where he was being shown by a junior rider. He was for sale along with Silver Lining, known as “Chase.” After I went with my trainer to try them, she decided to purchase both of them. Roy became my main mount for that spring, and we would debut our short-lived show career at the USET Pony Club schooling show.
Roy’s positive can-do attitude and calmness (minus a few whinnies) made showing feel less stressful. We rode through a messy scenario of a schooling show in the pouring rain and did our best to put up with everything that entailed. We dealt with feeling disgusting from the sticky clothes and saddle pads as we trekked through the puddles outside of the arena. I still felt that I could smile and laugh, despite the less-than-ideal conditions, and my white breeches becoming covered in black dye from the saddle. Not having to worry about Roy being on edge about being away from home – and potentially being spooky – allowed me to focus on myself.
By mid-summer, Roy would take me down the centerline of my first USDF-recognized show at the USET. He would use the same bridle Monkey wore, which made our partnership feel even more special. I had worked so hard to be able to afford the lessons and show fees that led up to this moment. I was working as a part-time receptionist at a local appliance repair place to save up money before I went to college at the end of August, while also being a working student. I received a scholarship from Dressage4Kids that helped pay for my lessons that led up to this moment as well.
We showed all three of the Training Level tests at this first show. My scores could have been better, but that didn’t matter to me. I had fun, even with the pressure of now having my scores immortalized on the USDF website. I was able to halt, salute, and excitedly laugh while I thanked Roy with big scratches on his neck, and thanked the judge and scribe for their time after each ride. Of course, the nerves were still there, especially after riding in front of Gary Rockwell. But I remembered to breathe for the first time in quite a while.
Our run ended with one last show, where we gave First Level a try before leaving for college in Vermont. My score wasn’t impressive at 59.2%, but I was just happy to have had the chance to try with the best schoolmaster. While our showing journey ended in August of 2017, I still get to hang out with him whenever I visit the barn back home.
Roy is a silly and affectionate boy. He loved to play “bitey-face” with Chase’s halter when I would bring them both in. He was just tall enough to peek his head over his stall door, looking like a giraffe or a pony periscope. If I was picking out his stall while he was in there, he would try to help by inspecting the wheelbarrow for any spare hay. He now gets to pass on his knowledge and the many lessons he taught me to the Rutgers Equestrian dressage team, as well as some of my trainer’s students.
Now, I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and train with Samantha Billings-Coatney and her team at Billings Equestrian. I haven’t been in the show arena since my last show with Roy, but I was able to take everything I learned throughout our time together and apply it to a mini-schooling show last year. I rode a wonderful pony named Merry through Training Level Test 3, and made sure I remembered to breathe, even when I felt those old show nerves creep back up.
While I dream of one day owning a big warmblood, I still have a soft spot for ponies. They’re just little horses! The “naughty pony” stereotype only exists because of how they are treated and trained. Some of them need a little grace due to their past, like Chase (mentioned above).
Chase was incredibly head-shy due to his past. You couldn’t just force a halter on him and lead him out of the paddock; you needed to wait and offer the halter a few times. Some ponies have a larger personal space bubble and might bite at you if you enter it too abruptly. There’s also the chance their attitude could be pain-related, such as poor saddle fit or ulcers. Just like horses, they can only communicate so much, and it’s up to us to try and figure out what they are saying.
Maybe when I’m ready to buy or lease, I’ll end up with another pony. I’d love to be able to compete in the National Dressage Pony Cup, or try to earn a California Dressage Society Pony Award! But for now, I’ll keep working on my dressage fundamentals, riding all different types and sizes of horses and ponies.
