The inside look of the OU equestrian team and what it means to the members.
The Ohio University equestrian team isn’t just horsing around.
The team offers much more than challenging members’ equestrian skills, with it comes friendship and responsibility.
“It’s cool because riding can be a hobby; it can be your sport; it can be your life or it can be your job,” said Allyson Lagiovane, a freshman studying business, who’s been riding for 12 years.
The team is technically coed but has all girls this year. They have a placement tryout, meaning everyone makes the team but their coach watches to see what division the member should show in.
“I was nervous at first to join the team because I’ve been riding at the same barn for my entire life,” Lagoivane said. “So it was weird going to a new place, but they really made me feel like I fit in.”
All 35 members of the team practice at Stonegate Farm in Coolville, about 30 minutes outside of Athens; members have lessons at least once a week. Each member is put into levels during competition, depending on skills.
“I see a lot of (the team members) put forth a lot of effort,” said Miranda Cain the team’s instructor and the manager of Stonegate Farm. “They have a lot of passion for the sport and in (everything) they do; that’s one thing that I’ve always noticed about them.”
The farm pays for the horses’ upkeep. Sometimes the girls go to the farm and help out but the girls only pay the farm for their lessons.
Not knowing beforehand which horse they’ll be riding, the team pulls names out of a hat to find out with whom they will be practicing.
The team does not only draw names during practices, but at competitions as well, said Lauren Vargo, president of the team and a senior studying geography, who’s been riding for 13 years. “Sometimes you’ve never ridden that horse before, sometimes you have. It (shows) a good rider can ride (any horse) and it makes it more of a challenge.”
Most members enjoy riding other horses to help prove their equestrian skills in shows. Lagiovane said it definitely demonstrates who can stand above the rest.
Although members don’t have the opportunity to get too attached, some of the team members’ favorite horses to ride at Stonegate are Princess, Toby and Lux.
Besides furthering their skills, members said that lessons are a way for them to unwind at the end of the day.
The lessons are available in three different packages. The first package covers lesson fees for two lessons a week, show fees and fees for free riding. The second package is the same as the first except no free riding. The third package is one day per week lesson fees and pay-as-you-show fee. It is $20 for each person and free ride is $75 that allows riding without instruction. A barn fee is also paid per semester, with each student paying $150 per semester, said Valerie Hicks, treasurer and a junior studying corporate finance.
At Stonegate, members choose from 50 of the farm’s horses to ride, making sure to not use the same horse each time to better prepare for competitions. In the 2014-15 season, there are eight competitions.
“It takes all of the stress of school away from you and you just focus on what you need to do at the moment,” said Elizabeth Moran, a freshman studying geology.
Like Moran, Lagiovane said that she uses riding as an outlet to help her become less stressed. She said that she always knows when she goes riding that she instantly feels better afterwards.
The team is preparing for the combined regional show here at OU, which will be on Feb. 15.
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