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As an equestrian athlete a phrase I hear often from non equestrian people is “riding is not
a sport.” This phrase makes every equestrian cringe, and the very last thing we athletes do is just
sit there on top of our horses. Everything about our sport makes it a sport. We have to practice
everyday to get in shape, we have pre-show rituals, and we have competition. Being a
competitive equestrian athlete my entire life makes me feel very strongly about defending my
sport. In this essay I will talk about the history of horseback riding in my life, what degree of
fitness is needed for the horse and rider, and what makes riding horses a sport.
Since the time I could sit up by myself I’ve been on top of a horse. To put that into
perspective I was one month old the first time I sat on a horse and I am now 19 writing this
essay. Riding is so natural to me, its something I can just go out and do without really thinking
about. It has always been there for me whether I am happy or sad. I am currently a competing
equestrian athlete. The type of competition I do is Eventing. “Eventing has now evolved into an
exciting sport attracting interest from all levels of sports enthusiasts, from weekend hobby riders
to professional international stars” (USEA, what is Eventing?).
Eventing is composed of 3 different events similar to that of a triathlon but over the
course of 3 days. The 3 events include dressage in which the rider performs movements on their
horse similar to figure skating, riders are judged based on their “Precision, smoothness,
suppleness and complete obedience show off the horse’s obedience” (USEA, What Is
Eventing). Then cross country is jumping through the woods over unmovable objects. “The
object of this test is to prove the speed, endurance, and jumping ability of the horse over varied
terrain and obstacles” (USEA, What is Eventing?). Lastly show jumping which is more formal
than cross country where the rider jumps over moveable free standing objects. “This final phase
tests the stamina and recovery of the horse after the endurance phase and shows that it is fit
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enough to continue work” (USEA, What is Eventing?). There are also six different levels at
which competitors compete at starting with beginner novice as the lowest level, then novice,
training, preliminary, intermediate, and finally advance as the highest level. I compete at training
level and will soon be moving up to preliminary. “At the end of the competition, scores for all
the competitors are totaled. Each test is scored individually and the penalties accrued are added
together for the final results. The lowest score is the winning score” (USEA, What is
Eventing?). As competitor I have been very successful. I have earned my silver medal at novice,
and training level. I have also competed against Olympic athletes.
With competition comes time and a whole lot of effort. It’s not like a rider decides to
enter a competition and do it the next day. He or she must start training at least 4-6 months
before the first competition of the year. That’s 4-6 months of pre-season, which includes
