Erika Carson is a junior rider representing Area IX and Area VI on a scramble CCI* team. Erika rides with Jan regularly in Virginia, and in South Carolina during the winter. She represented Area IX last year at NAJYRC and couldn’t wait to come back for more! She’s agreed to keep us abreast of the happenings right from her competitors point of view, and we are so grateful! Thanks to Erica for writing, and thanks to you for reading!
Erika & her previous mount, Novio, at NAYRC 2012
Hi Eventing Nation! My name is Erika Carson and I am a junior rider on the Area IX team. We are finally in Kentucky for the 2013 North American Junior Young Rider Championships and I could not be more excited. The coming week will be full of excitement and I’m hoping to share the fun with you!
This year Area IX has sent three riders to Kentucky: Jacqueline Larouche, Amy Gilbertson, and Erika Carson (me!). Our coach is the fabulous Jan Byyny. Jan was an Area IX rider when she was younger and is now a four star rider with many years of riding under her belt. It definitely gives Area IX young riders something to aspire to! Marcel Dorsey is our Chef D’Equipe and is doing an amazing job keeping us all in order and everything running smoothly. Our team vet is Dr. Susan Johns and we are very lucky to have her! Mauri Tracy (although sadly not here in person, though definitely in spirit!) is also a huge part of organizing this amazing opportunity for us. Our grooms this year are Madeline Backus and Anna Gilbertson. This is their third year at Young Riders. The rest of the Area IX team is made up of the wonderful parents and guests that make sure we don’t go hungry and help out in any way they can. All in all, we have a fantastic group here at Young Riders this year!
Jacqueline Larouche is riding The Gingerbread Man in the CCI 2* this weekend. This will be Jacqueline’s second time at Young Riders with this horse. They competed in the one star last year. Originally from Carbondale, Colorado, Jacqueline has relocated to Virginia for this past year to work for Allison Springer. Jacqueline has enjoyed this opportunity and is continuing on to college at Georgia Tech this fall.
The GingerBread Man, known as Allen around the barn, is a 19 year-old appendix quarter horse. However, don’t be fooled, Allen plans on showing these younger horses how it’s done this weekend. “Jumping circles around them, one hoof tied behind my back”.
Amy Gilbertson will be riding One Honest Man in the CCI 1* . This is their first time at Young Riders. Amy and Honest qualified in Illinois at Fox River Valley Pony Club H.T. CIC 1* and CCI 1*. They recently placed second in the Colorado Horse Park H.T. Preliminary division. Amy is from Wellington, Colorado. She has spent the past few weeks in Virginia, riding with Jan Byyny.
Honest is a very sweet, fifteen year old, off-the-track thoroughbred, who will go to any length for treats.
I am riding Celtic Prince (Ricardo) in the CCI 1* division this weekend. Ricardo is a 14 year-old Irish Sport Horse. We qualified at Bromont and had an extremely fun time doing so. Although I am originally from Wyoming, I have been in Virginia for the past year training with Jan. I have learned so much in this time, not only in riding but also horsemanship. This is my second year at young riders, but it is Ricardo’s first year. The horse I took last year, Novio, is home in Virginia becoming a beginner novice champion with his new rider. Ricardo is enjoying his time in Kentucky and loving being the center of attention.
Ricardo enjoying his time at NAJYRC
We left for Young Riders early on Monday. The drive was uneventful except for the hundreds of Boy Scouts that seemed to be everywhere on our trip! We didn’t stop anywhere without seeing a group of them. Based upon this experience I can safely say I know what the world would look like if Boy Scouts took over.
We spent Monday traveling and organizing everything, but Tuesday was when the real fun began. After riding our horses in the morning and successfully completing in-barns, we participated in a NAJYRC tradition: golf cart decorating! Area IX golf carts were decorating to represent Wyoming and Colorado. Which meant everything on the cart was varied and it went from snow to green hills, a normal daily transition in both states.
Area IX golf cart
The riders meeting and the opening ceremonies were next on the agenda. The meeting was a great introduction for the weekend and also featured a short talk on rider drug testing at competitions. After the meeting, the opening ceremonies took place in the Rolex arena. All teams presented their Area banners, and it was it was so nice to see all of the sponsors that are supporting this year’s young riders.
Once finished with our part in the ceremony, we hurried up to Spy Coast Farm for the competitor’s party. Spy Coast Farm is a gorgeous property and always puts on a fantastic evening for all the young riders, grooms and family members. The food was delicious and afterwards riders of all disciplines mingled, danced, and had a water fight. This year it seemed to be Mexico’s show jumping team against everyone else. It was a fun evening and set the tone for an amazing week at this year’s NAJYRC.
