EN reader Colleen Hofstetter sent us a great article on one of Area 8’s standby event hosts: Stone Gate Farm. Run by Jackie Smith and her family, the farm supports two USEA horse trials along with a plethora of other activities. Thanks to Colleen for writing, and thank you for reading.
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Stone Gate Farm – Changing It Up in Area 8
by Colleen Hofstetter
The Olympics, Burghley, Blenheim, the AECs and the upcoming rising star Plantation Field HT…all big name, high profile venues. But let’s not forget the little guy – the home grown horse trials running each weekend around the country where, yes, even the big boys and girls go with their youngsters, or to get in a prep run for the next three day. How are those horse trials surviving the present economic chasm? Well as Benjamin Franklin once said: “When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.” Good advice that has been adhered to by the folks at Stone Gate Farm in the heartland of Ohio. Stone Gate Farm is owned by Jackie and Dave Smith, and with the help of their two sons Kyle and Kevin, the 111 acre farm is host to numerous horse functions throughout most of the year, including a spring and a fall horse trial.
Jackie and Dave purchased the farm in 1986 and thus began a 26 year odyssey of removing, replacing, reusing, and repurposing everything from the land to the buildings and most importantly the horse use areas. Jackie’s skillset has grown over the years to include USEA Certified Instructor Level II, United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) licensed official, Eventing judge, Eventing Technical Delegate, Eventing Course Designer, and Dressage Judge. Then there’s Dave – a large animal veterinarian – both bovine and equine. Moving on to the next generation is Kyle and Kevin: Kyle graduated in 2010 from Ohio State University with a major in Agricultural Business and a minor in Equine Sciences. He is also an accomplished rider having competed through the CCI** level. Brother Kevin attends school at the University of Youngstown where he is an engineering major. He is also an accomplished event rider having ridden through the preliminary and intermediate level, including completing a CCI long format.
Stone Gate is home to horse trials, mini-trials, hunter pace, clinics, jumper derby, pony club camp, event camp, dressage shows, combined test, mock event, and lessons most every day of the week! Additionally, the farm has hosted four ICP workshops and two ICP assessments. Jackie’s secret to getting it all done is to get up early, complete her day’s SITS (www.SuccessInTheSaddle.com) routine, work all day, and, if time permits, jump in the pond at night to cool off – lovingly referred to as “pond therapy!” As one farm function ends, it is time to begin preparing for the next event. Jumper shows, dressage shows, and combined tests pop up on the schedule almost monthly as well as having a Hunter Pace sprinkled here and there, all coupled with mini trials, camps, and clinics with well-known riders. The main focus of the season though is the two recognized horse trails – one in the spring and one in the fall.
The Stone Gate Farm horse trials run divisions of Beginner Novice through Preliminary and can accommodate between 125 and 150 entries; Stone Gate also has Starter Test divisions which do not require USEA membership and associated fees – a good introduction for those who are not ready to take the plunge into recognized eventing. Jackie stated that the spring horse trials are generally full and occasionally have a wait list and/or the need for off grounds stabling. By the fall however, people are either “out of money, out of horses, or out of motivation,” or they need to go elsewhere to meet training and competition goals; therefore the fall horse trial is usually undersubscribed, a trend that many of the smaller venues are experiencing.
Stone Gate is located in Area VIII. While home of the only 4* in this country, events are not as conveniently located as say, eastern PA when any number of shows can be accessed within a short drive. Area VIII is also home to a number of locales that have been particularly hard hit by the recession. Therefore, the need to give the people what they want is an important factor and Jackie and Dave have been very responsive to what is important in this part of the horse world. For example: the cost of putting on recognized vs. non-recognized horse trials. Since Jackie is a licensed official for many aspects of eventing, and Dave is a wonder with the heavy equipment, Jackie estimates that she is able to save approximately $10,000.00 by being “do it yourself-ers.” The biggest expense for a recognized event is the medical personnel needed. That requirement can run into the thousands of dollars, and while Dave can handle any animal emergency, EMT personnel may sit around all day but still need to be paid. As Jackie noted, “I can remember close to 30 year ago having our entries at $65, with a $4 USEA starter levy. We’re double that now and probably one of the lowest cost events in the country. Everything costs more than it did 20 years ago and we have to pass the cost on to the competitors, however, since we’re not a big fancy venue and since we have the equipment and we do all the work ourselves, we pass the savings on to the competitor.”
Another factor in this area is the popular North Eastern Ohio Mini Trials association. The unrecognized mini trials offer competitors several perks: low cost, offered on one day, schooling of the course beforehand, and several in the series all within a relatively short driving distance. So in addition to the horse trials, Stone Gate is also a mini-trials host. It is a fact that the local mini-trials are a huge success as evidenced by the most recent one. Jackie explained: “I think a large reason why recognized entries are down is because the local Mini Trials do such a good job for half the price. South Farm had just over 100 entries at their recognized event two weeks ago and yesterday they had 180 at their Mini Trials. Looking at their entry list there are quite a few people who could be doing the recognized events but they choose to go to the unrecognized ones instead. Something to think about not only on a local level but a national level as well.”
Over the years Jackie and Dave have added numerous enticements to the facility: sand dressage rings were put in about 20 years ago and are scheduled for refurbishing this fall; on-grounds stabling to accommodate 70 horses; a new stadium ring this year; expansion of the XC course; outdoor wash stalls; and this year’s quirkiest addition, THE DOME! A new structure on the farm, The Dome is a repurposed fiberglass cover of the City of Akron’s water treatment plant brought in piece by piece and rebuilt into a mini indoor arena. “Perfect for working the young horses as the solid walls keep out many distractions,” explained Jackie. It also comes in handy for competitors to get out of the rain and thunder storms, as many found out during a recent summer downpour. Jackie and Dave are big on “reusing and repurposing” and consistently plan farm functions with multiple uses in mind. Such things as piggy backing horse trials and hunter paces makes multiple use of XC courses; clinics and camps can use the same scenarios; and schooling days are often held right before a mini trial or after an event. Since Stone Gate is a family run organization and relies heavily on family and volunteer manpower, careful attention to the schedule is always given. Jackie’s vivacious personality also has a way of getting people involved – who can resist Jackie’s encouragement, enticement and arm twisting to “get up and get going with your horse!”
Once a year such notables as Doug Payne, Eric Dierks, and the grand dame of eventing herself – Lucinda Green, who has taught at Stone Gate every year since 1995 – spend a few days teaching, explaining, challenging, and inspiring many local riders at Stone Gate’s clinics. Why go to all the trouble of arranging, hosting, and setting up clinics? Because Jackie strongly believes in continuing education for all ages and levels of riders, including herself. Plus, hobnobbing with such luminaries allows Jackie to keep her finger on the pulse of eventing and incorporate new ideas in all aspects of running Stone Gate Farm.
Lucinda Green teaches Sue Hines
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When asked what she thought of eventing’s future, particularly the lower level events, Jackie remarked that it’s hard to predict what will happen. “Everyone talks about the main factors – loss of land, competitor vs. business owner, smaller numbers of people entering the event world. Maybe the system should change. In the meantime, I just try to make things fun, educational, and open to a variety of folks. We’ve been doing it for so long now, it wouldn’t make sense to stop. Sponsorship would be nice; maybe the USEA could offer incentives or something like that – help to defer some of the costs of recognized events.” For now it seems that Stone Gate’s mantra could be “variety is the spice of life!” And while Jackie has commented that cooking, cleaning, and housework are usually on the back burner, the Smith family has certainly cooked up lots for horsey folks to do in Area 8!
