THOUSAND OAKS : Riders Over 30 Take This Show in Stride

From a distance, it appeared to be a typical horse show at Foxfield Riding School in Thousand Oaks on Sunday. Riders wearing hunt coats and hard hats climbed into English saddles and guided sleek horses over three-foot-high fences.

But on closer scrutiny, none of the riders were teen-age girls.

It was the 20th annual People Over Thirty Show, or POTS for short. Ranging in age from 30 to 73, Sunday’s POTS riders included doctors, lawyers, landscape architects and retirees.

Teen-agers, usually the stars of such horse shows, were relegated to the role of grooms, coaches or cheering spectators.

The POTS riders may never make the U. S. Olympic team, but their dedication offers proof that horses are more than a passing fancy afflicting mostly young females.

Amy McAvoy of Camarillo, the oldest rider at a spry 73, said she first mounted a horse 20 years ago when her daughters were taking riding lessons. “I thought I might as well ride as sit around watching them,” McAvoy said.

Though her daughters have hung up their spurs, McAvoy continues to take lessons at Foxfield three times a week. “I like the challenge,” she said.

A husband-and-wife team from Granada Hills, Rod and Cecile Chatt, both 59, picked up the sport to enjoy the scenery at Foxfield.

When she first saw the riding school, travel agent Cecile Chatt said, “it was such a beautiful place, I thought I would come back and take lessons as soon as I got the chance.”

Twenty years later, Cecile Chatt still appreciates the live oaks and grass-covered rolling hills. Even after she took a spill on the cross-country course, she maintains that “the horses are the best part.”

Rod Chatt’s introduction to horses came two years ago when the defense industry manager gamely agreed to go trekking on horseback in Ireland with his wife.

His preparation for a weeklong ride was a mere six lessons. “It was great,” he said. “By the time I finished, I wasn’t sore anymore.”

Regardless of his business travel, Rod Chatt makes sure that he shows up at his Saturday riding lesson. “It takes your mind off everything else,” he said. “When I ride, it’s the most relaxing day of the week.”

Dave Ullman, who founded POTS and acted as the judge Sunday, said the whole point was to have fun. No one got too worked up about the competition. And every rider rode away with a ribbon. Whether it was for first place or 10th, all the ribbons were the same color: blue.

“A lot of these people wouldn’t have the time or want the stress of a real horse show,” Ullman said. “You can come here and have a nice time with your horse.”