BENEFIT PARTY : Saddling Up : Famed jockey Bill Shoemaker will attend, but the riding stars will be disabled youngsters showing their horseback skills.

Moorpark rancher Pete Peters does what some might consider nearly impossible. He teaches handicapped kids, some of them in wheelchairs, how to ride horses.

So what better person to invite to his all-day Christmas benefit bash on Sunday than America’s best known jockey, Bill Shoemaker? The 4-foot-11, 61-year-old legend not only knows a thing or two about horses, but also what it’s like to be handicapped.

Shoemaker, who had just retired to become a trainer, was nearly killed in a 1991 automobile accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down. After his injury, he went back to training other riders and horses at Hollywood Park. The horses he manages, many of which belong to celebrities, are winning big.

Today, Shoemaker uses a state-of-the-art wheelchair that is controlled by breathing into a straw-like device. He is unable to ride. But that won’t prevent him from being the star attraction at Peters’ bash. It is billed as a Christmas party and horse show.

The party runs from 9 a.m to 6 p.m. at Peters’ ranch at 7155 Walnut Canyon Road in Moorpark. Santa will be there, along with food and music. Peters also rented a “moon walk,” which is an inflatable bouncing gizmo for kids to jump on.

Admission is canned food or a wrapped toy. The food will be distributed to Catholic Charities in Moorpark, and the toys will be donated to Camarillo State Hospital.

But if Shoemaker alone isn’t enough of a draw, Peters also will have some hotshot riders on hand for demonstrations, including polo ace Sue Sally Hale of Moorpark. Also expected are Cherokee actor Iron Eyes Cody, who will be in full Indian dress, stuntman Jim Allen and cowboy Eddie Dean.

But the real riding stars will be the kids themselves as they get into the ring and perform what they’ve learned under Peters’ guidance.

Spectators will get to see them in barrel racing, pole racing and jumping. Although some of the kids can ride unassisted, others with more severe disabilities require some help.

“Sometimes we have to lead the horse through with one person on each side” of the rider, Peters said.

Peters, who helped found the Special Olympics in Ventura County, began the Handicapped Equestrian Learning Program six years ago. Today it is a year-round program for about 30 riders with physical and developmental disabilities. Peters also teaches kids from Camarillo State Hospital and, with the help of volunteers, coaches handicapped riders from as far away as Torrance and Manhattan Beach.

For the past four years, Peters has thrown all-day summer jamborees and barbecues to raise money to support the equestrian program. The idea to throw a party at this time of year came after he looked around him.

“I got a wild hair,” said Peters, who moved to Moorpark in 1961 after retiring from the military. “Too many people downtown are not eating.”

To convince Shoemaker to make an appearance, Peters elicited the help of the jockey’s brother, Ivan Shoemaker, who manages St. George’s Farm in Moorpark, where he breeds race horses. Ivan Shoemaker said his famous brother wouldn’t be one to let a crushing injury slow him down.

“He’s a worker,” Ivan Shoemaker said.

Other Kids’ Doings

* The Young Artists Ensemble is doing its version of “Cinderella” through Dec. 19 at the Conejo Valley Adult Center in Thousand Oaks. Evening performances are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and 2 p.m. matinees are on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $6. For information, call 499-4355.

* Kids aged 6 through 9 can find out what they need to know about collecting baseball and other sport cards at a class on Friday at the Conejo Community Center, Dover and Hendrix avenues, Thousand Oaks. The class runs from 3:15 to 5:15 p.m. Cost is $8. For information, call 495-2163.

* Illusions Theatre will perform “The Velveteen Rabbit” Saturday and Sunday at the Ojai Art Center, South Montgomery Street. Shows are 2 and 4 p.m. General admission tickets are $6.50; seniors and children under 12, $4. For information, call 646-3533.

* WHERE AND WHEN

Pete Peters, founder of the Equestrian Learning Program, is sponsoring a Christmas party and horse show Sunday at his Moorpark ranch, 7155 Walnut Canyon Road, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is canned food or toys to benefit Catholic Charities of Moorpark and Camarillo State Hospital.