Back in the Saddle

The Orange Park Acres horse-riding community will be welcoming another year of horse show competitions this March, inviting horse lovers to come watch and compete during the shows.

“It’s exhilirating to see all these people come together,” said Patrice Christman, horse show chairwoman for the Orange Park Acres Trailblazers. “They have put in so much effort learning to control their horse.”

The fourth annual competitions are actually two contests, each held once every other month, and run from March through November at the Sully Miller Equestrian Center community arena in Orange Park Acres in Orange.

The horse show competition judges the horses on their form, how they look when they walk or trot and overall style. The gymkhanas is a speed and horse-handling contest in which the rider takes the mount through an obstacle course.

The first horse show will be held March 11 and the gymkhanas will be held March 12. The proceeds from those two days will benefit the Orange Acres Backbreakers 4-H Club.

Proceeds from the remainder of the year cover horse show costs and help maintain horse trails throughout the community.

Admission for spectators is free, and competition entry costs range from $3 to $9.

Christman said she and other coordinators of the community events have been preparing and recruiting horse product manufacturer sponsors for the shows since December.

Horse buckles will be awarded to first-place winners at the end of the season, and a western and English saddle will also be awarded this year. The criteria for winning the saddles has not yet been determined.

*

Some of the children who began competing in the shows have moved on to compete and win in national championship competitions, Christman said.

“It’s something we are proud of,” she said. “Given their accomplishments, it has helped some of the younger kids in the community get involved.”

Although show participation has grown since the first year, Christman said she would like to see it continue to expand.

“It’s a way to get to know each other and become a community,” she said. “The more participants you have, the more competition it brings to the party.”

To watch or participate in the monthly competitions, call Patrice Christman at (714) 633-5966 for further information.

Marissa Espino can be reached at (714) 966-5879.