Though all exhibitors hope that showing at a major event like the Congress or the World Show will bring out the best in their horse, we all know that sometimes the opposite is true. Nerves can get the best of horses and riders. Sometimes a great go doesn’t make the finals. Despite the best preparation, horses can spook, act naughty, and just not give us their best.
How do competitors bounce back from a bad class or pattern and stay motivated to compete to their full potential? GoHorseShow spoke with several exhibitors at this year’s Congress that experienced the full range of good, bad, and ugly their horses had to offer. They shared their insights about overcoming nerves, leaving the past in the past, and going on to win big. Competitors showing at the AQHA and APHA World Shows should be sure to check out their insightful advice.
Whitney Lagace and Range To A Te
AQHA Professional Horseman Whitney Lagace experienced the full spectrum of highs and lows a major event like Congress has to offer. She shares that as a professional the pressure one experiences at a big show can seem overwhelming.
“Every rider is disappointed in their performance if things didn’t go well. Maybe they had a pilot error, or maybe their horse didn’t step up. But, as professionals, we have to answer to ourselves and to the horse’s owner who has invested a lot of time, trust and money in us. It’s easy to beat yourself up,” Whitney says.
She goes on to say, “I had several not so stellar goes this year. My horse that I expected to be great in the Junior Trail, spooked. I was devastated. I told all of my peers that I was quitting horses to be a Wal-Mart greeter.”
Lagace adds that it’s easy in those situations to begin second guessing your preparation. “You ask yourself, did I longe enough? Should I have mellowed the horse out more? There are so many questions that run through your head. But at that point, you just have to sit down and reevaluate. You figure out whether you need to change something next time, or if it was just bad luck. And then you have to let it go.”
Letting it go is often the trickiest part at a show where the stakes are high. Lagace urges competitors to give themselves time to work through their emotions. “It’s a roller coaster. You have to work through those emotions, but once you’ve done that you can’t dwell on things. You’ll sabotage yourself if you do.” She adds, “Once you step off the emotional roller coaster, you need to put on your big girl pants and give that next horse, or next ride 110%.”
Several days after her not so great goes, Lagace won the Senior Trail with the highest score, a 241.5, ever recorded at Congress. “Nothing can bring you as high and low as a horse show,” Lagace says. She adds that sometimes, despite all the preparation in the world, it takes some luck to win big.
“Horses need to be in the mood to give 110%. Just because we give that every time, doesn’t mean they will. For a lot of people, those big wins are once in a lifetime rides, and I believe horses only give us a few of those.”
Lagace feels that those odds should act as an encouragement to young trainers and exhibitors. “Young people coming up need to remember that everyone had that first time to win big. It takes the right horse, the right ride, the right owners, the right judges, and the right environment. So keep pushing to accomplish it.”
For her, the best thing a rider can do is surround themselves with people that care about them. She urges, “Have a positive team around you. When you’re feeling empty, your owners and staff will be positive. And it’s our job to do the same in return.”
Deanna Green and Blazinmytroublesaway
Youth competitor Deanna Green is no stranger to the winner’s circle. She’s ridden to multiple AQHYA World and Congress Championships. Like any competitor, her good goes don’t come without some bad. Early in the show Green competed with her mare Blazinmytroublesaway, or Buttercup, in the 15-18 Showmanship.
“We’re both pretty new at showmanship, we’ve been doing it less than a year.” Green’s patterns started out well, and she made the finals, but her finals pattern didn’t go as planned. “We were halfway through the turn when she moved her pivot foot and I tried to fix it. After that I got flustered and overspun. From there it’s pretty much a blur,” Green says.
According to Green, she and trainer Brad Jewett quickly came up with a game plan to put their showmanship back on track. “We weren’t upset with Buttercup because it wasn’t her fault. I knew I needed to work on my approach to the turns and not rush things. For a few days, we worked on a lot of turns, especially the way I started them. Once I realized how to keep her in them, we really improved.”
Several days later, Green had a chance to redeem herself in the showmanship pen. My trainer, Brad Jewett, told me not to worry going into this next class. “After the prelims of the Novice Youth 14-18, we were the last person to make it back to the finals. I knew I needed to improve my turn for the finals. In the time, we had we practiced and I told myself I was going to go for it in the finals. Luckily it worked out and we won.”
For Green, coming back from a disappointing run was all about connection and focus. “The more correct I tried to be, the better it got. I realized I had to stop focusing on going fast in our turns, and work on being correct.” She shares that her trainer gave her some important advice about approaching a pattern after a bad go.
“Brad told me that if I kept focusing so much on the problem area, the turn, it would hurt the rest of my pattern. So, when we practiced we tried to keep our routine the same and keep her from anticipating the problem area. I realize now that we’ve come farther in this class, at just this horse show, than we ever have.”
Green, who showed in ten classes at this year’s Congress, says that moving on from mistakes is the key to her success. She says, “If you don’t put mistakes behind you they will keep happening. If you consistently work hard, it will all come together. But, sometimes you have to give it time. Showmanship has just started coming together at this show, and even though one class didn’t go well, we were able to regroup and go on to win.”
Kip Riley and Solo Invested
Select Amateur competitor, Kip Riley, shows his gelding, Solo Invested, in horsemanship and showmanship under the guidance of Chris Gray Performance Horses. He shares that his pattern in the Select Horsemanship at the Congress did not go as planned. “We had prepared, we were ready, and we were having a good go. But, just after the lead change, Mac spooked at someone walking down the stairs,” says Riley.
He says that when a ride goes wrong, it can be difficult to stay focused. Because Riley was scheduled to compete in Amateur Select Showmanship in a few days, he knew he needed to put his disappointing horsemanship run behind him. “My trainer, Chris Gray, must have seen in my face that I was upset. He really helped to put me in a frame of mind where I felt I could go back out and try to win the showmanship.”
Riley adds that putting so much focus on his mental state turned out to be an advantage when it came time for showmanship. He says, “Chris kept emphasizing that I belonged in that group of horses and showmen, and that I couldn’t let my disappointment affect my performance. In hindsight, that bobble in horsemanship is probably the best thing that could have happened.”
On Wednesday morning Riley and Solo Invested brought their best to the showmanship arena. They placed third in a competitive group of select exhibitors.
“I was very confident going into showmanship. I had prepared and just kept telling myself, ‘I can do this, it’s my best event.’”
He adds that knowing his horse’s strengths helped his confidence. “I knew my horse would be there for me. He’s always honest in the showmanship pen. Knowing that really boosted my confidence.” He also says that having a cheering section helped him to stay motivated. “I knew I had a barn full of people watching, and my family watching at home. All of those people believed in me. I wanted to pull it together for both myself and them.”
No matter what happens in the ring—whether it’s at a weekend show, the World Show, or Congress, Riley says he tries to keep things in perspective. “Yes, it’s the Congress and it’s the biggest show of the year. But really, it’s just another horse show. Plus, anybody that shows knows it can all change in the next class. Of those finalists in the showmanship, anyone could have won on any given day.”
Eric Mendrysa and Only By Moonlight
Eric Mendrysa competes in amateur all-around events with his mare, Only By Moonlight, under the direction of Reid Thomas. He says his Congress did not begin as planned, due to no fault of his horse. “Our Congress started out pretty rough, Moonie had a hot nail while getting shod, which resulted in an abscess and only being able to work her very lightly. I wasn’t able to practice or prep for the horsemanship or showmanship like I would for a normal show.”
Due to decreased rides, Mendrysa shares that his first class didn’t go as he he’d hoped. “We didn’t make the callback in horsemanship due to a few extra lead changes.” But things turned around quickly. He goes on to say that, “Later that week in the showmanship, she really stepped up to the plate and showed amazing for me. We made the finals, and then placed 4th out of over 130 exhibitors. I was so proud of her.”
Mendrysa believes dealing with a health issue helped him remember what’s important. “When you get to a big show like the Congress and you’re dealt a bad card, it really puts it in perspective that the horse’s health and well being means the most. When I realized she was sound and healthy enough to do the showmanship, I went for it with a clear mind and no expectations.”
He adds, “I think that’s the part of showing horses that’s so important. You can never let any past ride, or run rent any future space in your head. It was important for me to keep in mind that we have a big future ahead of us and our good goes have outweighed our bad goes. We have plenty more Congress’ to come.”
Scott Jones and Assets Agenda
At the beginning of Congress, Scott Jones of Showstring showed the mare, Assets Agend in the Maturity Open Hunter Under Saddle. “I was showing in a safe zone in the Maturity,” says Jones. “I wanted to save the mare for the senior, and so I just played it too safe.” Unfortunately, Jones didn’t make the callbacks. He shares that though he was discouraged, he knew he needed to look toward the next class.
“I’ve learned from years of showing that you can’t let a class that didn’t go your way, for whatever reason, set you back.” He adds that he wanted to learn from what he might have changed. “I analyzed my ride and took in what people around me were saying. I know what our strengths and weaknesses are, so, I decided to pick her up and move her forward in the next go.”
Jones shares that the most important part of moving forward is not agonizing over what went wrong, or what you could have improved. “Showing horses is really a mental game. Mentally, you have to stay focused and calm. It’s a tough balance because it’s not a weekend horse show. It takes a strong mental approach to do well at a major show, and a big part of that is not letting your mind become fixed on the negative.”
For Jones, the Senior Hunter Under Saddle is where things turned around. “When it came time to prepare for the senior, I figured out what I wanted to fix and trusted my plan. I made sure I covered everything I could, and when the class came I just went in and rode.” Jones rode the mare to the top spot in a competitive Senior Hunter Under Saddle class, proving that every day is a new day when it comes to horse shows.
The advice that rings true across competitors is that at the end of the day we’re all in this for the same reason. Granted everyone likes to win, but we’re engaged in a sport where our teammates have minds of their own. So, the best thing we can do is give our all every time out, hope our horses give the same, and have a drink ready in the cooler, no matter what the outcome.
