Road to PONY FINALS

Find out how four kids made it to the pinnacle of pony riding.

- SHOSHANA RUDSKI

The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Pony Finals is a well-known annual competition, held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky. It might seem like a daunting goal, but four riders chatted with us about how they work hard year-round to make their competition goals a reality.

LOCKLYN

Locklyn is 9 years old and lives in Warrenton, Va. Her mother runs Picturesque Farm, so she has gotten to grow up surrounded by ponies!

Locklyn is excited to get to show off what she and her pony have learned over the past year with the goal of Pony Finals in mind. She knows that Pony Finals is a big accomplishment.

"I have a lot of lessons, go to smaller local and rated shows, and I attend as many clinics as possible, and I also did a model [in-hand] clinic," she says. "I keep my pony fit by riding her in the fields and riding her regularly."

Like a lot of Pony Finals competitors, Locklyn loves to jump! She says that last year, competing over fences was her favorite part of Pony Finals. She also loved doing the Model division.

At home, Locklyn makes sure that not all of her horse time is hardcore show prep. She says her favorite things to do with her ponies include riding them bareback, trail riding, hunter paces, and just having fun.

When she is at other shows, she likes competing in hunter derbies and handy hunter classes.

"My happiest moment was winning the Warrenton Pony Show Derby, as it's my hometown show, and all of my friends were there!"

Of course, Locklyn knows that when you're showing ponies, sometimes things don't always go as planned.

"Remember that mistakes are OK, even if they don't seem like it," she advises other young riders. "They're helping us learn. If you have a bad show, it's OK to try to learn from it and practice [more] at home."

VIVIAN AND NORA