2012-2013 Season In Reflection

In intercollegiate riding, the schools are broken down into zones and regions based on geographic location. Purdue is in Zone 7 Region 1 along with IU, University of Illinois, Saint Mary of the Woods, Ball State, Taylor, Earlham, Parkland, Eastern Illinois, Manchester, St. Mary's College, and Butler. We have a total of ten "regular season" shows over the course of five different weekends during the year. Three show weekends first semester and two show weekends second semester. Each day of showing is a different show although the same teams are generally at each one. You are able to accumulate points as an individual rider as well as team points. The points are awarded to the top six places as follows:
First place: 7 Points
Second place: 5 Points
Third place: 4 Points
Fourth place: 3 Points
Fifth Place: 2 Points
Sixth Place: 1 Point
For individual riders, you can qualify for Regionals by pointing up into the next riding level. You need 36 points to point up and your points carry over to the next school year. The exception is the top level which is the Open class. For Open you need 28 points to qualify for Regionals but your points don't carry over to the next year. After you qualify for Regionals, you must place either first or second in your class at Regionals to qualify for Zones and then place first or second at Zones to qualify for Nationals.
In order to qualify as a team for Zones you must win your region as a team and to qualify for Nationals you have to win Zones as a team. At the regular season horse shows for each class your team has a point rider. This is the rider whose points count towards the overall team score. They are sort of the "offensive line" for the team. The other riders in the class are the "defensive line." Their job is still to do the best they can like the point rider so that they keep other teams' point riders from getting the high places and accumulating points.
Last year we were the Regional and Zone champions so we got to send a team to Zones and Nationals along with our riders who qualified individually. We placed tenth at Nationals last year.

The team after the Regional horse show at Blackdog Farm in Marion, IN. I went to support the riders who qualified. I took pictures of each of their rides and filled in their placings in the record book as they were announced.

Our Zones team after the show in Texas

Our Nationals team at the start of the show in Pennsylvania