Photo caption: The equestrian club prepares for its next tournament on Nov. 8-9 at St. Mary of the Woods College. Photo by Natalie Goo.

DOROTHY LAKSHMANAMURTHY | ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR | dlakshmanamurthy@butler.edu 

“Do you guys do hobby horsing?”

This question — referencing the trend where people simulate horse riding with a toy stick horse  — was sarcastically asked to junior equestrian club member Claire Chartier not once, but twice at this year’s Block Party. 

Chartier, who has dedicated over a decade to riding, training and competing on real horses, found the question to be another reminder of how often equestrian is misjudged and overlooked.

“There is this stereotype that people who ride horses are weird,” Chartier said. “People don’t respect the sport. If people were around horses more, they would understand. I have friends who knew nothing about horseback riding, and they watched me for the first time and were like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m actually really scared of horses. I don’t know how you do that.’ So, I think it’s nice to bring awareness that the equestrian club even exists.”

Although the club may have a quiet presence on campus, it makes a name for itself in the collegiate equestrian community. The club competes within the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) against teams in their zone: Ball State University, Earlham College, Indiana University, Purdue University, St. Mary of the Woods College, Taylor University, University of Illinois and University of Notre Dame. 

The teams go head-to-head throughout the season at various hosted shows, and each year, the Bulldogs host their own at their practice facility, Sierra Woods Farm. This year’s competition was held on Oct. 18-19.

At these shows, riders compete in two main categories: Flat and Over Fences. Flat competitions are judged on the rider’s form and control when instructed to do specific riding commands. Over Fences focuses on jumping ability and rhythm through a preset course. 

To prepare for competitions, the club holds practices together each Friday at Sierra Woods. A trainer at the facility, Emily Ahlfeld, serves as Butler’s equestrian coach and leads the team’s practices. 

Even though the club trains as a group, the competitions are judged based on the performance of each individual rider, not as a team.

“It’s much more one-on-one,” Ahlfeld said. “I’m really working with each rider as an individual. They have different strengths and weaknesses that we’re constantly working on, and it’s always about celebrating the small victories. For instance, if I’ve been working with a rider on something specific, and they go in the ring and follow through with it and get rewarded with a good placing, that’s always the most exciting thing to see.”

While the team perfects its skills together each week, IHSA competitions bring their own unique challenge. Riders must randomly draw a horse from a pool made up of horses provided by both the host school as well as those brought by the visiting teams.

Despite this unpredictable rule, junior equestrian club president Kevin Beall finds that drawing a random horse makes him an even stronger rider. 

“With each horse I ride, I get to add a little bit more to my equestrian dictionary,” Beall said. “I get to pull out different things that I’ve learned from random horses in different shows. If I’m riding a horse that’s a bit faster, I can be like, ‘I’ve ridden a horse like this before. What did I do last time? What can I apply this time from that ride before?’ I think the random pool really makes it a fair playing field and also showcases your abilities and versatility when riding different types of horses.”

At each show, riders accumulate points based on their podium placements in order to advance to the regional, zone and ultimately the national competitions that all occur in the spring semester. 

Last season, Beall represented Butler on the national stage in Over Fences and placed seventh overall.

“Competing at nationals was a really cool experience,” Beall said. “I was just so elated to be there, and it was honestly one of the least stressful rides because there wasn’t anywhere else to go. There wasn’t any more qualifying; I already made it. I was able to focus on just putting in a good ride and having fun.”

With the work the riders continuously put in during practices and competitions, Chartier made it clear that equestrian is way more than just a hobby.

“It is a sport,” Chartier said. “I always tell people that horseback riding takes muscles that you don’t use in anything else. The athleticism comes from holding your body in the correct way to allow the horse to move properly and for you and the horse to operate as a team. When you are riding, it is really like you are communicating with an animal that doesn’t speak English via physical cues.”

The equestrian club looks forward to its next meet at St. Mary of the Woods College on Nov. 8-9.