"But the kids that ride there are really good!"

That wasn't quite the response I'd expected when I told another local horseperson that I planned to take students to former Olympic dressage competitor Lendon Gray's 2000 Northeast Junior/Young Riders Dressage Championship Show, held at the Ox Ridge Hunt Club in Darien, Connecticut.

I've been teaching for twenty-six years, though I've only recently focused exclusively on my training business in High Falls, New York, a small town in the state's Mid-Hudson region. And I feel pretty capable of sizing up the odds at a show. I'm not a hugely competitive person, but I've had plenty of mileage in the show ring; I helped introduce dressage to the Pinto circuit and rode several Pintos to New England championships. And for most of the last decade I worked as assistant to Janet Black, a clinician an "r" judge whose students include Marcia Kulak, an event rider short-listed for the '92 Olympics. (Janet's a stickler for detail, and working with her was an immersion in the "correct" way of doing things.)

I moved to High Falls twelve years ago to manage a large riding facility, and I stayed on even after deciding the job wasn't right for me. Though the town is less than an hour from some of the state's fanciest horse country, many riders in these parts struggle to afford the sport. I like teaching this kind of student – I'm always up for trading work for lessons, and what such students lack in funds they typically more than make up for in commitment. And I think the kids that ride with me are "really good."

So despite my naysaying friend, I took them to Lendon's show. While there, I ran into Gretchen Scott, a fellow local trainer – and after all the students the two of us had brought ended up scoring in the top ten in their divisions, we looked at each other and declared, "We should form a team from Ulster County!" (One of the options at the NEJ/YR Championships is for individuals to form and compete as teams of three to four riders. Team members can be of varying age and skill levels; their individual scores are averaged for team placings.)

We kept talking and discovered we'd be good partners for forming a team. I'm an idea person and like to coordinate; Gretchen's a great implementer. We agreed that our first step would be to hold a meeting and invite every junior dressage rider we knew. Enough riders came to field two teams. Then the real work began.

Because Lendon's show is about more than simply riding a good test – participants are also judged on equitation and performance in a written exam – we knew excellent preparation would be important. With invaluable help from parents, community volunteers, and elements borrowed from other equestrian youth organizations ( such as the Pony Club's unmounted "book" sessions and 4H's in-depth analysis of conformation), we began an intense six-month prep program.

We held weekly meetings and mandated lessons with students' "home" instructors, but our best tool was a "mock competition" weekend where we simulated every phase of Lendon's show. For dressage riders, who normally compete solo, the equitation class was a particularly helpful experience.

We also worked on fundraising: We solicited sponsorships, held a raffle, and sold stickers. One big thing those funds let us do was hire a tractor-trailer outfit to haul to the show. Seeing their horses pull up in the rig really made our kids feel like a team

The Ulster County Young Riders had excellent results at the 2001 NEJ/YR Show: One team placed fourth, three students scored in the top ten, and one was second overall at First Level. Even better, our kids were incredibly supportive of each other; when placings were announced, an onlooker would have thought they all were winners. They wanted success for one another as much as they wanted it for themselves.

The Young Riders team was important for me, too: It came along at a point when I'd found myself starting to teach for the paycheck, not for the passion – the very thing I'd despised seeing trainers do when I was younger. Working with the team changed that: I realized kids weren't sticking with our demanding program out of self-interest, but because they cared about and were willing to work hard for the group. That kind of dedication is difficult to teach but incredibly gratifying to witness.

So Gretchen and I plan to coach the Ulster County Young Riders at Lendon's show again this year – and to keep doing it a long as there are local kids who want to go!