Ronnie Mutch – EquestriSol

Ronnie Mutch Equitation Classic

By Laura Ware

The newly added championship week at this year’s HITS Desert Circuit brought many exciting new classes. One of them was the prestigious Ronnie Mutch Equitation Classic, which has previously been held at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida. To qualify for the classic, riders must have won a USET, USEF, ASPCA Maclay, or WIHS medal class at any of this year’s winter circuits.

This class is unique in that it does not allow the riders to communicate with their trainers during the time that the class is being held. The riders are also judged in the schooling ring. This year’s winner, Carly Anthony, was gracious enough to answer a few questions for us regarding this special class.

Laura: What was the format of the class?

Carly: There were two rounds. The first one was a jumper course that had a very demanding first line which challenged everyone. The judges definitely rewarded the people who took risks. Even if the round wasn’t perfect, they liked the fact that a rider was willing to put it on the line. The second round had tests which were also very difficult. There was no work off, but I believe there would have been if the judges had had more time, because the scores were very close. Laura: What was it like not being able to communicate with your trainers?

Carly: I LOVED IT! It was a great chance to use all that I have learned from my trainers and prove to them that what they teach me doesn’t go in one in ear and out the other; it actually stays in there.

Laura: What was it like to be judged in the schooling ring? I understand that the overall score from your round was adjusted based on the schooling arena judge.

Carly: It was so much fun to be judged in the schooling ring because that’s where it all happens. You get to show the judges what makes you even more unique from the other riders as you school your horse over warm-up fences. They announced the scores when the other scores from your round were announced, and a rider could receive a +4, +2, 0, -2, or -4. I would have to say that was one of the most interesting parts of the class.

Laura: Did you enjoy this type of class?

Carly: This was the most fun class that I have ever competed in. It was a true test of my knowledge, and it was such an amazing experience to prove not only to my trainers, but to myself that I can do this on my own. I really enjoyed riding on my own, and it gave me a little taste of what it will be like when I become a professional. It was an honor to be able to compete in such a wonderful class.

Laura: Thank you so much for your time, Carly, and congratulations on winning the inaugural Ronnie Mutch Equitation Classic on the West Coast. Hopefully we’ll see more of these classes in the future.

Ronnie Mutch was a life-long horseman. An early student of Gordon Wright and Al Homewood, Mutch won the AHSA Medal finals in 1950 at the age of 15. At 18 he was the youngest rider at the time to ride for the USET. By 1970, Mutch had established with his wife, Sue Bauer, one of the most successful show jumping stables in the country, Nimrod Farm. Twenty-eight years after Mutch had won the AHSA Medal Finals, Mutch’s son, Bert, won the Medal Finals. Ronnie and Bert Mutch are the only father and son combination to have won the Medal Finals.

The R.W. Mutch Educational Foundation is a tax exempt 501 (c) (3) educational foundation that sponsors both a scholarship and the annual R.W. (Ronnie) Mutch Equitation Classic. This special invitational class is open only to those young riders who qualify by winning one of the major equitation classes during any of the Winter Circuits, including HITS-Thermal, HITS-AZ, HITS-Ocala, CN-WEF & the Gulf Coast Winter Series. It is a highly sought after honor to be invited to participate.

Past Winners of the Equitation Classic:
2008 – Carly Anthony
2007 – Maria Schaub
2006 – Maria Schaub
2005 – Sloanes Coles
2004 – Brianne Goutal
2003 – Whitney Roper
2002 – Kate Landau
2001 – Brian Walker
2000 – Vanessa Haas
1999 – Sarah Willeman

Laura Listens is brought to you by Laura Ware. Winner of the 2007 LAHSA Junior Medal Finals and a recipient of the 2008 WCAR Jumper Rider Grant, Laura rides with First Field Farm and often trains with Archie Cox. She is very successful in the all three disciplines on her own mounts as well as catch riding other horses.

Highlights From HITS Thermal March 2008

Sunday, March 16th
On a cool, breezy Sunday the HITS DC Championship Week comes to an exciting close with six horses racing against the clock in the jump-off, including Guillermo Obligado on Suleyman de Wulf Selection, World Cup contender Keri Potter on her mount Rockford I, Master of Faster Richard Spooner riding Cristallo, veteran Eddie Macken aboard Tedechine Sept, Canadian Jill Henselwood on Special Ed and Olympic hopeful Will Simpson on El Campeon’s Tosca, in the $200,000 HITS Desert Circuit Invitational Grand Prix. Only two managed to go double clear and we congratulate Richard Spooner and Cristallo on their victory.

Saturday, March 15th / Sunday, March 16th

The west coast was honored to host the R.W. “Ronnie” Mutch Equitation Classic. Challenging by design, junior riders were on their own for every aspect of the class – walking the course, preparing their horse and making decisions about the ride – plus the track included some technical adjustments and stride options. On top of all that, the class went at night under the lights in the Grand Prix arena and the weather was windy to say the least. The wind picked up towards the end of the second round, leading to management deciding to complete the class on Sunday morning. Congratulations to Carly Anthony riding the beautiful Vogue to the win, just one point ahead of Shelby Wakeman on San Francisco.

Friday, March 14th

Congratulations also to Tache Rouge and John French on their win in the $10,000 ASG Software Solutions/USHJA International Hunter Derby Classic topping a talented field of handy hunters. Held under the lights in the Grand Prix arena, professionals, amateurs and juniors competed in this special class. Under the scrutiny of four judges, the top 12 horses hunted around two rounds of courses that included a snake option jump, liverpool, trot fence and the anticipated long gallop to the last oxer.

All three of the highlighted events drew a great crowd. No matter what the weather, spectators had fun and participated in cheering on hunters, jumpers and eq horses.

To view all of the HITS Thermal press releases, please click here.

We’ve listed the Desert Circuit Champions and Reserve Champions by division below – congratulations to all the exhibitors and we wish you continued success throughout the 2008 show season.

The Transition From Ponies To Horses And The Leap From 3′ to 3’6″

By Zazou Hoffman

The pony hunter ring allows the rider to get a real sense of what the judge is looking for in a hunter. Because the classes are smaller, broken into small, medium, and large pony divisions, the rider and the parents can watch every round; i.e. the whole division from beginning to end. So you can see what the judge rewards in the way of conformation and form over fences as well as in the under saddle classes. From watching and studying the same ponies over a two or three day period, you will learn various judges tastes (each day the judges rotate rings) and can begin to understand what wins. Often it seems that only the “name” ponies, which tend to be the most expensive ponies, are rewarded, but there are exceptions. And here’s the thing–there is camaraderie at the pony ring that gets lost in Children’s Hunters where the divisions have a ginormous number of entries. Your brain would turn to mush if you sat and watched every round, sometimes over a hundred. You never really get to see what the judge wants. Watch and learn at the pony ring as much as you can.

Don’t be too quick to move out of the pony ring, but if you are getting frustrated with competing against the top ponies, try some pony equitation classes and pony medals. Use the pony ring as a place to learn. Take notes on which ponies win consistently, try to watch videos of the best pony rounds from the indoor shows. On the East Coast many of the best pony riders are in their late teens. The Green Pony division is beginning to emerge on the West Coast and there is a real need for competent riders to help train the ponies that show exceptional talent.

Having the chance to show large pony hunters is an advantage in the transition to horses. Large pony hunters actually jump the same height, 3′, as Children’s Hunters (horses). It is more challenging for a pony than it is for a horse to jump that height, and also to cover the longer distances between fences. So pony riders who successfully pilot a large pony around generally feel comfortable with the height and make the transition to horses more readily. After jumping a 3′ course on a pony, you are ready for the next leap onto a horse.

When I rode ponies, I had a couple of difficult ones. They taught me to be a tenacious rider, which got me noticed by other trainers. I was lucky to be asked to catch-ride many wonderful and nationally known ponies. At the same time my mother had a green hunter horse, Andy Warhol, who was ready to move into the Children’s Hunters. We learned together. He was Small Junior Hunter size, so as I advanced, so did he. This is where we learned about another great transition division, the Modified Hunters. At 3’3″ it is an obvious transition height into the Small Juniors, which are 3’6″. One consideration is that there is no prize money because it is an unrated division and there are a ton of competitors. It’s a great practice division, but it’s meant as a transition to the 3’6″. When I moved into the Junior Hunters I can’t say it was seamless, but I did it. The Modified Division helped.

Once again the Junior Hunter Divisions are smaller, as in the ponies, and I took advantage of this by watching and getting a real feel for what the judge was looking for. Here in California, especially at Thermal, we have some of the finest hunters in the country competing. It is amazing to see such great athletes, with flawless conformation and movement, beautifully presented. They are like the most amazing Breyer horse models, but you can go up and touch them and ask the rider questions about their personality and what it’s like to ride them.

If you are already competing on a horse, Children’s, Modified or Junior, take the time to watch the 3’6″ hunters. Watching has taught me a lot over the years, not only about what the judge is looking for but also about the ride.

Zazou Hoffman is a 16-year-old from Santa Monica, CA. As a 13-year-old, having only shown locally, she decided to apply for the Ronnie Mutch Working Student Scholarship. She won, which led to working with respected East Coast trainers Missy Clark and John Brennan. Through hard work and commitment, by Jan. ’07 Zazou was one of seven elite riders chosen to work with Olympic Chef d’Equipe George Morris in Wellington, FL. She has competed in the Medal Finals for the past three years. She counts her win at the Maclay Regional, her 4th in “the Medal” at Harrisburg, her 5th in the USET Talent Search East at Gladstone, and her 3rd in the WCE amongst her notable accomplishments.