Photo Credits: Kelli Wainscott
By Aylen Dalke ’28
Staff Writer
The Mount Holyoke College Western Riding club team demonstrated their skills at a double header home show on Saturday, Nov. 2, hosted at the College’s Equestrian Center. The Western team has had a competitive season so far, winning their preseason tournament. The Nov. 2 show was the team’s first official show of the season, followed by a single show at home on Nov. 3. The western teams at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the University of Connecticut also competed on both days.
According to the MHC Western team’s social media, they finished the weekend with 2 Champion Team titles and a Reserve High Point team ribbon behind UMass.
Western riding is a style of horse riding where a horse performs a pattern that combines trail and reining elements, evolved from cattle ranching in the Americas. According to the American Quarter Horse Association, the rider and horse are judged on their ability to change riding patterns and walking speeds as seamlessly as possible, with emphasis on the fluidity of the performance.
Western riding competes in horsemanship, ranching and reining events, with different skills presented in each event. Horsemanship is judged based on the rider’s ability to control the horse and stay in position, while ranch riding and reining are both events that are based on performing a pattern.
How a team performs in a competition is determined by a combination of maneuver scores and penalties. Each maneuver is scored on a scale of -1.5 to 1.5, which is then added or subtracted from a starting score of 70. Penalties can range from 0.5-5 points, which are given for making certain errors.
“I’m looking forward to seeing new team members ride and just competing, being around horses,” team member Cate Bates ’25 said in an interview with Mount Holyoke News before the Nov. 2 show.
Bates is looking forward to the season ahead. “I think we’ve got a really great group of people this year and we’re going to look to make it to Nationals for the second time ever,” Bates said.
Tryouts are held at the beginning of each semester. Mount Holyoke students interested in joining the team should email head coach Kelli Wainscott for important information and dates. Every interested student is able to join the team no matter their experience level, according to the team’s website.