Trip to Tennessee, Show Report, Southeast Academy Championship 2025

Awareness of the outside world. The Tri-State Exhibition Center is the home of the Tri-State Therapeutic Riding Center. TSCE: About

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Be happy for me that I went to a horse show. Don’t be mislead by the ribbons. Solo & small classes. Will I take the bling and be thrilled? Absolutely. Do I need four hats? No, but they are mine! Cue dragon hoarding noises.

Southeast Academy Championship
Tri-State Exhibition Center
McDonald TN
October 11-12, 2025
Inaugural Show

Saturday
3 Academy Driving – 1st of 1
4 Academy Driving Reinsmanship – 1st of 1
5 Academy WTC Showmanship Adult Amateur – 1st of 2
6 Academy WTC Equitation Adult Amateur – 1st of 2

Sunday
27 Academy Driving Regional Championship – 1st of 1
28 Academy Driving Reinsmanship Regional Championship – 1st of 1
29 Academy WTC Showmanship Adult Amateur Regional Championship – 2nd of 2
30 Academy WTC Equitation Adult Amateur Regional Championship – 1st of 2

Driving, thank you to the Huguly-Upton coalition for the rockstar Rocky. Riding, thank you to the Kasperian family for the beautiful Boogie. Both horses have official show names. These are their Academy names.

Photos, Terry Young Photography.

Getting In The Ring I

If you look at the list, you will see that my classes are consecutively numbered. We swapped with classes 1&2 (25&26) so that I had a small break. But I still relied heavily on Team Stepping Stone to get me into the ring.

Folks hitched driving horse. Coach Courtney or Coach James warmed up. Cart. Classes. After, someone else drove horse back to the barn while I scampered into the warmup ring. Riding horse was standing at mounting block ready to go. Hop on. Yet another person handed me food and drink. Classes. Trot back to warmup. Hop off. More folks swarmed to swap saddles for next rider. I stood around smiling at all and sundry.

At no point did I participant in getting either of my horses ready. Princess power!

Getting In The Ring II

The horse I had planned to ride & drive was unavailable. Two of the show horses were called back down to the minors to cover. Performance class horses work hard for one class. Academy horses work easier but longer. It is the difference between a short sprint and a long, leisurely stroll. Both horses were stars about the last minute substitution.

Rocky I had ridden once at the end of last year. We had never driven together. [Days With Diego]

Boogie I had ridden twice recently. [New Ears for August and a Profound Lesson Realization & The Unending Conversation]

I had faith in both horses.

Driving Day One

Granted there is a noticeable absence of nail-biting drama in a one-entry class, but I still wanted to drive well. I felt a bit stiff throughout. I started with my reins too short and never really sat up and showed off. I did feel froggy enough to ask for a big trot. I’m not sure how much we got. At least I asked.

The pattern for the second class was a circle each way. Afterwards, Couch Courtney said she liked the second circle better, it had more flow. What? Flow? After way too many 20-meter circles in dressage rings, I was all about shape. Noted.

Rocky decided that two classes was over his limit. He never quit on me or made me uncomfortable but halfway thru the second class, he dropped it into chill mode. When I asked for the extended trot in the second direction of the second class, I got a strong vibe of, ‘I hear ya. Not happening.’

He was cute at the beginning.

Me (starting up to head into the ring): Go.
Rocky: Go!
Me: Maybe not so much.
Rocky: Slow!
Me: Somewhere in between, perhaps?
Rocky: Okay!

We stayed in the ring and did one victory pass at the end of the second class.

Riding Day One

Stylin’ on a smoking hot horse. Yes please. More please.

While I still had to ride, if I lost, it wasn’t going to be the horse’s fault. (Yes, it’s never the horse’s fault.) I had all the gears I needed, all the horse I needed. The other adult has been beating me regularly over the years. I adore Optimus, but I will admit it was nice to have the increased horsepower.

In the photos, I wasn’t thrilled with the saddle seatiness of day one. I did stretch up and keep my chin up and all those other up things. My position just doesn’t scream saddle seat. Is balance seat saddle seat a thing? As of yesterday, I haven’t looked at day two.

Boogie was a star. Lively enough to be spiffy but professional enough to be tolerant of me in show mode. By the fourth class with the kid who rode after me, Boogie was starting to wonder why he kept coming in and out of the ring.

Driving Day Two

While I was once again the hot – and only – favorite, I still wanted to drive better. I decided to go in and have fun with the fancy horse. I sat up and drove more like I do at home and in other driving classes.

I remembered that saddle seat has generally smaller circles than dressage. So I aimed for tighter and thought about flow.

I felt Rocky and I reached a compromise. A little bit less in the first class to smooth out the effort into the second. I did get some ‘tude when I left the line up for the first class to head back to the rail for the second class. In fairness, I’ve gotten ‘tude from Optimus when we have stayed in the ring for a second class at a fun show. Saddlebreds, even Academy, start their classes by trotting into the ring.

When did our first circle on the second day, I got a wave of, ‘What fresh hell is this?’ He was absolutely amenable about it, but he was going to let me know his feelings.

He was all about the victory pass. That part he knew about.

Riding Day Two

First class, I rode about the same. My competition was on a different horse, one that seemed to suit them well. They beat me once again.

As I came out of the ring, I told Coach Courtney, ‘That’s all I got.’ Coach James tried to big me up. You can relax a little. Meh. You can sit up a little. Meh. He was not wrong. It’s just that I have been trying to do those things for years. I didn’t see them changing in the next two minutes. So he said something along the lines of, If you have nothing to lose, go for it. Now that I can work with. [Team Awesome, driving]

Into the ring I stormed. I went a little bit faster. I lifted my hands a little bit higher. I dialed everything up a tenth of a percent. Boogie continued to be his charming and professional self. It was enough.

Or it was the luck of the draw about which bits the judge saw.

I might have gotten a wee bit wild in the victory pass. In trying for a bold statement, one wants controlled exuberance. I sometimes lean into the exuberance and forget about the controlled.

Coda

Public shout out to Coach Courtney for giving academy students the same time and attention as she gives the suit riders. I’ve ridden under a two-tier system. This one is preferable.

Update: Show Posts
[Trip To Tennessee, Photography]
[Trip to Tennessee, Nerves]
[Trip to Tennessee, Looking Back]

Onwards!
Katherine