Local teen competes in national equine contest

ZANESVILLE – This weekend, a Zanesville teen is traveling to Florida to compete in a national equestrian jumping competition on a horse that she's never ridden before.

Competitors are not allowed to ride the horse they practice on, said 15-year-old Paige Mox. Being too familiar with the horse can give someone an unfair edge. Plus, knowing how to ride an unfamiliar horse is part of the competition.

"You have to have this ability to get on the horse and know immediately how to ride it," she said.

And by this time, at nationals, it has to be a perfect ride.

"When you go to nationals, you're competing against the best teams in the country," she said.

Mox lives in Zanesville and is a freshman at Tri-Valley High School. She is a member of the West Licking District Equestrian Team and rides for Paddock Stables in Pataskala. This is her third year on an IEA competition team, but she's been riding horses since she was 6 years old.

"I just really liked horses," she said.

Contests within the Interscholastic Equestrian Association, which is hosting the national tournament in Wellington, Florida, are split into three levels — regional, zone and national. The West Licking District Equestrian Team was the Region 2 reserve champion and the Zone 5 grand champion.

There are two types of jumping competitions — jumpers and hunters. Jumpers are based on speed and accuracy; riders try to get through the course as quickly and technically proficiently as possible. Hunters, on the other hand, have to look good while performing well, which is what Mox will be competing in.

"It has to be (beautiful)," she said.

Scores can come down to whether a rider was sitting verses standing in their saddle. The time typically doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of the competition, but too slow of a gait could be penalized.

And some of that depends on the horse.

Riders draw for horses, which are provided by various barns specifically for jumping events, so the horses all know how to compete. But personalities can clash between horse and rider and you have to know how to go forward.

Sometimes the judges take that into consideration — if a perfect ride is slightly marred by a stubborn horse, Mox said there are judges that can be understanding. Sometimes, though, you just get a bad draw, like when one of her team members who is 6 feet tall drew one of the smallest horses available.

Her mother, Deanna Mox, said they figured out pretty quickly Mox was good at riding and continued pursuing lessons and competition opportunities. There are college scholarships available for high school students who compete.

Riding horses also offered a lesson for Mox in finding worth in what she does.

"When I say I ride horses, a lot of people don't see that as a big thing," she said. "It teaches you to look at what you do and know it's important."

ksnyder2@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com

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Twitter: @KL_Snyder