USPC Festival Education 2021 Riding Clinic Preview

Education is available to all Pony Club members at the USPC Festival 2021 Presented by SSG Riding Gloves, Sponsored by State Line Tack. Come ride at the Kentucky Horse Park this July and learn from our many inspiring clinicians!

Festival Education 2021 offers nine different disciplines. This is a great time to try something new and to also improve your riding skills in a specific horse sport. Choose from cross country, dressage, show jumping, hunter seat equitation, games, polocrosse, ground training, distance riding, and western dressage.

To sign up, select your top seven choices and you will be assigned to four different riding times over a two-day period. There are also plenty of opportunities if you can’t bring your horse or pony to Festival. If you aren’t riding, you can sign up for unmounted education and watch as many clinics as you like.

Riding Clinic Highlights

Over Fences Fun
We are offering specific Hunter Seat Equitation instruction this year as we have more and more members wanting to earn their HSE certification.

Show Jumping remains always popular and clinics will be taught in small groups with six riders or less.

The Cross Country clinics are always well attended and will be spread out on the world-class cross-country course at the Kentucky Horse Park. Each clinic includes a water obstacle and many other types of jumps as well. We have top-level clinicians who are excited to share their expertise, including four who have completed the prestigious Kentucky Three-Day Event: Colleen Rutledge, Allie Sacksen, Mary Schwentker, and Cathy Wieschhoff. We are also offering the Introduction to Cross Country again this time as it was very popular last Festival.

Dressage Opportunities
Dressage clinics will include the opportunity to sign up for a “Ride A Test” option to be able to ride a dressage test of your choice and receive comments and personalized feedback. Our two Ride A Test clinicians, Terri Rocovich and Jane Kelly, are both national examiners and have achieved their USDF Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals along with many other dressage accomplishments. The other dressage clinics will run with a maximum of two riders for a 45–60-minute time slot.

Western Dressage is being offered again and we are excited to see this sport growing across the country.

Try Something New
Ground Training will be taught by the Kentucky Horse Park Police and is a very popular clinic to both watch and participate in. The participants learn to maneuver their mount in hand or under saddle over challenging obstacles, such as walking over a large mattress pad, over a bridge, through pool noodles and more. The skills learned apply to every aspect of horse handling and safety around horses.

For fast-paced fun, sign up for Games, whether you ride a pony or a horse. There is always something to learn and mounted games is a fun way to do it!

Polocrosse is again being offered and we have two advanced players as clinicians this year. Come learn how to play this exciting sport.

Distance Riding is a great way to explore the Kentucky Horse Park while learning about this rewarding sport. The clinic is taught by a veterinarian who understands the sport, and will include plenty of horse care and conditioning tips along the way.

On the last day of Festival Education there will be an early morning Mock Foxhunt provided by Iroquois Hunt. This is always a thrilling experience, so sign up to get a spot!

Learning In & Out of the Saddle
In addition to riding twice a day, riding participants are welcome to attend as many of the unmounted workshops as they can fit into their schedule. Many workshops are offered multiple times and days so you don’t have to worry about missing a thing.

Click here to learn more about Festival Education 2021 riding clinics, and see the list of workshop topics here. Registration for mounted education is open now through July 5. We can’t wait to see you this summer!